Buying a racehorse of any kind at the end of its racing career comes with many advantages. It is safe to assume that such a horse is used to all aspects of handling and travelling and is therefore easy to shoe, load, wash, tack up and so on. Unlike Thoroughbreds who can usually expect to be stabled at the races, trotters and pacers racing in the UK normally stand tied to the lorry or trailer in between races, and it is unusual to find one who can’t do this calmly and sensibly. This makes them very easy to take anywhere as their default position is to doze by the vehicle until they are needed.
Another advantage of any off-track racehorse is that they tend to have quite a professional attitude to work, and indeed most of them enjoy a degree of physical and mental challenge and are open to the idea of having to do new things or do old things differently. Having been so fit during their racing careers, they seem to retain a high base level of fitness for years afterwards— you won’t be battling to keep laminitis at bay or having to do weeks of walking before you dare risk anything more strenuous.
But the main reason Standardbreds and French Trotters have such a devoted following is not their versatility, athleticism or robustness (although of course all these qualities are much appreciated) , it’s simply the fact that they are nearly always extremely nice people.
Collingwood Standardbreds 