Every day in Marrakesh, Morocco, horses pull carriages through the streets, taking tourists on sight-seeing tours through the busy traffic and winding alleys. But behind the picturesque scenes of vibrant marketplaces, ancient buildings and idyllic gardens lies a heartbreaking truth.
Horses are dying for human entertainment.
Credit: NFA/David Barritt
When they’re not dragging overladen carriages full of tourists, the horses wait patiently in the boiling sun with little or no access to shade.
In summer, when tourists flood the city, temperatures frequently exceed 104°F (40°C) and the horses become so weak and dehydrated they collapse in the street – never to get up again. We have captured this on video: Poor, terrified creatures struggling and failing to stand, eventually dying in the streets.
This is the real price of a carriage ride in Marrakesh – and most tourists have no idea.
Tourism is booming in Marrakech. For horses, it’s a virtual death sentence.
Credit: NFA/Dejan Radic
With the rise in tourists visiting the city, more and more horses are being forced to pull carriages. Often, these new owners know nothing about animal welfare. They treat the horses like taxis, using a whip as an accelerator. The traffic is so bad that fender benders are common, except that when a horse gets involved in a fender bender, it often results in serious, life-threatening injuries.
Our partner, the Jarjeer Mule and Donkey Refuge, does everything it can to help and has sounded the alarm to authorities, calling this what it is: Animal cruelty.
Credit: NFA/Dejan Radic
Exhausted, hungry and abused equines don’t have to die.
With your help, we can give them the safe refuge they so desperately need.
Credit: NFA/David Barritt
Jarjeer provides around-the-clock care for equines rescued from all over Morocco, including former carriage horses. Often, the animals arrive at the sanctuary in shocking condition – exhausted, starving, injured and traumatized.
With your support, Network for Animals stands with Jarjeer, providing assistance with food and care, but we need your help to do more. Your donation today will help us:
- Mount regular checks to monitor the conditions these animals endure.
- Educate carriage drivers on the importance of shade, rest and proper care.
- Rescue and treat the horses who are suffering in silence, with no-one else to turn to.
Together, we can give these abused animals the care, dignity and compassion they deserve.
Credit: Dreamstime/Antonella865
Your donation today could mean the difference between life and death for a carriage horse in Marrakesh. Please, if you possibly can, donate right away.
Thank you for being a voice for those who cannot speak for themselves.
