Emmy Award-winning broadcaster Robbie Timmons, whose vision and tireless efforts have helped place more than 20,000 ex-Thoroughbred racehorses into new homes as a result of the 1997 launch and subsequent nationwide expansion of CANTER USA, has received the American Association of Equine Practitioners’ 2014 Lavin Cup.
Known as the AAEP’s equine welfare award, the Lavin Cup recognizes a non-veterinary organization or individual for distinguished service to improve the welfare of horses. Timmons accepted the award during the Dec. 9 President’s Luncheon at the AAEP’s 60th Annual Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Timmons’ equine advocacy originates from her reporting on the fate of Thoroughbred racehorses following the closure of a Detroit-area racetrack. She helped form CANTER (Communication Alliance to Network Thoroughbred Ex-Racehorses) in order to place Michigan racehorses into new careers. The initiative has expanded to 13 chapters across the country as a result of her persistent and successful pursuit of grants and donations to cover the operating expenses of the entirely volunteer organization.
Of the more than 20,000 Thoroughbreds placed into new homes through CANTER’s free online listing service, over 3,500 have been owned by CANTER through an owner relinquished adoption program. As one of the few Thoroughbred outplacement agencies that helps both injured and sound horses, CANTER, under Timmons’ guidance, established affiliations with veterinary colleges such as Michigan State University and The Ohio State University for necessary surgical procedures to return CANTER-owned horses to soundness and increase their adoptability.
Timmons currently serves as treasurer of CANTER USA. In addition to fund raising, she has helped each CANTER chapter establish standard business practices and procedures, which comply with AAEP guidelines and 501(c)(3) non-profit policies. She also penned the popular children’s novel Twoey and the Goat and donated all sales proceeds to CANTER.
Additional information about Timmons is available at www.robbietimmons.com. For additional information about CANTER USA, visit www.canterusa.org.
The American Association of Equine Practitioners, headquartered in Lexington, Kentucky, was founded in 1954 as a non-profit organization dedicated to the health and welfare of the horse. Currently, AAEP reaches more than five million horse owners through its over 9,000 members worldwide and is actively involved in ethics issues, practice management, research and continuing education in the equine veterinary profession and horse industry.
