ReRun - Loving the Thoroughbred Doesn't End at the Racetrack

Program Director Lisa Malloy and Board Member Brian Zipse Of ReRun, Inc. and I had a chance to chat recently about the origin and successes of the Re-Run adoption program for Thoroughbreds and their future goals and aspirations. Their philosophy is simple and straightforward. They believe, " Every racehorse deserves our services, not just those with the best chance of adoption. The horse's interest comes first. Full disclosure of the horses' known physical and behavioral issues is the best policy. The quality of our adoptions is more important than the quantity of adoptions. We care about protecting the horse even after adoption."

"After resigning my position as trainer and facilities manager for another Thoroughbred charity in KY," Malloy says, "I opened a new facility here on the East Coast taking horses for training and adoption on behalf of four nationally known registered charities, all closely working side by side. ReRun joined me as one of the founding groups of this pioneering program alongside Akindale Thoroughbred Rescue, Turning For Home and The Exceller Fund. Horses4adoption was a website built to showcase horses that were in training with me and available for adoption through one of the aforementioned groups and it's been a very unique and exhilarating experience - everyone has come together working towards a common goal and that goal is finding horses homes. From there, ReRun approached me about assuming the position of their Program Director which I enthusiastically accepted."

When did the organization get started? 

"ReRun was founded in 1996 as a division of the Kentucky Society by two racing insiders, Shon Wylie and Lori Neagle. They saw an acute and compelling need for an organization that focused not on providing a permanent sanctuary for retired racehorses, as was the predominant model, but on rehabilitating, retraining, and adopting them out to well-suited homes. After only two years ReRun outgrew the KHS and became incorporated as its own 501(c)(3) nonprofit."

How many horses have you placed?

"ReRun places between 30 and 50 horses per year plus provides sanctuary to a small number of older horses. Funding dictates how many horses we can assist each year."