It’s time for some holiday spirit! I’m excited to announce that Deck the Stalls, a holiday anthology written especially for horse lovers, is now available for pre-order on Amazon! And not just because it includes an all-new story about Jules of The Eventing Series fame, but for all the other writers as well. Plus, it’s for a great cause: […]
With all proceeds going to benefit Old Friends, a retirement farm with more than 160 retired Thoroughbreds, this might be the best $2.99 you spend all season. Pre-order “Deck the Stalls” now! https://www.amazon.com/Deck-Stalls-Horse-Stories-Holiday…/…/
via New Horse Stories for the Holidays! — Natalie Keller Reinert
Retired Racehorse 
Ms. Reinert:
I enjoyed your article on the racing industry and the many discussions held regarding the good and not-so-good.
I am the owner (I prefer to say, ‘caretaker’) of a beautiful OTTB who was born at Monhill Farm, NY, and reared, I believe, by Dr. Bernardo.
Ex-racehorse, Well Ack Ack (a son of Well Noted and grandson of
Notebook) ran for about 1.5 years, with third place as his best effort.
He was owned by Doug Leatherman, and sold at auction to Elizabeth Genest, a Major and RN working for the U. S. Army. Elizabeth and her husband retrained Well Ack Ack and when I went to see him he was
only 4. Going against my trainer’s advice, (he had a stifle issue), I decided he was the horse for me, and I purchased him the following week.
It was just before Thanksgiving, 2011, and I was thankful for him!
I am 68 now — and we are still together. Captain Jack, as he is called now, lives in a lovely Gloucester, VA farm, with a Tennessee Walker for his pasture mate; he has a private pasture and can come and go to his stall, which is the best situation for him.
We do light work, mostly trot work/cavalletti, and we love to play ground games and do fitness exercises, side by side. He learns quickly, has a great sense of fun and we have a very strong bond.
Dr. Bernardo (and Doug Leatherman) both said he had a good personality, like Well Noted, but I discovered he didn’t really want to work hard, which suits me fine! He LOVES to play games and do liberty work, and we are
both happy with that. He is ridden about once a week. We have been together now for 10 years and I wouldn’t change one day.
Ex-racehorses have hearts of gold.
Thank you for your article and hopefully those areas than do need attention will receive it in the coming years.
Very best wishes and I’ll check your website and books!
Nuala Galbari
Gloucester, VA