I was walking along a fence line on a country lane in Kentucky this morning when a horse wandered over to the fence to check me out. I did not have my good camera with me but did have my COOLPIX so I took a few shots of the horse. I think he was lonely. Later my daughter noticed the LEAVE SEATTLE name tag. Since my daughter and her husband live on the lane, only recently a part of Dream Chase Farm, we thought there could be a connection to the famous 1977 Triple Crown winner SEATTLE SLEW. I checked him out and discovered the following:

1988, b h

by Seattle Slew - Leave Me Alone by Northern Dancer

Lifetime: 3 Starts, 0 Wins

From: www.oldfriendsequine.com

OLD FRIENDS


History: Most of our residents come to OLD FRIENDS with legendary racing careers; others with gritty stories of survival. In the case of Leave Seattle, his background is sketchy at best. We do know that this handsome son of Seattle Slew and grandson of Northern Dancer was bred in Kentucky and raced only 3 times with no wins. We also know that he had a respectable stud career in Massachusetts, standing at one time at Briar Hill Farm in Rehobath.

Albeit unspectacular, Leave Seattle’s road to OLD FRIENDS has been anything but smooth. We know that at one time he was consigned to a slaughter auction, and he spent some time in a Lexington boarding stable prior to winding his way here. Rest assured, this soft-eyed fellow with the sweet disposition has found a permanent home in the company of our champions.

OLD FRIENDS began as a retirement and rescue facility for pensioned Thoroughbreds.
Then news broke of the inconceivable death of Kentucky Derby winner Ferdinand in a
slaughterhouse in Japan in 2002. The discovery gave even more impetus to our organization. "We went from getting five emails a day to hundreds," noted President and founder Michael Blowen. We knew such a death must never happen again. And so the plan became to bring " at risk" racehorses--those whose racing and breeding careers had come to an end--to OLD FRIENDS, provide them with the dignified retirement they deserve, and open the space to the public. By promoting these one-time celebrated horses through a campaign of education and tourism, we realized we could draw attention to all retired Thoroughbreds and all equines in need.

Since then OLD FRIENDS has retired two mares (including Bonnie's Poker, the dam of 1997 Derby winner Silver Charm) and five geldings (including Seabiscuit star Popcorn Deelites).

We are the only thoroughbred rescue/retirement facility that accepts stallions, and so we take exceptional pride in our pensioned champions, among them 1988 Eclipse-winning Turf Champion Sunshine Forever and the last great son of Damascus Ogygian.

Based in Georgetown, Ky., OLD FRIENDS has begun receiving visitors. We are hosting two to five tours daily (see Visit Old Friends), and while our guests come to visit a few ex-racehorses, they leave having been touched by the heart of a Thoroughbred hero.