Adoption FAQs

What are your adoption requirements?

We follow AAEP standards of care and expect our adopters to do the same. Many of our horses come from severe neglect and our goal is to ensure their safety, comfort and well-being for the remainder of their lives.

  • You must be 18 years old to legally enter into our adoption contract.

  • Minimum 5 acres for horses or 2 acres per horse, with exceptions for ponies, miniatures, or certain horses that have special requirements.

  • References (veterinarian, farrier, personal, or some combination).

  • Verifiable property information: Own, rent, or board and property zoned for horses/livestock.

  • Safe fencing. Absolutely no full barbed-wire fencing is permitted, although a top strand is allowed. In many cases, high tensile fencing is not recommended due to the number of severe injuries we have seen, but some horses are fine living behind it.

  • Live within 200 miles of our base of operations (Cottontown, TN 37048) or have 5 years of documented ownership with references.

  • In-person meeting between horse and adopter, no exceptions.

  • Background free of animal abuse/neglect, child abuse/neglect, spousal abuse, sex crimes or other violent offenses.

  • We strive to match each adopter with the horse best suited for their level of experience and their riding/driving/ownership goals; therefore, transparency from both parties is essential.

What if I haven’t owned horses before?

We do not require previous ownership as an adoption criteria.

We do require a willingness to learn, and can recommend trainers, instructors and programs to assist in your ownership journey. We offer several clinics per year to assist new owners.

We also consider an adopter’s experience when approving adoption of each horse, so we will not adopt a horse that requires an experienced handler to a beginner owner. This would not be fair to the person or the horse!

Can you recommend people to help me if I don’t have a vet, farrier or trainer?

Absolutely. We work with professional trainers, instructors, veterinarians and farriers throughout Middle Tennessee. If we don’t know someone, we know someone we can ask on your behalf!

I don’t own property and plan to board. Can I still adopt?

We do not decline applications based soley on whether or not someone owns a farm. We do require information on where the horse will live, and we consider the facility owner as a reference. We do not adopt certain types of horses into a boarding situation, in particular a known cribber (as many boarding facilities do not want their stalls and fences to suffer cribbing damage) and companion horses (as the vast majority of people become unwilling or unable to pay housing costs on a horse that cannot be ridden.) Boarding with experienced and knowledgeable people can be a great way for a new or beginner owner to learn and gain confidence.

I adopted a mare. Can I breed her?

No. Our adoption contract contains a no-breed clause. The majority of horses that come to Safe Harbor do not have registration papers (even if they were registered at one time), may have been over-bred before their arrival, and deserve a life without raising babies. There is a very serious “unwanted horse” problem in the United States, and breeding more unregistered horses contributes to it every year. All stallions that come to us are castrated once healthy enough to do so; likewise, we require that mares not be bred.

Do you offer any discounts or incentives toward adoption?

Our fees are already well below market price for horses - we are a non-profit and our adoption contract includes several stipulations you agree to follow as part of adoption. That said, we do offer a $100 adoption credit to those who complete one of the following continuing education courses:

Simply show us your certificate of completion to receive the credit!

What happens if I can’t keep my adopted horse?

Our adoption contract requires that you tell us if you can’t keep your Safe Harbor horse. There are options within the contract -

  • We will always take back a horse we’ve adopted out, regardless of the amount of time that has passed.

  • If you are able to serve as the foster and want to be involved in the rehoming process, we will assist with care costs and treat you like any other foster while proceeding with rehoming the horse.

  • Or, you may rehome after you have checked references of the new home, just like we have done with you. We have a transfer contract that you and the new owner must sign, if you go this route - and you would be responsible if the horse ends up at auction or in a bad situation again. Note that our transfer contract is the only legal transfer of ownership between an adopter and a new home.