TAKE THE LEAD Finds Homes For 43 Retired Racehorses During Aqueduct Winter, Spring Meets

As the Aqueduct Spring Meet closed on Sunday, New York’s TAKE THE LEAD Program was busy finding transportation for its two most recent retirees – the 3-year-old filly Snarky heads to New Vocations, while the 6-year-old gelding Tuesday's Child will ship to ReRun. During Aqueduct’s Winter and Spring Meets, TAKE THE LEAD found placements with Thoroughbred Aftercare Alliance-accredited facilities for 43 of New York’s racehorses.

“This is a very positive story,” said Rick Schosberg, president of TAKE THE LEAD and its sister program, TAKE2. “There is so much focus placed on what are, thankfully, relatively rare tragic events. But here we have 43 horses that will get all the love and care they need even after their racing careers are over. Our aftercare partners will give every one of them the necessary R&R and retraining, then find them the perfect adopter. There are so many happy endings in horse racing that never get told.”

TAKE THE LEAD, founded by the New York Thoroughbred Horsemen’s Association (NYTHA), has placed more than 1,200 retired racehorses since its launch in 2013. The program serves as a liaison with New York’s owners and trainers, ensuring that all paperwork is completed, placements are found, shipping is arranged, and that each horse is accompanied by a donation to the aftercare facility to offset the cost of retraining and rehoming. More than $128,000, an average of nearly $3,000 per horse, has been distributed by TAKE THE LEAD on behalf of the horses retired to date this year. The initiative is funded in large part by the horsemen and women through NYTHA and through a surcharge on every horse claimed at Aqueduct, Belmont, or Saratoga.

The horses assisted by the TAKE THE LEAD Program run the gamut, from unraced fillies like Kathy’s Legacy to veterans like 7-year-old Brunate. Fully two-thirds of the retirees this year are New York-breds, but Florida, Kentucky, Pennsylvania, and even Washington are represented.

“People outside our industry often ask, ‘what happens to the horses when they leave the track?’ There is a misconception about what the future might hold for them,” said TAKE THE LEAD Executive Director Andy Belfiore. “Thanks to the commitment of New York’s owners and trainers to our program, we can say with confidence that New York’s racehorses live happy and healthy lives even after their racing careers are over.”