" We met Alexis in 2009, before Second Start was formed.  With the help of her friends, she orchestrated the transitioning of two horses that were ready for life off the track.  In 2010, they took networking a thoroughbred at a time to their next careers a large step further with the launch of Second Start.  Trainers and owners listing their horses still racing or recently retired is a tried and true format with many racing regions in the United States, and Second Start is built on this concept.  Alexis is a natural fit for heading this organization.  An Equine Massage Therapist, she brings years of horse experience, in-depth knowledge of horse physiology, and is a passionate racing fan. She speaks the race track lingo and can bridge the gap between trainers, owners, and interested buyers.  Her partner Kim meets with trainers both at the track and at their farms to gather photos and other information on the horses as needed to find them the best possible next career.

Many of us with racehorses know how busy our stables can be.  We have always handled retiring our own horses and the horses of a few trainers who have asked for assistance for many years, but this takes lots of time and risks of missed appointments.  In 2010, we used Second Start to list three horses we owned, and assisted another trainer in listing two as well.  All five horses were presented accurately and fully disclosed to potential buyers. Through this process all found excellent homes!  We couldn't be more pleased with their placements.  Because of Second Start's wider audience, we have now shipped horses to Nova Scotia as well as New Brunswick.  We were able to speak directly with potential buyers, arrange appointments around our schedules, get to know their experience and have a good sense of whether a horse would fit their interests.  We even had a buyer fly in to ensure the match before shipping them to the east coast! 

Thanks to using Second Start, our retiring horses now have national exposure, the power of social networking, print and internet advertising, a content-rich website with detailed listings and word of mouth driving interested persons to look to them as their new partner.  And since Second Start charges no fees or commissions for the service, the only motive is finding the horse an excellent and appropriate home.  Alexis and Kim just have a true passion for match making.  For the peace of mind this organization provides, we can't say thank you enough."

Doug & Jenn Sroka
Trainer-Owner
Fort Erie Racetrack

"The birth of a foal is an amazing thing.  Unfortunately it doesn’t always go as planned, as it did for my family and myself.  Our mare Do It Anyway ("Dewey") didn’t want anything to do with being a mother.  After a lot of thought, we decided it was time for Dewey to find a new home and a new job.  I was given the task, and through friends, I heard about Second Start Thoroughbreds.  After contacting Alexis, and learning how her organization works, I knew I came to the right spot.  Soon after her listing, Alexis found the perfect home for her as a hunter/jumper/polo prospect in Quebec.  After she left, Alexis messaged me and told me how her new owner loved her and how happy he was with her.  There are many Thoroughbreds like Dewey that need homes and I am thankful there is such an organization that can find them a home where they will be loved and respected."

 

Nick J. Gonzalez

"Hi. My name is Myckie Neubauer and I am an owner and a trainer based at Fort Erie Racetrack. I have also bred a number of horses, so, of course, my husband and I got attached to them from the time they were babies.

Last year, for financial reasons, I had to find homes for a couple of my children. Alexis made this very trying time easier to bear.

She found truly interested people to come and see both Toby and Izzy as we call them. Toby was found by a nice young lady and is now happily jumping. Izzy has a new home not far from me and I can visit her when I have time.

I am very grateful for the effort of Second Start on my behalf.

Recently they found out that one of the horses that I used to train needed a new home right away. Between them, myself, the original racing owner/breeder and a young couple who work for me, we managed to rescue him and are keeping him until his new owner can give him the home he deserves. Danjon, is a very lucky horse and I am so happy that Alexis was alerted to his problem.

Thank-you all at Second Start. Keep up the good work."

Myckie Neubauer

"Great networking for trainers and owners that have horses ready to move onto a new career! Thanks for helping us place some of our great horses!"

Krista Kocot

"Buying a horse sight unseen is definately not something I thought that I would ever do, but with the honesty and knowledge of Second Start and the co operation of the owner I was able to do just that. Everything went smoothly, my horse arrived safe and sound and proved to be everything Second Start said he would be.... and more. I would definately have a Second Start horse sent to the east coast again."

Kindra
Charlottetown, PEI

"I am the very proud and happy owner of Hillaryswinner, from the Second Start Thoroughbreds website. I saw a link on a local chat forum for a newly formed listing service for off the track thoroughbreds needing new homes, and decided to check it out. The one horse that really caught my attention from that site just happened to be Hillaryswinner, and even though I was not in the market for another horse, I decided to ask for some more information about her. There was just something about Hillary's photo that spoke to me, and I found myself very drawn to her. Alexis was very helpful in telling me as much as she could about Hillaryswinner, and next thing you know, I made the trip to Fort Erie and brought Hillary home! Hillary has been a welcome addition to our equine family, and Second Start Thoroughbreds is a wonderful organization that helps trainers find suitable homes for their horses when their racing careers are over. They are making a difference, one horse at a time! I wouldn't hesitate to use their listing service again in the future. Thanks to Second Start Thoroughbreds, Hillaryswinner has found her forever home, and it just happens to be with me!"

Candace Sirianni

"Hi Second Start,

My name is Michelle McCormick I had purchased Seagraves, who is now known as Mocha from Jenn Sroka. I came across second start from a kijiji ad, from there I scrolled through the pictures and came across Mocha and fell right in love with her. I spoke with Jenn who was very honest with me about Mocha as I was looking for a trail horse that would be perfect for myself and my family. From there I arranged shipping to bring Mocha home which also went very smoothly. Mocha is everything that Jenn told me she would be and so much more, she is perfect in every way and a pleasure on any trail ride. Mocha and I have built a bond and after the first few days of having her home I had started her in her new career, trail riding, and she was perfect I have been able to do some many things with her and its always a real pleasure being with her. I speak with Jenn often and keep in contact via phone, FB and email. I was a little nervous at first purchasing a horse from so far away that I could not see in person or ride but because of Jenn's honestly I would not hesitate in the future to buy another horse from Second Start or recommend a friend to the website.

I believe that I have found a true treasure in finding Mocha she is everything that I wanted and so much more.

Thank you so much Jenn and Second Start"

Michelle McCormick

"I am lucky to make a living retraining horses and especially these very special and fabulous athletes that are OTTB. Before coming across Second Start we would rely on word of mouth. The process of finding horses was time consuming, overwhelming and difficult. 
When I came across Second Start listing it was the first time I found a clear listing of horses containing UPDATED information, pictures, videos and prices. It is straight forward and clear, making searching for a match much easier and I am sure helping owners/trainers list more horses by saving them time. 
4 months to this day I saw a picture of lovely grey roan filly on Second start website. A couple hours later I had sent out pictures of our farm with the form I received an appointment . 36 hours later Woman In Charge walked off the trailer at her new home thanks Second start’s efforts and efficiency. 
I knew Woman in Charge having just turned 3 would probably have heath issues as racing is so hard no matter what was said to me. I had a list of questions that were all answered by her trainer and owner and headed home happy to give a long break to this gorgeous baby, turn her back to a horse life. Time off she needed so be it. We’d see down the road what was to come!
No plans were made to start her under saddle before next spring to give her time to grow. But each time I went to fetch a horse to work on she’d be at the gate and give me a long look before going back to play and grass. After a few weeks of it and seing her so well settled in I decided to start her lightly convince she’d be more than happy to forget about working for a while. 
Four months later she still gets ridden twice a week and puts all her heart into it. She hacks out happy as can be on her own or with others, jumps over any log that comes our way and sometimes gets to school in the ring but not too often as I still don’t see the point of it just yet. 

I could go on and on blabbling away about how fabulous a horse second start help me find. As everyday WIC puts a smile on my face. 
But the reality is that superb and very versatile horses are waiting every day to be pick up from race tracks and that without the helped of a listing such as Second start so very well managed by fully dedicated people most of these horses would go to waste and us be left without those diamonds waiting to be shaped. 
A huge big thank you to Alexis thanks to whom all these success stories happen over and over again. You save many horses by giving them a happy future and make a lot of happy owners & trainers on both sides.
I do have one HUGE complaint though. I am completely addicted to the listing and follow each one of the horses that are posted on a daily basis. And not one day goes by without me wanting to take them all. But I also know that out there are a lot of people just waiting to receive their own gift just like the one I received on May 24th ! 
Happy future to all and thank you second start for your tremendous job!"

 

Tania Tonelli

"I can't begin to express my gratitude and heartfelt thanks to Second Start in assisting me with my recent purchase of a beautiful Thoroughbred filly.

I stumbled onto the site almost a year ago and within a short time was checking listings numerous times throughout the day. I finally filled out the forms and began waiting for a horse that I felt was suitable for me. SS was with me every step of the way. They new exactly what I was looking for and when "the one" came up I contacted them right away and they were on a mission to close the deal for me!!

They do all the leg work.... contacting owners and closing the deal as quick as possible. I sent numerous emails and a couple of phone call to SS and every question was answered in a professional manner.

If not for SS I would not have this beyond beautiful filly in my possession. She is a horse I have waited for for a very long time!!

Thank you Second Start for my filly and thank you for all the time and effort you put into re-homing these sensitive loving animals!!"

Jill Phillips, New Brunswick

"Dear Second Start, 
I'd be lying if I started my update off by saying it was the easiest thing I've ever done. Every day since Capp came home has been a roller coaster, some good, some bad. The barn I brought him too didn't accept him as a OTTB and he eventually was let to be picked on by the other horses. In which case we moved barns ASAP, and I am proud to say he is at a wonderful place now and has tons of friends and has totally fit in with the herd in less than a week and is even more keen on training every day! He's starting to jump already... after doing his circles (which he is not a fan of)! 
He is a wonderful horse and exactly what I wanted. Given, he has his days, or moments when he doesn't want to work and wants to be a grump, but that's what draws us too each other because we are so alike in personality. And have come so far since returning the Kawartha's. 
After my horse was killed in 2007 I never thought that I would ever ride again. Thank you so much for everything that you do, and thank you to Louise Fraser for watching over this boy until we were able to find each other."

Chelsea McGee

"I already had a 17yr old OTTB but had been keeping an eye on the Second Start horses for a while as I wanted another horse that I could bond with, something younger & I knew several people that had gotten horses this way. So one day a particular horse caught my eye and I just had to have her, I knew she had to be mine. That horse was a gorgeous thoroughbred filly called "Streak The Wedding'.

I emailed Alexis at Second Start and she got the ball rolling, the communication received was awesome, such a pleasure to deal with and the description she gave me of 'Streakers' was spot on. So my husband, daughter & I made the trip to Fort Erie to meet 'Streakers' & her owners, what lovely people Jenn & Doug Sroka are, they took the time from their busy day to show me Streaks and their other horses, my daughter even fell in love with Timmie (their mini). That was the Sunday, Streakers was picked up on the Thursday and we took her home, I couldn't be happier.

Streakers is such a sweetheart and is becoming a favourite with everyone, she knows exactly when to pull the cute pretty look, LOL. I can tell she is becoming more settled as she is beginning to test her boundaries with mummy, she is a clever little mare and has just enough attitude to keep it fun & interesting. The pic attached is her first time under saddle with me, we are taking it slow just getting to know each other & spending time just hanging out.

I'd recommend Second Start to anyone, Alexis is an absolute pleasure to deal with, the information is spot on ad the horses are awesome. I have promised to stay in touch with regards to Streakers and I'm always updating Jenn with pics etc on FB.

Thanks again Alexis for all the hard work you do, and to Doug & Jenn Sroka for allowing me to be the mummy to one of your horses. These horses are capable of so much once they retire form the track, they just need to be given a chance."



Lorraine Price

"About a year ago, I decided that the time had come to finally have a horse of my own. After discovering levels of crazy that I didn't realize existed, a friend told me that I needed to be friends with Candace because she always had horses on her page looking for a home. We became friends and I stumbled onto Second Start. After watching postings for a while, I knew exactly what I wanted. A gelding, preferably a little older and one of the ones that had been off the track for a while. I asked about a few different geldings but none were really right for me. Then Campfire Girl was listed and needed a home quickly. She was 5, had raced the day before and definitely was not a gelding. ;) It took maybe 5 minutes from the time I saw the listing to fill out my form and send it in.

What people don't realize when they see a horse listing is that behind the scenes, there is a whirlwind of activity. Emails, phone calls being made, appointments being set up. So I had my appointment to go see her....and all over Second Start and everywhere this mare's picture was being shared, people wanted her. In the background was a slightly hysterical person saying, "Make them stop trying to buy my horse!" lol I did buy her and brought her to her new home. We have had some interesting challenges but she was exactly what she was listed as - sound and sane and just not cut out for racing anymore.

Second Start does an amazing job at finding horses new homes. They are sometimes limited by what trainers and owners want done. They don't make a profit on the sales of these horses, but they have managed to rehome nearly 200 (ish? more? not sure) and quite often under extreme pressure and short periods of time. Behind the scenes, they are there for the new owners and horses long after the sale. I don't hesitate for a second in recommending Second Start to anyone looking for a retiring racehorse.

Thank you for everything Second Start. Mocha thanks you too and is hoping you stop by with carrots again!"

Sue  Mundt-Shortridge

" 9 out of 9 times I have been delighted to see the Second Start has another match for myself and my discipline. Every time I have found a Horse on Second Start, it is clearly explained if the Horse will fit my needs, its individual personality and anything else I would need to know before purchasing another four legged partner. Second Start has a 100 percent honesty policy resulting in perfect partnerships being made every week. Their pure love for these Thoroughbreds make it enjoyable for both Human and Horse. I look forward to my future dealings with them and truly appreciate the work they have done for the Horses and helping me further my Polo career! "

Laura Willson plus 9 Second Starters