The Horse Rehabilitation Project is perfectly suited for horse lovers, those who want to learn about the various aspects of equine rehabilitation. Volunteers can help these horses improve with patience and kindness. Horses respond to gentleness while handling them, are forgiving and willing to please.
Volunteers can expect to get involved in regular riding, irrespective of their ability to ride. They may receive horse riding lessons or take part in riding trails on the Wildlife Care Center Adjacent to the Rehabilitation Center. During their daily activities, volunteers can possibly catch a few white rhinos, giraffes, hippos, warthogs and antelopes within sight.
Volunteers in this project are required to engage themselves in the activities with hands on approach. Volunteers will also be responsible for lunging, backing of young horses, feeding, grooming, tack maintenance, general care of the horses and general yard care.
This program is informal and relaxed, and volunteers are supervised throughout their stay. Volunteers are also given the opportunity to see places and do activities of interest in the area.
A Typical Day at the Horse Project
The day starts with grooming of all the horses. Then, depending on the volunteers’ skills, it is time for lessons or outride (2 – 3 hours, depending on level of fitness and competence).
This is followed by riding and/or lunging of problem horses and leading out of horses recovering from disease or abuse, and old horses. Included in the day’s activities is backing of young horses, which is dependent on the volunteer’s skills. The day ends off with grooming and checking of all the horses. Volunteers get breaks for lunch and tea during their busy schedule. Should there be horses needing vet care, then this takes priority and the other activities are arranged around this.
Fees and Dates
Except our registration fee of $299, our fees are as affordable as $950. The detailed fee structure of the Horse Project is as follows:
Duration |
Projects |
1 Week |
N/A |
2 Wks |
$950 |
3 Wks |
$1,400 |
4 Wks |
$1,850 |
5 Wks |
$2,300 |
6 Wks |
$2,750 |
7 Wks |
$3,200 |
8 Wks |
$3,650 |
Extra Week |
$500 |
Volunteers can arrive any day of the week, but it is better if they can arrive on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday. Thursdays and Fridays are a bit too close to the weekend (i.e. volunteers are hardly at the project, and they are then having time off).
Room/ Food
lunteering for this project. Beddings and blankets are provided, but you are required to bring your own bath towel as this is not provided.Volunteers are provided with room accommodation. 2 to 4 volunteers of the same gender are allotted with one room each. Rooms are also available for couples wanting to stay together, but this is subject to bookings and reservation – we cannot guarantee rooms as there are many volunteers volunteering for this project. Beddings and blankets are provided, but you are required to bring your own bath towel as this is not provided.
Volunteers are given 3 meals per day – breakfast, lunch, and dinner. Snacks are not provided by the staff. Meals are given on the Forest Camp Lodge, which is located near the centre. It only takes 10 minutes to walk from the bush to the lodge, or you can hitch a ride on local vehicles passing by the lodge.
Examples of Meals are:
- Breakfast (between 08H30 – 09H30) - toast, cereals, yoghurts, tea and coffee.
- Lunch (starts at 13H00) - sandwiches, hamburgers, rolls and cold meat, pastas, salads.
- Dinner (meet at the Rangers Cottage at 18H45, from where they depart for dinner) – lasagnas, roasts, vegetables, salads, pastas
Free time
Every week, volunteers can take a break from their daily routine and daily activities and participate on other activities. However, volunteers should remember that participating in these activities is not covered by the project fees and as such, they will have to participate in these activities using their own money. Some of the activities they can go to are:
- Abseiling
- River rafting
- Hot air balloon flights
- Bungee jumping
- Biking
- Visiting scenic spots such as the Blyde River Canyon
- And many others