Horse Sanctuary Group Experience

Group Experience Programme

This programme will give an opportunity for your group to be in the countryside, gaining real experience with horses who are being handled with force-free techniques, whilst helping with day-to-day sanctuary maintenance and farm work.

Your group will receive day-to-day guidance through the tasks, learning how and why we carry out each one. Each member will have the opportunity to learn how to make contact with the horses, and be with them without presenting as a threat. During your stay, as well as the day-to-day helping hands, your group can take part in one force-free theory workshop and one scratch class per week to ten days. We look at how the horse perceives the human, and how we can change this to help us communicate and understand each other by responding appropriately rather than using force. This inevitably builds confidence in both horse and human and leads to more beautiful results.

About Us and Our Volunteers

We are a small association aiming for self-sufficiency and working with the land and animals in harmony. We look after a herd of seven horses on site and others off site at various times. We rely on help from nature and animal lovers so that our project can grow.

We live in a village of 150 people in the mountains. It is friendly and intimate. Even if you don’t speak any Spanish, you will be welcomed as if you do.

We are an English-Spanish family, and you are invited to join us and take part in a fusion of at least two languages and cultures.

Clare and partner Chico have a wide variety of experience and skills between them. Chico is a native Spanish speaker and runs the gardens and building projects. Clare oversees the horse training sessions, often with the help and support of other volunteers.

Work is often physically hard and although we welcome people from all experiences. A hard-working attitude fits best here. Please let us know before booking if you have specific needs or disabilities so we can discuss the possibilities. You will be joining a family with animals and children. It is essential that you like these as they all join in every area of our lives!

We are always looking for helping hands whether with general care and maintenance; helping us keep our horses happy; or helping with promotion – there shall be something you can bring your skills to. 

Work hours normally are up to 25 hours per week.

What to expect:

One reason many volunteers decide to take this experience, aside from what they may learn on our actual programmes, is to have the opportunity to experience a different culture and a different way of life to that in which they are used to. 

Apart from the fact that each family functions differently from home to home, here we also try to live as sustainable as possible, both as a family and as a project. This is a good opportunity when experiencing the world and new cultures, and we hope you can also embrace this. For example -

In the village:

The accommodation may/may not be basic compared to what some are used to. There are beds, bedding, towels, heating, electric fans, a bathroom with a modern toilet, shower, and bath, running hot and cold water, and a kitchen with a washing machine, stove top and fridge. However, the electric is not very powerful so it may cut out for a few moments if too many appliances are being used at the same time. 

There is WiFi available in the village just a minute walk away from the accommodation, in a family friendly bar. There is also a free internet building, but the opening times are sometimes a little sporadic. If you want to use the internet in the accommodation, then I suggest checking with your service provider before you leave. It is also possible to buy a Spanish SIM card if this is a better option for you. You would need to tell us before your arrival, or wait until the weekly shop or your day off to go into town. Vodafone has a very good signal and I use my unlimited mobile data to connect via hotspot to my laptop. I can not vouch for the availability of service/coverage/signal of other companies in the village. The same for making phone calls. Some people are easily able to make calls/Skype calls from the accommodation, and others have to walk out.

The tap water in the accommodation is drinkable, and there is also the option to bottle your own water from a natural source in the village. We do not provide bottled water. You can buy this yourself in the weekly shop if you still feel it is necessary.

Any other details such as pharmacy opening hours, bus times etc can be found in an information folder which we leave available in the accommodation, and encourage you to read before you start on the project.

On the project site:

You must take your own water bottle which can be refilled from the natural source we have there. The main area of work is a little further down the land, so you may have to walk back up to the source to refill (especially in summer). Bear in mind this is not far, but it is a steep hill. You can also refill plastic bottles which we can provide to take down to refill, but someone will need to be responsible to change this each day.

There is no smoking on the project site due to fire risk.

The bathroom on the project site is in nature. This means that you can pee anywhere you like, and there are plenty of hidden spots. We have a compost toilet for solids. This is in the form of a wooden shed with a large wooden box and a toilet seat to sit on. Everything goes into this box then you throw some compostable material on top to cover it which is there beside the toilet. Any tissue and sanitary products go into the bin provided. The box is left aside covered when full, until it is composted. Then it is totally safe to be emptied onto the land (don't worry, we don't ask volunteers to do this!) - which is why you must only use it for solids or it would fill too fast and be impossible to move. 

All volunteers and visitors are asked to refrain from touching the horses unless/until they are trained in this. There are very specific and important reasons for this request which we will be happy to share with you.

Other details such as start and finish times can be found in an information folder which we leave available in the accommodation, and encourage you to read before you start on the project.

The following is just an example. Routines change seasonally and can also change daily, depending on what other commitments we may have. 

First thing in the morning, volunteers take a pretty fifteen minute walk from the village to the site. As you approach you will hear the horses calling for their breakfast as they sense the volunteers arriving.

You can breakfast early before you leave or take a break later for a picnic breakfast (you prepare this yourself). We are flexible!

First we decide the objective for the day, and split the group if necessary depending on size, then we can get to work. The horses are fed and the usual day-to-day chores such as filling water and pooh-picking are completed. Then we will either start training and working with the horses or do any other jobs or projects around the farm that we may have on the agenda.

There is an on-site outdoor kitchen so there are options for catering. In winter, volunteers may stay all day, but starting a little later and finishing earlier. In summer, when it’s too hot to work, we either go home for lunch and a siesta, stay and have a picnic and maybe a dip in our ‘alberca’, or visit the village pool.

In the afternoon and on days off you can rest, organise your own activities, use the internet, read, socialise, go to the bar, listen to music, cook…..there are many options.

Spring and autumn are generally the most pleasant months weather-wise, but if you are visiting during the summer months be aware that temperatures can reach 45 degrees, and work needs to be started very early at day-break (or before) and continued in the evening, finishing and eating late.

It can be very wet in the winter, but nice and sunny at midday. Temperatures can drop to close to freezing at night. You should be prepared with warm layers and waterproofs.

An approximate Calender In the Gardens (your group may or may not be involved with):

Winter -

• December, January, and February we harvest olives and process them to make organic olive oil. We also clear the land of overgrown vegetation in preparation for new growth and as protection against wildfires, which is required by law in this part of Spain. When this is complete, we can plant garlic, beans and other early field crops we choose to grow that year.

Spring -

• March, April, and May we prepare the ground in the vegetable gardens before planting. Weeding also needs to be done now around the crops which were planted earlier.

Summer -

• June, July, and August  we start to harvest tomatoes, peppers, garlic onions etc, and various fruits.  We can eat them fresh, cook with them, and process and store them for use later in the year.

Autumn -

• September, October and November we will still be watering the plants and planning and creating other projects around the finca.

Our projects are seasonally, financially and volunteer dependent. There are seasons to plant and seasons to harvest. Building and maintenance continues all year round.

Your stay here will provide you with memories and skills you will never forget! As well as those featuring nature and horses, there are festivals and parties that take place in all the villages. The big water fight in Atajate is in August; there is a German beer festival in Jimera de Libar in October and mushroom festivals in November. In summer there are music and horse festivals, foam parties and more! The beautiful local ‘white villages’ vary from 2000 inhabitants down to a population of less than 200 and are well worth a visit.

As well as the villages, there are towns to visit. Ronda is around 25km away and is on a main coast to city train route. It boasts a spectacular viaduct as well as many other historic sites and a variety of shops. After exploring these, the huge variety of

Cafes and bars will offer welcome refreshment.

If, however, you prefer a break from civilisation then you will be in your element. The surrounding mountains, forests and river are beautiful, peaceful and watched over by soaring eagles. Close by there are natural sites to visit such as the Canyon of the Vultures. There are guided walks to vast caves with ancient cave paintings. A Pa lo-Christian church is tucked away off the beaten track and an Arab tower is hidden in the countryside with not a tourist in sight.

The beach is approximately 1½ hours’ drive away. Trips can be arranged at an extra cost on your days off, eg to the coast or other cities such as Málaga and Sevilla.

Transport: You can hire a car from Málaga, or there is a bus leaving every weekday morning from Atajate to Ronda, and returning 0n the afternoon. From Ronda there are regular buses to all major cities and many smaller villages. It may also be possible to hire a driver locally as a taxi service.