CANTER New England's work is supported through your generosity...Please consider helping: click on the button below to make a safe, easy and secure online donation.

Designate your contribution through Network for Good as a recurring monthly gift, and do even more to help needy ex-racers!

CANTER New England is actively working to help New England's retiring Thoroughbred racehorses - both by taking listings from racing industry owners, trainers, and breeders with horses needing to retire, and by taking on rescue horses, as our resources allow. We rely solely on private donations; CANTER NE is an entirely volunteer-run organization. Your donation of any amount will allow us to help more horses.  Want your contribution to go toward a specific horse in need? Meet our horses in need of sponsors!

Our primary volunteer needs at this time are:

CANTER is seeking a candidate for Horse Welfare Coordinator to help with foster and adoptive home approvals, and adoption follow-up. This role has significant responsibility and requires a minimum six month commitment. Please email canterne@canterne.org for more information.

• URGENT NEED: Volunteer Foster Homes! We DESPERATELY need experienced equine care providers who are willing to house and feed our rescue horses, for short- as well as long-term stays. Please fill out our foster form if you can help. (Volunteer caretakers receive a tax write off for fostering; CANTER pays all vet and farrier bills.)
• URGENT NEED: Volunteer Transporters to help us move our rescue horses (these transports are typically from Suffolk Downs in East Boston, MA to foster homes throughout New England, or from foster home to foster home throughout the area. Volunteer transporters receive a tax write off for donated gas and mileage.)
• URGENT NEED: Event Volunteers to plan and coordinate our benefit hunter pace series and other showcase events; staff booths and tables at horse shows and expos; and disseminate information about CANTER NE

We also are in great need of the following:

• Public Relations Volunteers to spread the word about CANTER NE's programs, news, and needs to the media and general public; to prospective buyers and adopters; to local equine associations; and to regional/national horse publications
• Fundraising Volunteers to assist with charitable fundraising, including grant writing (experience is great, but not a requirement!)
• A CPA to help us with our financial recordkeeping

If you'd like to help in any of these capacities and would like more information, please send us an e-mail.

Can you help to post CANTER NE flyers at local tack shops that will allow it, hand them out at shows, and/or pass them around at local barns and pony clubs? If so, click here and download our flyer in PDF format.

Click here to see what information we'll need from you if you wish to volunteer. (Information provided will not be passed outside of CANTER NE, and will be used only to match volunteers with appropriate activities.)

We are also looking for dedicated volunteers from the New England states who are willing to make a minimum one-year commitment to being state coordinators. These coordinators are responsible for communicating CANTER NE news and updates to equine associations and publications in their home states.

If you would like to chat about any of these activities, please e-mail us. This Volunteer Needs list may be updated from time to time, and if you can help, but don't see the specific activity that you're interested in posted here, please get in touch anyway - because we may well have a future need arise that matches your expertise.

Please Note: Due to the volume of e-mail we receive, and our limited volunteer resources, it may take us a bit of time to respond. We ask that you be patient but persistent! So that CANTER NE can make sure to have a uniform set of info on everyone wishing to volunteer, please send an e-mail detailing (completely) the following:

Full name

Age (if a minor)

Address (we'll be sending out periodic mailings)

Telephone (both day and evening so that we can call if we want to discuss volunteering opportunities)

E-Mail Address

Details on what activities you can/would like to volunteer for, the number of hours you can commit, when you are available (i.e. day, evening, weekend, weekday, and any computer, marketing, PR, fundraising or other skills you may have that would be a support to the organization)

A "self-assessment" of your level of experience as a horseperson (horse lover but very inexperienced, novice, expert, etc.) This will help us put together the most appropriate volunteering "teams" in cases where we might be looking to have folks dealing directly with the horses; we wouldn't want to put together very inexperienced people without support.

Please Note:

Minors are not permitted to volunteer for track visits or direct work with the horses, due to liability issues. If you're a minor and would still like to help, please consider downloading our flyer and posting copies at your local tack shop, pony club, and/or show barn!