09/06/2025
Some food for thought here, as someone who started out wanting to rehome ex racers this definitely hits home for me.
How rehoming race horses works.
Each year Rehomers are given a number of horses that can be split into three groups. The first group are the horses that are the averages, theses horses might be plain looking, they have an average personality and ability. They will require body work, feed for their stay, worming, farrier and all the daily care plus riding. These horses don’t attract the masses of interest that above average horses or exceptional horses do. Their stay tends to be longer and Rehomers really have to push their sales, they require extra work to get a sale. They are maximum input for little output and almost always cost extra from the Rehomers own pocket.
Next are the above average horses. These horses have good conformation, maybe a nice head with some white (star, blaze) and a sock but lack the x-factor. They can be competitive horses but with allot of hard work from a very good rider. They still need body work, worming, farrier, feeding for their stay and daily care. Normally a home with arrive for this horse within a months time. These horses, Rehomers hopefully break even to pay their expenses.
Next are the exceptional horses, the moment Rehomers post a picture They are slammed with people interested before it’s even been ridden . These horses have it all and they are rare! Unfortunately these are the horses that pay for the below average horses and sometimes the above average horses to come through for rehoming, they pay for the short fall so Rehomers can still afford to live. The trouble with this horse is that people want them for nothing, the better riders want them that can do all the work themselves but that doesn’t help the below average horses.
On top of doing all the Rehomers do with the horses it’s about 20 hours a week in admin work, editing pics and videos then posting, answering messages inquiring about horses 80 percent of which have no intention to purchase. Please respect Rehomers evenings with family or time to themselves If they don’t respond and please respect if they say an exceptional horse isn’t for sale until Rehomers feel they can ask a higher (fair) price. These horses keep the wheel turning for the average horses to be rehomed.
This work is so emotionally taxing, Rehomers don’t get the excitement of race day or seeing these horse at their best. We see them generally at the end of their career, their bodies/minds showing the wear of everything they have given their owners on the track. Some have been pushed well beyond their physical capabilities and they need time. These horses need love and understanding. sadly there is a 4th group, the group no-one likes to talk about......the un-helpables. These horse are too far gone and there just aren’t enough homes to help these horses .They can be shut down or may have become agressive and defensive of their space. These are the horse that grew tired of whispering their heart ache and now they are shouting “I have had enough”. These are the horses that emotionally kill Rehomers.
Please understand that Rehomers most likely started this work with a naïveté to how taxing this work would be on their personal life, it’s intrusive. It puts so much pressure on your time with loved ones. And many will have been doing this for years, the unsung hero’s of the racing industry now doing it out of obligation to the horses because who will pick up the job when they retire? What will happen to the horses, it’s this guilt that keeps these amazing people doing the hard work.
So the next time you feel
Like a rehomer has treated you unfairly, ask yourself would you take this job on? And by all means take it on, give it a go! I dare you to give it a go.
Dedicated to all my wonderful friends doing this incredible work, I wrote this piece 5 years ago when this was my life…..it still applies.
