Tell me about your experiences with New Vocations Adoption Program. I am thinking about submitting an adoption application; I’ve spoken to several people who think very highly of the program, and wanted to know COTHer’s experiences.
The only thing that makes me nervous is not being allowed to ride before adoption, but I plan on starting with ground driving and going from the ground up with any greenie I end up with (if I end up with one).
I adopted from them last December. They were great! They are very honest and disclose any issues of which they are aware. I told them the type of horse I was looking for and they called me about my guy before he hit the website. I didn’t even go up there to meet him, I just sent a shipper! I figured they see so many horses per year they know how to send them in the right direction.
My BFF recently got a horse through them. She explained what she was looking for and honestly represented her own skill level. She looked at a few, brought home a cute gelding, and has been very happy with him. Based on her experience, if I was looking for an OTTB or OTSTB, I would definititely consider NV.
I have not adopted from them, but I have met them at Rolex when I was on the board of RRTP (now RRP) and we were doing a joint event. They were great. Top notch organization.
A close friend at my barn got her TB from them. He is smart, kind, had an awesome start to the non horse racing world. Based on her experience I would reccomend then highly.
I adopted my horse from them two years ago. They were fantastic to work with. I used the PA facility but had spoken to the Ohio facilities as well. Very honest with the horses’ training and capabilities/limits, willing to show me as many horses as I wanted, worked with me very professionally and nicely.
They don’t let potential adoptees ride for liability reasons. They have a 60-day return policy to compensate for not being able to ride them prior to adopting them. If the horse doesn’t work out, you can return for a refund/different horse. If they have a horse you’re interested in, CALL. Don’t email. The only negative I experienced is that they don’t answer emails reliably (read: at all.)
I think they have a great program and lovely horses. I would love to get one for my next horse but sadly they don’t adopt to Colorado 
My friend got her guy through them a few years ago, in PA. They were easy to deal with and super-nice, and she ended up with a superb event horse.
I’m so glad everyone has had good experiences! I will be applying when my rehab horse is off stall board, and I’m pretty content to wait around until the right guy (or gal) shows up. I’m in no hurry!
I understand the reasoning of not riding potential adoptees for liability reasons, just bummed that I can’t get a personal baseline for the horse, if that makes sense?
I adopted my former OTTB through them. He unfortunately was not the right fit for me. After trying to make it work for both of us for 4+ years, they took him back and re-adopted him out. They were wonderful to work with and I was thrilled they took him back as he was a tough, quirky ride and I was very worried about him ending up in the wrong hands if they hadn’t. If I decided to go that route again I’d highly recommend them.
Voice of dissent here, sadly.
My experience and a friends. She adopted several years ago, and was told “everything” about the horse, so sent a shipper sight unseen. Nobody from NV disclosed that her horse had extensive pin firing that wasn’t visible in any pictures. They did tell her “he’s never had a lameness issue.” Not a deal breaker, but still unfortunate.
I tried to adopt as well, and despite what the website says regarding pick up (7 days free and additional days at the facilities daily rate) I was told if I couldn’t get there by the weekend, tough cookies. Sadly my truck needed repairs and the commercial shippers I contacted couldn’t be there for nearly 2 weeks. Despite my total willingness to pay all his fees, I still got told no.
They have lovely horses, and do a GREAT job with them. So if you are closer than I am, go for it. But if you need to rely on a shipper, be prepared for difficulty.
Pin firing wouldn’t put me off. Over the years, I’ve spent time with many OTTBs that were pin fired that never had any lameness issues at all.
Which location was that? There’s more then one.
Some still pin fire as a preventive, wouldn’t bother me either, especially if it was just shin buck.
The Ohio one has placed some with friends, they are happy. Two of them went on to the AA shows (after some time and training, of course).
to anyone familiar with racehorses , pinfiring is a non issue , if your looking for a confirmation horse perhaps a TB isn’t a good choice as many have Jewelry which doesn’t effect anything usually .
My friends horse was to be her dressage horse, and his hocks were fired. She kept him, and loves him dearly. It was the non disclosure that was the issue.
[QUOTE=Twigster;8205272]
My friends horse was to be her dressage horse, and his hocks were fired. She kept him, and loves him dearly. It was the non disclosure that was the issue.[/QUOTE]
I guess in the future, that would be a good thing to ask about. I don’t think they did that to hide anything. Probably more likely they didn’t think of it being a “lameness”-type issue. (This is NOT supposed to be read as snarky…just a lesson-learned ah-hah moment even for me.) 
You do know that you can run a PPE using the 60 day return policy right? So you can buy the horse, bring it home, ride it for a month, x ray the crap out of it, and still get your money back.
It’s a heck of a deal.
For sure! I’m definitely not saying I would not adopt from them, as I am very pro TB and all in favor of the work they do.
Their prices are unbelievably low considering the work the put into their horses. And they have a great eye for picking horses that will go on to succeed. Just be sure to cross all the t’s and dot the i’s, because things can still happen.
I recently submitted an application to adopt a TB from them. The application was very thorough and they even contacted me to explain more details. I am so glad to see someone advocate for the horse. I have been approved and so far everyone I’ve talked has been very helpful.
I put in an application and was approved last year.
Since then, I have inquired about two horses at two different locations and have not received responses.
I contacted the director because I was extremely disappointed in how challenging it was to communicate with the trainers.
Her response was less than encouraging and dismissive.
Prior to this I was a big fan and spoke highly of them, although I had no experience with them. I was very excited to get a STB and be able to have a horse to ride and drive.
I have worked with Canter, and had a great experience.
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