Local association takes in 16 of the tourist carriage horses from Malaga and saves them from the slaughterhouse

There is good news for most of the horses that are no longer pulling Malaga city's horse-drawn carriages for tourists: 'A Better Life 4 Horses' sanctuary, located in Antequera, has acquired 16 of the 25. Although the owners did not want to give them up, the animal welfare association has paid more than 22,000 euros to buy the animals so that they can have a better life from now on.

The private centre where fifteen have already been rehomed - the last one is due to arrive next week - is run by former professional horsewoman Signe Froslee, who has been caring for and taking in and caring for abandoned or abused horses since 2022. She has been able to acquire the 16 animals thanks to her own funds and with the help of various companies and private individuals. "The important thing is that they will now be able to rest and live a good life," says the Danish volunteer.

Although official information is scarce, as Malaga city hall has not given any information about the state of the animals, the association has heard that at least three will continue to work in Seville and Huelva and that another three have been sold to private individuals thanks to the intermediation of other associations. Thanks to the intervention of the Antequera sanctuary, no animal will be abandoned or be put down, as Signes has bought the older ones.

However, there is still a logical doubt about the future of the remaining three after mayor of Málaga, Francisco de la Torre, announced on Monday 6 October the end of horse-drawn carriages as a tourist activity "with the welfare and safety of the animals in mind" and that since then the city hall has limited itself to saying that "the horses and carriages are the property of the riders, not of the city hall" and that "the horse's owners themselves must report on the matter". Each of the licence holders has been compensated with 125,380.48 euros.

The animals that have arrived at the sanctuary are a healthy weight and with shiny coats, although their hooves are in poor condition. "One had not been shod for eight months, another had a face full of scars and another had a urine infection," Froslee explains. All of them, she adds, "have arrived very tired; one had been doing the same job since 2007 and had not been able to lie down as it did not have a paddock".

From now on, the 16 animals will enjoy a well-deserved retirement and will form part of an educational project that 'A Better Life 4 Horses' wants to set up: to help children who have suffered abuse, bullying or any type of problem in the family environment. "In no case are we going to give them away or sell them; they will always be with us," Signes says.

Although the animals have finally found a new home in Antequera, the lack of information has been of great concern in the last month, according to various animal welfare groups. This is the case of Tania Pamies, an engineer from Madrid who has been trying to take in some of the animals since the news broke and has not been able to get any information.

The volunteer has contacted the city hall on countless occasions and has even written an email to the mayor's office without receiving a reply. At first she was told that if a horse was ceded by the coach drivers she would be informed, but the expected communication has never arrived. "Thank you for your cooperation, as soon as we have something we will inform you," a cold reply via email is the most she has managed to get. "It is an issue that makes me very uneasy. I don't care if there are two or three left, but I want to know where the horses are," Signes says.