Five Reasons to Be Grateful

Do you remember the turkeys that you make by outlining your hand onto a piece of construction paper? Taking your child-friendly scissors, you cut very carefully, in hopes of keeping the fingers and thumb intact. More than likely, you then listed things for which you were grateful on each “feather” before decorating the rest. While I didn’t make a hand turkey this year, I did reflect and create my five reasons to be grateful list for the Wasabi Aftercare Fund (WAF).

Support from WVS club members

Ever since I started focusing on aftercare, the members in Wasabi Ventures Stables (WVS) supported my endeavors. In the pre-WAF days, I challenged our club members to donate five dollars to aftercare on positive exits of horses. The majority of the co-owners did so. When I changed the donation to the purchase of horses, the club continued to support this mission, with over 95% of the club donating. In addition to financial support, many are active followers of horses who have left our barn. Club members are excited to see updates, both for horses who still are running, as well as retirees.

Communication with trainers and owners

As I track horses that are no longer in the WVS barns, there are times of inactivity. Over the past couple years, trainers and owners are more responsive to my requests for updates. Many quickly share notes on health or details regarding farm time their horses are receiving. There tends to be much more willingness to share the status of a horse, who has time off from the track.

Notification of retirement

In my earlier years of tracking Thoroughbreds, I often learned of a horse’s retirement only after its lengthy departure from training and racing. In this past year, I received many messages regarding a horse’s retirement when it happened. Either the retiring trainer or new owner contacted me to let me know of the change in status. This has been a fabulous development, making for less time wondering about a horse’s status and a quicker connection with its new home.

Happy OTTB owners

I contact the owners of many off-track Thoroughbreds at least once a year, seeking a newer photo and/or video, as well as an update on their horse’s past year. Every single owner shares how amazing their horse is. Almost every owner tells me that they have, “the best horse.” If I were to assign grades for each horse, based on this reporting, the average would be an A+. It warms my heart to know how loved each horse is.

My role

Like any job, there are days when I shake my head and mutter under my breath. However, most days, I love this role. The geeky side of me loves the tracking data, and my animal-centric side loves that I get to hear and share so many happy stories of retired racehorses. I have made connections with people all over the country- racing owners, trainers, OTTB owners, and more. At the end of almost every workday, I feel truly grateful that I get to do this work.

As I prepare to celebrate this Thanksgiving, these five reasons to be grateful are ever prominent.