I adore horses, so loved to see the happy horses at Northcote Heavy Horse Centre having fun in their field in the morning!

The centre is based in Lincolnshire, near Skegness.   Their main aim is to give a peaceful, rich and rewarding life to the animals in their care, and to give them a forever, loving home. 

They also help educate the public on the legacy and history of the horse, and the impact of the horse on the world today.

The coronavirus has hit them hard

Like so many places, they have had to close during the coronavirus but they say the good news is that they will be opening up soon – we all  need to keep an eye on their Facebook page to watch for news!

This is very good news because the centre needs help if it is to get through at the moment.   The centre was opened in 1988 and it has had many horses and animals through its doors, giving them a loving, caring forever home. 

You can see their current animals here – not just horses and ponies!  There are also ferrets, pigs, alpacas, terrapins and turtles, goats and birds of prey!  One big happy family, needing help.

 
This is  Merlin, the miniature Shetland who came to the centre in 2014

And this is Rosie, a rare Suffolk Punch – what a beautiful girl she is!

Ways to help the Northbrook Heavy Horse Centre:

• Make a donation – however small or large
• If you’re buying anything from Newbridge Tack and Feeds, spare a donation or buy a bag of pony cubes, fast fibre, chaff, savings, chicken, pig food, goat, or even straw.  They are dropping donations off weekly.  A huge thank you to them for their wish to help everyone at Northcote.
• Sponsor a horse – this could be a great gift for a horse lover!
• Support their GoFundMe appeal
• Visit when the centre opens up!
• Buy something off their Amazon wish list

Kick up your heels and canter over to their Facebook page.

Gallop off to the Northbrook Heavy Horse Centre's website here

Images on this blog © Northbrook Heavy Horse Centre

SPANA is an international charity which helps working animals around the world. 

SPANA work in the developing countries of the world where millions of people are dependent on their animals – horses, donkeys, mules, elephants – for a living. 

What SPANA does and where

SPANA treats animals, it teaches the owners about animal care and it trains local professionals and communities.  SPANA works in countries such as Somaliland, Tanzania, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Peru, Liberia, Mongolia, Kenya, and Cameroon.   You can find out more about its work here.

And they know that from their visits in mobile clinics to out of the way places, many of the animals can suffer terribly from tetanus and they can die from it as well.

The problem: tetanus can kill

Just a small scratch is enough for tetanus bacteria to enter their stream.  And then they need treatment immediately – if they don’t get it, the animal is not likely to survive.

The solution:  to vaccinate against tetanus

The simple solution is to vaccinate the animals against tetanus

Introducing Mory

Mory’s story is typical.

He transports waste to rubbish dumps in Mali.  The work is backbreaking, in scorching heat and a hazardous environment.

Introducing Mory
Image © SPANA

An open wound on Mory’s back getes worse as the cart knocks his back. His wound is the perfect place for tetanus bacteria to enter his body – and multiply.

But Mory’s owner saw Mory’s wound was getting worse.  SPANA’s mobile clinic was luckily close by. Their vets cleaned the wounds, sprayed them with antiseptic and dressed them.  They gave Mory a vaccine to stop tetanus and gave Mory’s owner advice about harnessing him correctly to stop the cart running into the wound.

How you can help animals like Mory

You can help with a donation to vaccinate many animals like Mory and keep them safe from tetanus.

Please donate here.  Every vaccination makes a difference to a hard-working animal like Mory.

• £20 could vaccinate 8 animals against tetanus. 
• £45 ...could pay for bandages, antiseptics and anti-inflammatory medicine to treat the wound of a working animal at risk of developing tetanus.
• £80 ...could pay for medicines, food and bedding to treat an animal with a mild case of tetanus at the SPANA stables for three days

Mory says THANK YOU on behalf of all his friends!

On World Wildlife Day (3^rd March), Free the Bears set out to rescue a little moon bear cub.

The cub had been seen for sale on social media.  He was chained to a pole by the neck.

And Free The Bears managed to rescue him – he was terrified.   They transferred him to their Luang Prabang Wildlife Sanctuary and the cub nursery there.

Since his arrival, he’s gained weight and confidence.  Not only that, he has a new name – Rupert!

So here he is..... Enjoy!

Free the Bears have also been involved in another rescue - and we wait to see what happens to this poor little bear who is in a pitiful state in Vietnam.

The male bear has been caged for 20 years - he did have a female moon bear friend, but she sadly died.  The male bear is very sick, he isn't eating and things don't look good for him.   Free the Bears set out today, 17 March, on the 10 hour journey to see what they can do to help him.   They will try to bring him to sanctuary to treat him or, at least, reduce his suffering.

Free the Bears say that non-profit  WildAct Vietnam helped fund this rescue from proceeds of the amazing storybook 'Saving Sorya: Chang & the Sun Bear' which was inspired by a stint of volunteering at Free the Bears Cambodia. 

Good luck to this moon bear and thank you to everyone at Free the Bears. 

Visit their facebook page for updates. 

Visit their website to see how you can help.