Gateway OTTBs

12/17/2024

ARROW STRIKE is a fancy, prancy 5 year old gelding who is made to show off. He is gorgeous, sweet, level headed and has movement to die for. You should really take a look at the videos - you will be impressed. He is done racing and ready for the next thing. Located near St Louis, Mo. Full listing with photos, videos, more information and contact info at the link below:

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/arrow-strike-chromey-fancy-pants-boy

12/17/2024

OMG guys, this guy is the cutest and really needs a home. Please share him! He is adorable, sound and very very sweet! Can go in any direction!

New guy available! PLAY THE BLUES is a handsome and charming 16.1 hand 5 year old gelding with excellent movement and a sweet demeanor. He just does not want to be a racehorse.
Located near St Louis, Mo. please check out his listing at the link below:

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/play-the-blues-omg-look-at-his-face

12/10/2024

New guy available! PLAY THE BLUES is a handsome and charming 16.1 hand 5 year old gelding with excellent movement and a sweet demeanor. He just does not want to be a racehorse.
Located near St Louis, Mo. please check out his listing at the link below:

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/play-the-blues-omg-look-at-his-face

12/05/2024

Bandit Swanson (chestnut) and Trouble on the Beach (liver) kicking it in Pigeon Forge! ❤️

12/05/2024

Welp, we need your help. So, the bad news - Despite our best efforts, and even though the adopters came to the track, met this gorgeous boy (and his owner, in person), all the stuff....Apparently, the adopters were unaware that they were at a racetrack and looking at a retiring racehorse (they told someone that they adopted an Arabian).... and they don't seem to know much, and now can't afford lessons or training.....

The Good News - the boarding barn reached out and realized he's special and that they need to help him!!! Yay!!!

So.... the distinguished grey gentleman in the tweed suit is available again for adoption. He is now located near Chicago.

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/town-crier-handsome-16-2-grey-gentleman

12/02/2024

CHICA CON SUERTE is one tank of a girl, and at only 2 years old, we are sure she will be an incredible specimen when she is done growing. Her name means “Lucky Girl” in Spanish, but we are pretty sure you will be the lucky one if you get her. Full listing at the link below. Located near St Louis,Mo

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/chica-con-suerte-chunky-2-yo-filly

12/01/2024

STEELA SECRET is a solidly built mare who is unraced and is looking to start her first real career with someone off the track. She is kind and willing and has a really nice big and loose trot, which we can imagine will get even better when she’s in work. Please check her out and consider bringing her home. Located near St Louis, Mo

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/steela-secret-solidly-built-unraced-mare

12/01/2024

JOEY B is a sweet big gelding by Vice Regent. He is sensible and kind and will make a lovely sport horse for someone. Please take a look at his listing with additional pictures and videos. He’s ready to head to his new home- will it be with you?! Located near st Louis, Mo

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/joey-b

12/01/2024

As you all know, there are a ton of cats at the track, and caring for them, feeding them, and doing TNR is a ton of work, especially when more cats arrive weekly. This is long, but we need YOUR help, please.

This is from Paulette Cigliana, who feeds all 50-70 cats every single day, rain, snow, sleet, or shine. Many cats live in drainage ditches, some live under old trailers or sheds. Their conditions are not great. First, she wants to thank all of you who donated and continue to. Your help is much appreciated and completely essential :)

"As Thanksgiving wraps up, today is a good day to thank all who donated to the cat food drive you so generously had for me last year. It was a lifesaver due to the amount of cats I feed daily.

It's lovely that still, there are random days that I will come home from work and will be surprised to see a Chewy box on my front porch. Thank you!!!!! "

Quick Update:

"Last fall, Jodi & Aletta (of Gateway OTTBs), Jackie King, and Ashley caught roughly 20 kittens and all were placed and adopted.

Then Jennifer, a lovely volunteer, came into the picture (from heaven I think), and with her help, 53 cats have been trapped, fixed, some adopted and the rest released. No more fighting, and no more kittens. That is, until a few days ago - when we found a total of 10 dumped kittens. This makes me so mad.

Everyone knows I have been feeding the cats for over 10 years. But we are trying to round them up. Jennifer has spent an unbelievable amount of time trapping them. taking them to get fixed, and bringing them back - all on her time and money. She is an angel!!!!

This week, snow and cold weather have arrived so I am now figuring out some new places for shelters. The cats lost a few feeding stations when the track flooded and they lost the bushes that they were living in. We need insulated shelters, straw, and more food... I am sad to have to ask, but your tribe is amazing - and hoping they're able to help once again.

I had a lot of leftover turkey, so the cats ALL had hot turkey yesterday. They eat anything, mac and cheese, pasta, anything. I try to give them canned food once a week but that gets costly and more now that it's cold. Of course they love it.

THE ASK:

If people are able to donate food, please have them send Chewy or Amazon MEOW MIX, FRISKIES GRAVY SWIRLERS, FRISKIES TENDER CRUCHY COMBO or WET FOOD. Auto-ships are great too as the food gets resent at an interval the buyer chooses!! Please do not send expensive food, they love the above brands best. This is also a great inexpensive wet food option. https://a.co/d/1EtSPpH

If anyone is feeling extremely generous, Chewy also has many different insulated feral cat houses! This is just one example. https://www.chewy.com/aivituvin-insulated-feral-cats-cat/dp/1381310

Here is another: https://www.chewy.com/frisco-outdoor-wooden-cat-house/dp/387230

My address is: Paulette Cigliana, 100 Harding, Collinsville IL 62234.

If you are able to donate money, please donate to Gateway OTTBs on Venmo at -ladner. We promise to give the money to Paulette. We also have Paypal or Zelle. Or you can mail her a check.

Blessings and thank you!

Thank you all so much for caring and sharing with me. I appreciate it so much and so do my furry friends.

Have a Happy and safe Thanksgiving,

Bless you all

Paulette Cigliana

12/01/2024

TURFMEISTER is the most adorable guy, is he not! We just fell in love with him when we saw him. He is a stud but was so well behaved and loving, you would never know it. Can be kept as a stud or gelded at the track. He is by the super sire Bodemeister. Please check out his listing at the link below. Located near St Louis, Mo.

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/turfmeister-lovely-16h-stud-by-bodemeister

11/27/2024

We’ve posted a whole slew of new horses. Please visit

Gateway OTTBs (formerly CANTER Illinois) offers quality off-track thoroughbreds, located centrally in Illinois. We offer shipping to the USA and Canada and are located with easy access to Lexington. All horses are located at Fairmount Park Race Track in Collinsville, IL.

11/27/2024

Bandit Swanson was a 6 figure yearling a few short years ago. He’s a chonk, super quiet. Great brain. Lovely mover. Video in comments. 🩷16.2 hands. Located at the racetrack in collinsville, Illinois.

11/26/2024

How about bringing these two home for the holidays. Both OUT WORK'EM and MARK'S BUDDY JACIN are really ready to move on from track life. Please check out their listings at the link below and see the NEW information about both of them. Aren't they just adorable! We know they would love to be yours.

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/home/page/2

11/26/2024

11/26/2024

You guyyyyzzzz…. Trouble on the Beach left today for Pigeon Forge, TN. He’s already turned out and as proud as proud can be. They all deserve turnout and loving homes 🧡❤️🩵💜

11/19/2024

Important!

"A coyote problem"

Fear comes from not knowing. We tend to fear what we don't understand. Nothing projects that statement more than when it comes to coyotes...

We see (and are sent) so many posts and messages from folks who are blasting those "awful" coyotes... where people say they are going to kill the whole pack, or sing to the tune of "the only good coyote is a dead coyote." 😪

It's very disheartening how we (humans) define the behavior of animals as good or bad, when the animals are just doing what they were made to do.

I have to wonder if the coyotes walk around cussing humans who have built on top of their dens, fenced off their hunting areas and forced them out of their own territories?

For some folks, coyotes will remain to be a problem (because they refuse to learn facts about them)... but did you know that scientists have named coyotes (among other wildlife) a keystone species? Being named a keystone species means that their presence or absence has a significant impact on the surrounding biological community. And, that they are vital to the ecosystems in which they live.

Here are some important things to know about coyotes:

Stable coyote packs have an alpha male and an alpha female. And, in a stable pack, the alpha pair are the only ones who breed. The rest of the pack are usually previous years pups and sometimes other coyotes that they’ve welcomed in, and are the hunters of the pack. If you have a pack that you see (or hear) frequently, and who really doesn't bother much, you can create a much bigger problem by killing them off.

Coyotes are a self regulating species, meaning that if you shoot them or "kill them off" (as opposed to leaving them be), they will double their litter sizes. "Killing off" of coyotes only causes an explosion in their litter sizes and in their population.

Being a self regulating species, coyotes can and will control their own litter sizes. For instance, if there is a decline in the natural food population (rabbits, rats, mice, voles, etc) in a coyotes home territory, the coyotes won't breed and produce offspring for that year, until the food source has been reestablished. Thus, maintaining the health of the family.

Coyotes are territorial and will keep other coyotes out of their home range. Trapping and releasing or killing them only opens up their territory to new coyotes coming in and claiming it as their own. And there WILL ALWAYS be more to fill the void. This will often result in a short-term increase in coyotes as the new territory lines are redrawn by the newcomers. And often, the new pack members will take bigger risks in trying to sn**ch your chickens, pets or livestock, where the other pack mostly left those alone.

So what can you do?

The best way to handle coyote population is to let them be. And let them work out their own territories, thus stabilizing the coyote population. There will never be more coyotes in an ecosystem than a ecosystem can support. Coyotes don't need humans to control population. They are well equipped to handle it themselves. When humans get involved, that is when the balance and stability gets thrown off... and that is when problems are created.

The fact is coyotes, like all other living beings, must eat. However, if you take measures to protect your livestock by making access to them difficult and challenging, you can help deter the coyotes as they would prefer an easier and more natural prey. So if you want to keep your animals safe, use some good ole human ingenuity and make things harder... like the old saying goes; good fences make good neighbors.

Here are some other precautions you can take:
▪️Lock your chickens up at night.
▪️Put baby goats/lambs/calves inside of substantial fencing.
▪️Research and look in to working dogs and consider getting one or more.
▪️Some folks have had success with donkeys as guardians (we have), while others have not. I think it depends on the temperment and disposition of the animal and whether or not they are accustomed to protecting livestock. Some donkeys (like any animal) are not suited for guardianship. Please do your research before adding a livestock guardian like a donkey to your herd.
▪️Do not leave out pet or livestock food at night.
▪️For cattle and other pasture livestock, cleaning up the afterbirth from calves is highly recommended (if the cow doesn’t do it herself). When the afterbirth is left on the ground "for the wildlife to take care of," you are encouraging the pack to think about livestock as a food choice.

It is a common misconception that coyotes kill for fun. Coyotes are playful and curious, just like domestic dogs, but as a rule they do not expend energy killing animals that they don’t intend to eat. When they take a prey animal, it is not malice, it's nature.

If we say we love animals, we have to carefully consider ALL animals and the impact that WE have on their lives. And learning about and understanding each species and their natural behaviors helps us to peacefully coexist with the wildlife around us... not cause a division.

***photo of a little coyote pup that we received after his mom was killed.

11/14/2024

IT’S ON is a big stepping, big presence filly in a little body. She’s currently
15.1 hh but carries herself like she is a much bigger girl. She looks like she’ll be a lot of fun. Ready to go, all info can be found by clicking the link below. Located near st Louis, Mo

https://www.gatewayottbs.com/post/carlos-small-horse-15-1-hand-cutie-pie