A skeletal horse that collapsed while pulling a gypsy cart in Almancil on Friday (November 20) is being cared for by British woman Zoe Dickinson at a Loulé farm named Quinta Martins.
National tabloid Correio da Manhã described the horrific scene, writing that dozens of people watched the animal “suffering” while its owners dragged it to the side of the Vale de Éguas road after collapsing.
Dickinson was one of the witnesses and offered to care for the horse, now named Alfie, while it recovers. She expects it will take “three to five months” before the horse is fully recovered.
“He was starving, but he’ll be okay. What we need now is someone who will adopt him when he’s recovered,” Dickinson said.
GNR police and Loulé’s veterinarian services agreed that the horse was “extremely undernourished and physically debilitated” and that it should not be returned to its previous owners.
In fact, the horse was so weak that it took “six male helpers” to lift it into a van and take it to Quinta Martins.
Speaking to the Resident, Dickinson revealed that she will be meeting with GNR police today (November 23) to “make a report with a view of prosecuting the gypsies” who claim they did not have enough money to feed or care for the horse.
Anyone willing to help out with Alfie’s bills can visit Quinta Martins’ Facebook page for more information.
Dickinson says the horse is already much livelier and all that he will really need soon is a “loving home”.
Meantime, donations will go towards a number of expenses, including medication, vet bills, and hay.
www.facebook.com/quintamartinshorseriding
NIB bank number: 0010 0000 1705540 0001 12
919 250 205 (Zoe)
[email protected]
