Communication Alliance to Network Thoroughbred Ex-Racehorses (CANTER)
From AlexBrownRacing
The Communication Alliance to Network Thoroughbred Ex-Racehorses (CANTER) provides retiring racehorses with opportunities for new careers after the finish line.
Basics
Web Address: Canter USA
Phone: 614/266-3975
E-mail: canterohio@canterusa.org
Paypal link https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr
Fundraising Drives on TWR:
Media stories: (link to stories about rescue)
INVESTIGATORS: One Race Too Many- Ray Sayah. Media clip on the Michigan News 11/8/07
Vet hospital gives horses a new life East Lansing - Rescue group pays for care at MSU Detroit Free Press 12/20/07
Description of Rescue
CANTER stands for The Communication Alliance to Network Thoroughbred Ex-Racehorses. It is an all-volunteer organization founded in 1997 by Jo Anne Normile, a Michigan racehorse owner and member of the Horseman's Benevolent and Protective Association. Jo Anne, also an avid sporthorse owner, had been approached on numerous occasions by owners and trainers looking for new homes for their thoroughbred race horses outside of the racing venue.
CANTER Ohio is modeled after the CANTER Michigan program and was started in 2000 by a former racehorse exercise rider, Nancy Koch. CANTER Ohio provides both the free internet service and rescue services for horses at risk of going to auction and probable slaughter. To date, CANTER Ohio has helped over 2,000 horses find new homes from Thistledown Racetrack in Cleveland and Beulah Park in Columbus, Ohio. Of that number, CANTER Ohio has provided its rescue services to over 500 thoroughbreds at risk of going to slaughter.
Every week, rain or shine, our volunteers walk the shedrows of these racetracks, networking with trainers and owners to identify horses in need. CANTER is an all-volunteer organization. We do not pay salaries or rent for office space, so 100% of all monies collected go directly to funding our operations. The rescue phase of the CANTER program provides a safe haven for horses that do not find homes right off the racetrack with our internet listings, due to varied circumstances including physical health, availability of space and the concern of their owner/trainers. These horses are placed in one of our boarding barns in northern and central Ohio, depending on the needs of each individual horse. We will accept ANY HORSE IN NEED, regardless of the physical condition or circumstances. Boarding, transport, veterinary and farrier care is supplied to each horse as required and CANTER assumes all financial responsibility of such services.
If funding permits, we can purchase horses that are at risk of going to auction and possible slaughter. CANTER also offers owners and trainers the option of donating their race horses as our IRS 501 ( c ) (3) status does permit CANTER to give income tax donation receipts for owners choosing this option.
Ohio racetracks are lower-end tracks with most horses running for cheap claiming tags (i.e., the horses are for sale to other racehorse owners). They include older horses reaching the end of their racing careers, but many of the horses we see are young and simply not fast enough to compete. This means there are a significant proportion of horses vulnerable to auction and possible slaughter from Ohio’s racetracks. CANTER’s presence at the tracks has literally meant the difference between life and death for many horses. More than 100,000 horses were slaughtered for human consumption in 2006 at three foreign-owned slaughterhouses in the United States.
In 2007, CANTER Ohio took 77 horses off the track and into our placement and rescue program. Of that number, 53 horses were adopted out, placed with The Exceller Fund, or humanely euthanized. Through 2007, we have taken in a total of 514 racehorses from both Thistledown and Beulah Park and placed 459 of those horses.
Our numbers were down considerably in 2007 from the previous year when we took 135 horses into our program with 105 horses being transitioned out of racing. That year was our first full year of operation at Beulah Park. While we tried to keep pace with the increased demand for our services, the fact is that in 2006 expenses exceeded income by $12,710. As a result, we were forced to limit the number of horses we took into the program in 2007. In September 2007 and continuing through the present day we have closed our placement service to all but sponsored horses.
In 2007, we increased our fundraising activities by selling donated tack and apparel at 10 equine-related events in north, central, and southern Ohio. These efforts brought in a total of $6,821.13. We also sold our signature CANTER Creations at these fundraisers and on eBay. These are genuine racing plates worn by horses at Thistledown and Beulah Park and decorated by our volunteers. You can see them online at our eBay store, which we opened in 2007. Sales of donated items on eBay gave us another $4,270.06 in 2007. In addition, we opened our CafePress online store and enrolled as beneficiaries with iGive.com, Country Supply, and GoodSearch. In 2007 we were also more proactive in soliciting donations on several fan forums, including the Alex Brown Forum home to the Fans of Barbaro. As a result of all these activities, we saw an increase of $15,981 in direct public support over 2006.
We were less successful in increasing funds received in private grants. We received a grant totaling $25,000 for 2007-2008 from The Kenneth A. Scott Charitable Trust – A KeyBank Trust. Half of those funds were allocated in 2007 with the remainder due in 2008. These funds are designated to provide surgeries and vet care for our horses that require help to go on to a second career. With a sizeable increase in our 2007 Blue Horse allocation (due to the large number of horses we adopted out in 2006) and an advance on our 2008 award from Thoroughbred Charities of America, we saw a total increase of $15,939 in income from grants. However, we were very disappointed that many of our grant applications were not successful in 2007, including applications to PetSmart, the Frankenberg Foundation, the Parks Foundation, the Haskell Fund, Bernice Barbour, Nationwide Insurance, and the AAEP Foundation. We currently have applications on file with the ASPCA and the Helen Brach Foundation.
We suffered a significant loss of income in 2007 when we experienced a sharp drop in the number of horses we were able to adopt out. This resulted in a dramatic decrease of $18,153.40 in income from adoptions. In 2005 and 2006 income from adoptions accounted for 46% of our income; in 2007, it comprised only 23% of income.
The harsh reality is that we will be forced to shut down our placement and rescue program in 2008 if we do not secure adequate funding. It is probably obvious from the list of expenses below that some of our volunteers have contributed substantially to pay our operating expenses throughout the years. Unfortunately, that cannot continue to a significant degree because our volunteers are simply unable to continue to subsidize the organization.
We continue to be disappointed that the Ohio racing industry as well as the industry at large does not provide more financial support. Please see the list of sponsors below. While we are tremendously grateful for the funds we receive from Thoroughbred Charities of America and Blue Horse Charities, it is simply not enough. The truth of the matter is that we operate in a state where the racing industry is in steep decline. Without an increase in revenue from slots, which the public has rejected and the governor is firmly against, there isn’t any hope of the industry turning the corner. We do not charge horsemen for our services, but we gladly take any donations from them when they sell a horse via our trainer listings.
With 31 horses now in our program, the need for funds is URGENT. Foster homes are hard to come by so most of our horses are boarded. We typically have 25 horses boarded at several facilities at an average cost of $220 ea. per month. In order to pay our board bill alone at present levels, we need to bring in $5,850 per month. When we include our other expenses (see below), that figure grows to $9,250 needed per month to run our operation and pay our outstanding debt. With adoptions currently comprising only 23% of our income, that means $7,122 is needed EVERY month from OTHER sources.
Below is our preliminary financial statement for 2007:
Income:
Direct Public Support $41,698.20 (41%) Private Grants $37,185.00 (36%) Horse adoptions $22,677.60 (23%) TOTAL INCOME $101,560.80
Expenses: Stabling Fees and Care $67,430.65 (68%) Equine Supplies $ 70.00 Farrier $ 1,150.00 Purchase of Horses at Risk $ 4,410.00 ( 4%) Shipping and Transport $ 6,025.00 ( 6%) Veterinary Care $15,525.59 (16%) Advertising $ 108.31 Bank Fees $ 244.50 Dues, Fees, Licensing & Misc. $ 4,234.06 TOTAL EXPENSES $99,198.11
At the end of 2007, CANTER Ohio had the following unpaid expenses that were incurred in 2007 with some dating back to 2006:
Stabling Fees and Care $ 2,760.00 Veterinary care $ 2,416.23 Transport $ 500.00 Misc. $ 725.00 Emergency veterinary care-2006 $ 5,392.92 TOTAL OUTSTANDING DEBT $11,794.15
As of 1/31/08, we have paid $3,652 toward those expenses, depleting funds on hand and leaving a total of *$8,142.15* in outstanding debt. (This does not include expenses incurred in January 2008 and beyond.)
Our 990 non-profit tax returns and financial reports are available through [1] or by request.
