Off Track Thoroughbreds

Abigail Gentry on her New Vocations OTTB Bridlemeup is one of 16 Ambassadors to the charity.

New Vocations taps ambassadors

New Vocations Racehorse Adoption Program announced the names of 16 ambassadors of the Thoroughbred and Standardbred re-homing organization to represent and promote the successful horse charity.

The individual equestrians who adopted ex-racehorses from the program will be asked to blog about their experiences as they participate in a wide range of disciplines with their equine partner, including dressage, eventing, hunter/jumpers, endurance, saddleseat, and driving.

The shows, the events, and all other activities that the 16 ambassadors participate in will help spread the good word about the ex-racehorse sport horse, and the New Vocations program, says New Vocations Program Director Anna Ford.

“On any given day we have over 70 horses in our program needing a new home, so it’s crucial that we continue to seek ways to educate the public about our program and the versatility of retired racehorses,” Ford says. “We are extremely pleased to have 16 highly qualified equestrians promote racehorse adoptions in their chosen discipline this year.”

The New Vocations Thoroughbred Ambassadors are: Jill Stowe and Dundee; Laura Vorwerk and Sam P; Alexandra Gainer and Gone Ballistic; Peggy O’Neill and Patty Wagon; Abigail Gentry and both Bridlemeup and Chanttoomuch; Laura Norton and Angel’s Tune; Mary McDonald and Russian Ally; Monica Vollmer and Yankee Wonder; and Nicole Schimweg and Tina H.

The New Vocations Standardbred Ambassadors are: Jenna Mock and Ukase Hanover; Amanda Munson and Studs Hooligan; Anne Houle and Lucky NZ; Chris Glover and Silver Match; Debra Schiff and All American Legacy; Patricia Clark and East Meets West; and Bev Patterson and Inglorious Barnard.

Each ambassador will be responsible for promoting New Vocations at various events and shows throughout the year by handing out program literature, displaying banners, and wearing New Vocations apparel. Ambassadors will also have their own individual blog page on the New Vocations website where they can post about their show experiences as well as share photos and fun video clips taken at the events.

Leading jockey Rosie Napravnik poses with Geri, the hat and the horse.The hat is the final auction piece for the 5th annual Hats Off for the Horses fundraiser.

Hats Off for Old Friends

Leading jockey Rosie Napravnik, a board member of Old Friends Equine, caps off the run up to the Kentucky Derby by modeling a stunning chapeau currently being auctioned for Old Friend’s annual Hats Off to the Horses: The Road to the Derby.

To date, haute couture hat fashions crafted by Massachusetts-based milliner Sally Faith Steinmann, of Maggie Mae Designs® have raised more than $20,000 for the Kentucky-based horse charity.

This year’s auction took on added glamor and charm when the svelte Napravnik agreed to model auction hats, while posing next to former racehorses who inspired the artist in some way.

The last hat available in the six-month auction is the “Geri,” a scarlet red confection inspired by 22-year-old chestnut ex-racehorse Geri, a retiree at Old Friends.

This is the fifth consecutive year that Old Friends has joined with acclaimed milliner Steinmann to auction six handcrafted Kentucky Derby hats, each inspired by one of the non-profit organization’s 125 retired racehorses.

Bidding on “The Geri” runs April 1-11th. Interested bidders can go to the Old Friends website at www.oldfriendsequine.org and follow the link.

All my Robyns was hundreds of pounds underweight when she was rescued from the Unadilla Auction.

The kill-pen mare who left the Unadilla Auction April 12, 2013 all skin and bones and chewed-off tail, and reemerged six weeks later at a horse show where she won a ribbon, continues to amaze her owner who nearly passed her up.

Since the gray mare first bellowed a mournful whinny at Ingrid Messineo, making a plea that broke her heart, the petite animal has not let a day go by when she doesn’t delight and amaze the woman who saved her.

“I see her everyday now, because I’ve moved her to my backyard, and the instant she sees me, she starts calling to me,” Messineo says. “I take her on a walk up the road everyday, and my neighbors who walk by with their dogs come up and say, ‘Nice, big dog Ingrid.’ She’s a big puppy, is what she is, and to this day, I’m the only person she’ll come over to—I’m her person.”

The two have been inseparable since the day Messineo spotted the bedraggled horse while helping her friend scope out the Unadilla Auction for Thoroughbreds.

All My Robyns
New name: Diamond in the Rough
Sire: Robyn Dancer
Dam: East of Allemont, by Far Out East
Foal date: April 6, 1997She spotted All My Robyns, who has since been renamed Diamond, and quickly assessed that beneath the shabby wreckage of her body was a very good horse.

Four good feet, and good conformation. “You’re a nice horse”, she whispered to her just before leaving for the day. “I hope you find a good home.”

But as she turned to go, the mare whinnied long and low at Messineo, as if saying, “I can’t believe you’re leaving me here!”

Messineo couldn’t walk away. So her friend made room for the petite, 15.2 hand mare on the trailer, and six weeks later, Messineo wound up riding her in the walk-trot division of the Ulster County Fair. They placed 5th.

Many people, including Messineo, were astounded.

All My Robyns as she appeared the day she left the auction.

The mare had been hundreds of pounds underweight when the New York equestrian rescued her. Yet, in record time, the All My Robyns contentedly munched her way back to such a healthy weight that Messineo made an alarmed call to her veterinarian at one point, worrying the mare was in foal. She wasn’t. It turned out the mare was just fat and happy.

In the year since, life has passed agreeably.

Through the long, hard winter, Diamond has kept up her weight so well that she has earned the nickname Heffer. And recently, Messineo relocated the animal from a boarding facility to her backyard at home.

“We cut down some trees, put some fencing up, and we’ve made trails through the backyard snow so I can ride her around and help her exercise,” she says. “And we go for a two-mile walk up the road nearly everyday.”

All My Robyns showed six weeks after leaving the kill pen!

Though the mare recently suffered a mild colic episode, the animal felt so comfortable with her family and vet that she endured a rectal exam and tubing without anesthesia.

“She was at the first stage of colic after the weather had changed, and, because she’s so gentle, my vet suggested we try tubing her without anesthesia,” she says. “So I just grabbed her ear, and up went the hose into her nose, and there was no fighting—nothing.

“My vet was so excited she’s been telling everyone.”

Though Diamond will probably never be a flashy show horse, she lives her second-chance life with unusual class.

“Diamond came into my life a reason. I could not imagine her not being here with me everyday,” Messineo says. “When I am upset all I have to do is open my back door walk out onto my porch and hear her talk to me and there the smile appears from within. Her mannerism, kind eye and the love she shows me each and everyday, I could not ask for anything more from her. Our lives together are great.”