Godolphin Lifetime Care

We work with our regional partners to support Godolphin-owned thoroughbred horses as they move on to a life after racing.

The Godolphin Thoroughbred Rehoming scheme operates from Newmarket. We rehome and retrain geldings; most of whom have raced in the blue silks. We aim to give these horses the chance to embark on an alternative career with a new owner.

How it works

Success stories

Al Biruni

Albi is loving life with Claire and Steve. They enjoy doing a bit of everything and have competed in the RoR prelim dressage finals. Claire and Albi's biggest achievement is being selected to ride for the RAF dressage team for the last three years.

Burj Hatta

Burj Hatta, aka Squirt, has been with me since July 2014. I have taken it slowly with him to ensure the basics are firmly in place. He is such a clever, talented and quick-thinking little horse who amazes me every time I teach him something new. He is now established at BE80 and we are aiming for BE90 this year. He does very well at Prelim Dressage and will soon compete in a novice test. He has also been round his first BS Novice track. He is a sharp character and has settled into his new life very well. Squirt adores a cuddle, loves a scratch and lives very happily with my other ex-racehorse.

City Style

He has gone from strength to strength and seems to improve every time I take him out. This year has been all about training, seeing places and doing low-level bits and pieces, which he has taken to really well. Hopefully, it will stand us in good stead for next year when, if all goes well, I will affiliate him for British Eventing. We also joined the Retraining of Racehorses (ROR) Parade at Newmarket for the Dubai Future Champions Festival and we are planning to parade again this year.

Emirates Champion

Emi is the go-to hacking buddy – he is calm, steady and laid back in the extreme! He likes nothing more than to bumble along the country lanes and bridleways - canter is optional according to him. His favourite is a leisurely hack to the local pub where he can enjoy a pick of grass and a pat from the locals. We will soon be trying our hand at Le Trec, which I think he will like. He is the yard favourite who enjoys a daily afternoon nap when he comes in from the field. In short, he is a little lazy to say the least, but I love him and he is always pleased to see me. I wouldn’t swap him for the world.

Hero Worship

Hero qualified for Hicksted in unaffiliated dressage and, with Abi, made the RoR final at Hickstead in 2013.

Lexcen

Lexcen came to me as a 3 year old having trained but not raced. We spent our first year getting to know one another and taking part in some in-hand showing classes locally. Lex has been full of character and keen to learn from day one, a great attribute. Taking to the show ring like a duck to water, Lex and I qualified for several national ex-racehorse championships in-hand and ridden but it was dressage where he really showed talent. Having done some unaffiliated classes and moving up through the levels I decided to affiliate Lex. We’ve enjoyed plenty of wins at various levels and have competed at Area Festivals, Premier Leagues, Regionals and Inter-Regionally as a member of a team. Lex and I will next be competing in the BD TB Championships at Elementary on 18th November; this series is open to ex-racehorses only, which is a great opportunity for us to compete against other thoroughbreds who’ve been able to turn their hoof to a different career.

How Godolphin rehoming works

1

Arrival

On arrival, the horses are given time to wind down and socialise with other horses. This time could be as long as six months for rehabilitation if the horse is recovering from an injury.

2

Retraining programme

When the holiday is over, the retraining begins. This includes teaching the horses to stand at the mounting block, being tied up outside the stable, as well as lots of basic handling, schooling and ensuring they are good to hack out, both in company and alone. Those who can go on to jump will start pole work and then jumping. At the start of the programme, we know what the horse can physically go on to do and our aim is to find out what the horse will enjoy. We then start to look for a home within the UK.

3

Applications

At this stage we start considering the new owner. All applicants are checked to see who would most suit a particular horse. There is no top or bottom to the list, just whoever looks the best match. As well as the horse’s ability, temperament comes into consideration. We have had horses who need 24-hour turnout, one-to-one attention, or no mares nearby, and all this has to be assessed before a decision is made.

4

Selection and first meeting

When a suitable applicant is identified, they will be invited to the yard to meet the horse. The applicant will groom, tack-up and ride the horse, firstly in the school and then on a hack. Julie, our Rehoming Manager, will be on hand with the usual rider of that horse, who will ride the horse first. The applicant may be invited for a second visit to ride the horse.

5

Your horse

Once the applicant and our rehoming team are happy that a suitable home can be provided for the horse, the applicant will have the option to purchase the horse from us for £500 + VAT. At this point the applicant will enter into a purchase contract which contains certain provisions for the benefit of the horse’s long-term welfare. This includes a right of refusal for Godolphin to buy back the horse in the future should the new owner decide they are no longer able to offer the horse a home, or where the horse is found to be kept in a poor condition. In addition, we will ask the applicant to sign a Weatherbys' non-racing agreement. The passport is stamped 'non-racing' and returned to them as the new registered owner.

6

Keeping in touch

From time to time, a member of our rehoming team will visit to ensure that both rider and horse are getting along well. The applicant will be responsible for maintaining the horse to a reasonable standard at all times and we encourage people to let us know straight away if they encounter any difficulties so we can help and advise them.