I was talking with a colleague months ago about the opportunity to volunteer and go overseas to help with horse welfare projects. She asked me if I was aware of the Prince Fluffy Kareem (PFK) project. I definitely wasn’t! I was given the Facebook page address and headed over to have a look.
It turns out the PFK project is a charity that although UK registered, is based in Cairo, Egypt. And what do they do?
“Our mission is to help the animals working by the pyramids of Giza We treat mainly horses but also lots of camels and donkeys.”
It turns out that these animals are regularly used to take tourists and even Egyptian locals around the pyramids. They also travel the surrounding desert, are used as transport and even pull carts full of local produce to sell.
Sadly, many of the pyramid horses are in incredibly poor body condition. According to the PFK, many of the owners that they work with have very little income and are also illiterate. They struggle to support themselves, their family and also relatives. The horses, donkeys and camels utilised are working animals, often starting from a young age. Lack of income means that these animals suffer from lack of veterinary and farrier visits.
A lack of knowledge regarding the grazing habits of horses also exacerbates the problem. The horses are on high grain diets and often suffer from colic, ulcers and laminitis, with their owners being ignorant about these issues.
Prince Fluffy Kareem works to educate owners as well as see to the welfare needs of these animals.
“Every owner gets several chances, but if they show us repeatedly that they are not interested in caring for their animals they can no longer leave horses with us. PFK offers all treatment free of charge, whether that is feeding a horse for two months, x-rays, wound care, farrier work or surgeries. Most important of all, we educate. We can’t change the financial situation in Egypt, but we can teach the owners to better understand their animals’ needs.”
I love the sound of setups like this. They treat the immediate problem but also educate to stop it from reoccurring. Want to help? You can donate via their site.
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