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Tiny finished out her first month with us fantastically! She’s a joy to have in the barn and in training – not enough positive things can be said about this horse! Check out Tiny’s April adventures below.

4/2: Another lunging session in tack working on transitions and trotting over poles. Trying to keep Tiny’s attention on me and not so much on the outside of the arena! Very good girl overall.

4/4: Lunged Tiny in surcingle and very loose side reins. Would like to get her working more over her back and starting to understand connection now that her transitions are going well and she’s focused on the lunge. Not entirely sure about side reins – did a lot of walk work in the beginning so she wouldn’t have a negative reaction. A little bit reactive going from walk to trot. Does like to pull to the outside of the circle when she starts to feel worried.

4/8: Our second lunge session in side reins. Still started with a good amount of walking to try and get Tiny comfortable with the contact. She’s absolutely not sure – but we had better work in the trot and she started to reach into the connection slightly. Had moments of worrying about it, but does absolutely nothing bad! Just insecure and trying to figure out what I want from her.

4/10: Another lunge in side reins. Did less walk in the beginning, and started to do way more transitions. Still not cantering in the side reins because she’s very unsure. Had a couple of moments where she halted and got worried about what I wanted. With the smallest amount of pressure, she moved on and ended on a good note. Will need to continue work in the side reins to help her understand what the connection is all about.

4/15: Started with yet another lunging session with the side reins. Tiny a lot better today! More confident about moving forward into the connection and many less halts from feeling worried about not understanding what I was asking of her.

4/17: Brief lunge to warm up. Hopped on Tiny and worked on walk/trot transitions and moving off of my leg on a circle. Was very distracted by Apple, Arlo, and Promise getting rowdy because it was close to dinner time! However, she remained well behaved although a bit distracted. Really happy with her behavior and honesty.

4/22: A fun day for Tiny – did lunging over small jumps! I wanted to see Tiny’s reaction and it’s also a good exercise to help her learn balance and where to put her feet. A lot of horses will try to go around the jump, but Tiny excelled at being incredibly honest and brave. Although she had many green moments, she had quite a few jumps with excellent form! I think she also enjoyed it.

4/24: Brief lunge warm up for Tiny in side reins. I never lunge her because I think she’s going to be rowdy under saddle, but because I’m still using the side reins to work on her connection. A side note – Tiny is always perfect at the mounting block! We did more transitions and moving off of my leg today. Sometimes Tiny gets curious about what’s going on outside of the arena, but it’s genuine curiosity and as soon as I remind her we’re working, she’s back to paying attention!

4/29: Tiny was fantastic under saddle today. Starting to stretch into the connection and beginning to thoroughly understand moving off of my leg laterally. She’s such a good girl – did some trotting without hands! Tiny’s canter today was much more balanced than it has been. We also trotted tiny x-rails and although she’s not quite sure where to put her feet yet, Tiny was game and tried very hard.

We are so thrilled to have welcomed Tiny Magoo into our 5r program in March. Below are her training notes/blog for the month. Keep an eye out for this girl coming available for adoption soon!

3/12: Tiny arrived today! Very well behaved getting off of the trailer, but as to be expected a bit nervous and curious about her new home. Stood fairly well in cross ties while were took off her standing bandages. She enjoyed checking out her new field and meeting her pasture buddy James. Settled in well and was happy to eat dinner. Very friendly girl!

3/13-3/17: Settle in time for Tiny! Learning new routine, getting to know us, etc. Loves attention and treats. Very outgoing.

3/18: First lunging session. Tiny has definitely lunged before and is very willing. I felt her being a bit tentative about what I expected of her. For her first lunging session, I just used a bridle to see what she knows or what she doesn’t know. Did walk, trot, and the tiniest bit of canter. Not the most balanced at the canter, but very willing to try whatever I asked of her. Very well behaved! Curious, but not spooky about her surroundings in the arena.

3/22: Another lunge for Tiny today. Still have not introduced side reins, but had a similar day to her last lunging session with walk/trot – working on transitions – and the smallest amount of canter. Trotted her over trot poles and she was very willing and careful. Tiny doesn’t love have her bridle put on, but we are working through this and she’s improving. Much quieter in the arena overall!

3/24: Lunged Tiny in tack today. Did walk, trot, canter. Although she’s the best girl, I laid over her back before getting on her (tomorrow). She did not care at all and stood at the mounting block quite well. I don’t think she’s going to have any issues whatsoever.

3/25: Today was Tiny’s first ride under saddle with me! We did a small amount of lunging first – the same system we’ve been working on (walk/trot/canter transitions). I hopped on and did a bit of walk, trot, and transitions. Tiny is definitely green and doesn’t know about bending or connect (as is to be expected!), but she was extraordinarily willing and well behaved.

3/28: Did a small amount of lunging before hopping on and working on walk/trot transitions and starting to teach Tiny to move off of my leg. Had the smallest spook at something, but recovered quickly and was not a problem!

New Life Center for Thoroughbreds is proud to be participating for the third time in SML Gives 2024. SML Gives is an online giving event that provides local Bedford and Franklin County nonprofits the opportunity to fundraise, gain exposure and build relationships. This year NLCT is fundraising for a new shelter for our new rehab and recovery field. In 2023 we had a generous donor fund two new fields being fenced for our rescue horses.  The next step to be able to give more thoroughbreds a second chance is to give this field shelter. This shelter is so important for these horses to have a safe place to live. A shed will provide them with shade in the summer, cover from the rain, a place to get out the wind, warmth in the winter, and much more! Check out our page at https://smlgives.mightycause.com/organization/New-Life-Center-For-Thoroughbreds.

On March 2^nd 2024, New Life Center for Thoroughbreds hosted their first Charity Jumper Show of the year. We had thirteen incredible sponsors supporting our event. We were able to fundraise just under $4,000 for our horses! The sun was shining, music was playing, and horses were jumping. It was a wonderful day supporting our vision to help give every thoroughbred a chance at a new life. We cannot wait to start planning our next charity jumper show on May 5^th.

We are so excited to announce that we are starting a collaboration with Unbridled Thoroughbred Foundation! Unbridled Thoroughbred Foundation is a 501(C)(3) dedicated to helping Thoroughbreds from exploitation, suffering, and slaughter. Unbridled Thoroughbred Foundation and New Life Center for Thoroughbreds share a common interest – protecting the off the track thoroughbred and helping them find their second careers. When our President, Heather Kourcklas, connected with Unbridled’s President, Susan Kayne, magic happened! It was clear that our two organizations shared a common interest and that we could assist each other in helping the thoroughbred racehorse. Unbridled is currently without access to a trainer, and New Life is looking for horses to help and take through our 5R program. Even more serendipitous, Unbridled rescues OTTBs from kill pens, a venture that we here at New Life have been aiming to start. After a few conversations, it was decided that Unbridled and New Life could work together to brighten the future of OTTBs. In a few weeks’ time, we are very excited to be accepting one of Unbridled’s horses, Tiny Magoo, to put through our training program!

Our lovely sanctuary horse, Promise, arrived to us from another rescue with badly fractured withers. While it was clear that Promise’s fractured withers had happened long ago in her past, no other information was known on how Promise fractured her withers. In the summer of 2023, Promise’s withers started to look a bit awry. She had a pocket of ooze and it became clear that her withers required attention. We had our wonderful vet, Abby Atkins, x-ray Promise’s withers. At that time, It became clear that Promise’s withers were infected. At first, Dr. Atkins thought she might be able to debride the pieces of infected bone, but after closer inspection, she recommended a more thorough surgery. While we looked into surgery for Promise, the outcome wasn’t as optimistic as we had hoped. Promise, who enjoys her days living outside 24/7 with her pasture mates, would be required to be on stall rest for almost a year and the prognosis for recovery was not great. We carefully weighed the pros and cons and decided to try a medical and holistic approach first. A culture of Promise’s withers went out and we were able to identify exactly which antibiotic she needed. In addition, we’ve done many alternative therapies such as acupuncture and reiki. Not only that, we started to shockwave Promise’s withers every 1-3 months. After being on antibiotics, receiving alternative therapies, and TLC, we are so thrilled to report that Promise’s withers have been improving! Thankfully this improvement has occurred without invasive surgery. Promise has been able to continue living her best life outside with her pasture buddies. This outcome has been a huge relief to us – and no doubt Promise – and we look forward to continuing to make her the most comfortable and happiest she can be!