Cobble Hill Open House Will Showcase Retired Racehorses

Cobble Hill Open House Will Showcase Retired Racehorses

Cobble Hill Stables on Route 100 in Rochester will host an open house Saturday, Sept. 21 from 10 a.m.-3 p.m., to give the public an opportunity to see retired thoroughbred racehorses available for adoption through the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation. Cobble Hill’s owners, Leslie Carlson Bowen and Gloria van den Berg, who are training and boarding the horses prior to their adoption, got their first TRF horses in Feb and now have eight of them available for adoption.

The two women will be joined at the open house by TRF’s local veterinarian, Andy Lott, DVM; Diana Pikulski, executive director of TRF; and Daphne Hewitt of Three Owls Farm in Granville, to answer questions and share information about the organization. Hewitt also boards eight TRF horses. One of her boarders recently moved to Cobble Hill to be trained and is available for adoption.

"The ones I get tend to have injuries that are such that they need a long rest," noted Hewitt. "Several have been adopted right out of my field just for companion and light riding horses.

"It’s been a great experience for my children (Sam, 10, and Emily, 8)," Hewitt continued. "The horses are very gentle with them. We had one horse that wouldn’t let an adult catch him for about two months but he let the children catch him. Some of them would make great family horses."

At Cobble Hill, Bowen and van den Berg retrain thoroughbreds that have been retired from racing.

"These are horses that have been rescued from auctions, slaughterhouses, and donated by individuals," Bowen explained. "Many of them are young and sound, but need a little rest and relaxation. When they come to Vermont, they’re put out on pasture and evaluated by our vet. When they’re sound enough for training, we bring them into the stable and re-school them to be family horses.

"We usually have 6-8 horses in training at a time, with 20 or so at rest or waiting for training," she added. "We also have a selection of kind horses that are retired due to injuries or old age that are available as companion horses. These are wonderful horses that have been given a new lease on life."

A pioneer in horse rescue programs, the non-profit TRF was founded in 1982 to provide a humane retirement and lifetime homes for thoroughbred racehorses at the end of their track careers. At TRF programs at state correctional facilities, prison inmates and juvenile offenders derive emotional as well as educational benefits from TRF’S pioneering, state-accredited vocational programs in horse care and management. 

In 1996 the TRF added to its programs the placement of horses in adoptive homes, in equine education programs, and in riding programs for the mentally and physically challenged. Numerous owners of smaller horse farms (such as Cobble Hill and Three Owls) whose facilities meet TRF standards receive a modest stipend for boarding retirees.

For more information about the Thoroughbred Retirement Foundation, call 802-496-3282 or check out their website at http://www. trfinc.org.

By Martha Slater