Several horses from Malaga will continue to pull tourist carriages in other cities in Spain
The local sanctuary in the north of the province that bought 16 of the animals tried to get hold of them, but they had already been sold on
Not all the horses that used to pull Malaga's tourist carriages will enjoy a better life after the service was stopped in the city. Although the service ended at the beginning of October in the capital of the Costa del Sol, three of the animals will continue to do the same job in Seville and Huelva.
As SUR has learnt, three of the 25 horses have been acquired by carriage drivers in the other two Andalusian cities where they will continue to provide the tourist activity. The horse sanctuary 'A Better Life 4 Horses', which has managed to keep 16 of the animals, also tried to acquire them to prevent them from continuing to work, but it was too late. "We found out too late and they had already been sold," explained the founder, former professional horsewoman, Signe Froslee.
Of the 25 animals that worked in Malaga city in October (it is not known what has happened to the horses that stopped working in previous stages of the end of the service), 16 have been bought by the Antequera-based association, three will continue to work in Huelva and Seville and the fate of the remaining three is also unknown. The coach drivers themselves have indicated that they will keep them, although there is no certainty as to their current condition or maintenance.
A good life
The private centre where fifteen horses are already resting - the last one is due to arrive this week - is run by former professional rider Signe Froslee, who has been taking in and caring for abandoned or mistreated horses since 2022. The acquisition was made possible thanks to her own funds, the help of the Burrito y Caballo Libre de Mijas association and various companies and private individuals. "The important thing is that now they will be able to rest and live a good life", said the Danish volunteer.
However, there is still a doubt about the future of the remaining three. Mayor of Malaga, 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 licence holders, not of the city hall" and that "the owner themselves must report on the matter". Each of the licence holders has been compensated with 125,380.48 euros to be paid over the course of 10 years.
Different problems
The animals that have arrived at the sanctuary are a healthy weight and with shiny coats, but their hooves are in poor condition. "One had not been shod for eight months, another had a scarred face and another had a urine infection," Signe summarised. All of them "have arrived very tired; one had been doing the same job since 2007 and had not been able to lie down since then because he did not have a paddock available".
Now 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 in the recovery of children who have suffered abuse, bullying or any kind 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," she revealed.
