From tragedy to triumph... Roman

Bolander spent an unforgettable morning visiting the Recovery and Rehabilitation (R&R) facility of Cart Horse Protection Association (CHPA), at Firlands, on the outskirts of Gordon’s Bay, to meet a young star, Roman.

During my walkabout with one of CHPA’s fundraisers, Karin Paschen, I first got some background on the work being done, and the horses in their charge.

Karin lives in Claremont, and

joined CHPA seven years ago, leaving the corporate world after seeing an ad in Bolander’s sister title, the Southern Suburbs Tatler, looking for a junior fundraiser for CHPA... and with no background with horses, but a lifelong support for animal welfare, she joined the team.

Epping is where CHPA has its head office, but the Firlands R&R is where most of the hands-on work is done.

As we walked to the paddocks, I met Alan Lockwood, as he walked by with Jay Jay, and Alan quickly stopped to explain that this is called “in-hand work” – which is necessary to keep them active, and learn social skills.

The star of the show, that I’d come to see, is Roman, a gorgeous young colt of four months, who immediately steps up to say hello.

CHPA describes his as “A story of hope: from tragedy to triumph – the tale of Cindy, Roman and Amazing”, as follows: Darling Cindy, owned by one of our oldest cart horse owners, Colin Jacobs, gave birth to a bouncing baby boy in the early hours of Friday September 20.

All seemed perfect in their world, with Cindy lovingly caring for her precious foal.

However, tragedy struck just three days later, when Cindy was rushed to Blue Cross Veterinary Hospital, colicking severely.

Despite hours of intensive treatment and care, her condition worsened, and we made the heartbreaking decision to send Cindy over the Rainbow Bridge.

Her loss was a devastating blow, but our commitment to her newborn foal gave us strength.

We took Cindy’s orphaned foal to our R&R Centre, determined to give him every chance at survival.

Drawing from our past experience with orphaned Grace, we knew the road ahead would be challenging but not impossible.

We introduced Cindy’s foal, now named Roman, to a remarkable mare called Amazing – who was rescued from abuse while pregnant, and had given birth to Roxy at the R&R. She did not hesitate to embrace Roman as her own, and this incredible mare allowed Roman to suckle, providing him with nourishment and a mother’s love.

Roman, a resilient little boy, found a second chance at life thanks to Amazing’s boundless compassion.

Even with all this love and care, Roman faced more challenges. Two days after Christmas, he was admitted to Blue Cross after displaying disorientation and abnormal behaviour.

The cause of his condition remained unknown, but our team’s vigilance ensured Roman received the best care possible and he recovered well.

What makes Roman’s story truly remarkable is that his owner, Mr Jacobs, made the heartfelt decision to sign him over to us.

This means Roman will never have to experience the life of a cart horse.

Instead, he will grow up under the loving care of his grooms and the people who have come to cherish him.

After all he has endured, breaking that bond would be unimaginable. What a wonderful way to start 2025.

Stories like Roman’s are why CHPA do what we do. Equine welfare is not just about saving lives; it’s about giving animals a second chance, showing them love, and helping them heal.

... So, back to my visit to the facility, and meeting Roman, who’s accompanied by his new friend, Samuri, who happily took on the custodianship of this youngster, to keep him company and teach him the the social ways of horse.

I was told that Samuri had arrived some time ago, with an order for PTS... when I enquired as to what that stood for, I was horrified to hear it meant “Put To Sleep”.

Naturally, they overrode this instruction, as he was healthy, and here he is, in perfect health, keeping young Roman company.

And Roman still gets a bucket of milk every day, and is the sweetest lad, approaching me fearlessly for a rub on his nose and neck, and then following us as we walk around his paddock.

They’re all wearing flymasks, which makes a huge difference to their comfort.

One of the grooms, Donnex Nyama, passes by on his rounds, and stops for a quick photo and greeting, and when I ask him who is his favourite, he says “Every horse!”.

But when I dig deeper, he acknowledges that the new kid on the block, Roman, is actually his delight, with which I concur.

Karin explains that people tend to automatically think, when they see these horses on the road, that “someone” should simply go and confiscate them, which is unrealistic and judgmental.

Additionally, there is the issue poor driving habits and bad manners, reckless passing of horseboxes (ie, going by them, then quickly tucking into the gap between the vehicle towing the horsebox, and the car up ahead, which causes sudden breaking, and could cause severe damage to the horses, like broken legs).

“We live a society of disrespsect; if only they understood the consequence of their attitudes,” laments Karin.

It strikes me, that if we can put the real images of uncomfortable realities into the minds of drivers, the dreadful consequences of not respecting vehicles carrying live animals, or passing on blind curves or driving over the yellow perimeter line, where carthorses and buggies could be traveling, perhaps they’d think again...

“We’re trying to put things in a way where people don’t feel they’re being accused, but rather informed and enlightened, they can do their own introspection.

“Cart horses have right of way, which is something many people either don’t know, or don’t care about,” adds Karin.

Currently there are 37 horses at Firlands facility, and a lovely herd of eight horses has just relocated to a farm in Oudtshoorn.

Karin elaborates about the process...

“All abused, neglected or injured horses come to the R&R here. The head office is in Epping, where people can come and get feed, and have horses shod.

“If a horse needs vet care, they can be brought to Epping initially as there is a stall there (just for daily treatment).

“If it’s deemed to be more serious, they go to Blue Cross first, and then they’ll be brought to Firlands.”

I asked how it works in terms of the law, in terms of their power to confiscate,versus getting someone to surrender the horse?

She says that the Animal Protection Act allows for confiscation if there is clear sign of abuse, and it’s not necessary to have law enforcement accompany them.

If the situation they encounter on home visits or to Epping is not too bad, the owner will receive warnings, and subsequent visits, and if there is no change, the horse may be confiscated.

How do you keep tabs on carthorse owners in general, I asked... do they need to be registered, and have licence plates on their buggies, and go through roadwordiness checks?

“Yes, they have to be registered on the road. We’ve been doing this work for 30 years, and all should be registered, but it’s ongoing work.

“They come to us for the E53 tests (like a driver’s licence), which are free, so they can’t claim they can’t afford it. “It’s about education – all the time,” says Karin.

How do home checks work?

“Every cart horse is registered with us; we know exactly where they live, what they are eating, who their father and mother is, who the owner is, and the state of their cart (we offer cart repair).

“We’ll also do quick checks on the road, to inspect everything.”

She says the area they cover is vast, and “a lot of people get angry, call us and say ‘why aren’t you patroling, there’s a horse on the road that looks neglected’, but they don’t know that we have limited resources.

“We only make money through donations, there is no government support. For the first time we’re getting some money from the Lotto. There are also the vehicles and running costs to consider...”

Karin tells me they received a substantial bequest from Bertha van Vliet, who left them R3.2 million, enabling them to buy the Firlands land for the R&R, in 2006.

Running costs are enormous, just food bill is over a million rand a year. They heavily subsidise the horsefeed for the carthorse owners, and the shoeing, which CHPA charge only R100 for (a normal farrier is between R1 000 and R1 500), and provide free veterinary care.

Cape Equine Vet, based in Bergvliet, is on the road a great deal, and CHPA take all their horses to Blue Cross in Newlands for urgent care.

I asked how much they rely on volunteers at the facility, but was told that all the staff received a salary, and having volunteers coming and going – despite their best intentions – would result in more work to manage them.

“The horses are in a routine, and it keeps the peace, to have just the same people caring for them,” says Karin.

World Horse Welfare pays a portion of the salaries, and 70c of every rand raised goes towards the horses themselves.

The four permanent grooms live on the property, care is given 24/7, and they do shifts and check on the horses on a roster.

“They’re all horse whisperers, it’s incredible. Here it’s calm, no frenzy and noise, and the horses just know they’re in safe place.

“The grooms know each horse, their personality, what they like and don’t like... and they are all stabled at night.”

Alan walks by again with Picadilly, telling me that he is just bonding with him, walking him about to familiarise hiim with people.

Picadilly used to live in the shack with his family, and was surrendered, but is still getting used to this new reality, and making new friends.

The geese are walking about and keeping a beady eye on me, and I mantain a safe distance, knowing their proclivity to suddenly running up with wings stretched wide and open beak, to establish their territorial lines.

Alan shares that there is such a difference between all the horses, and you just have to be intuitive and know what kind of treatment they need every day, whether its just walking about outside, or making them accustomed to

You have to go in with a receptive mindset, and he says its like having a conversation over coffee, and saying “let’s work on this, let’s work on that, and see how we get along.”

Alan also does home checks to establish if potential homes meet standards of care.

I meet Mona the mare (perhaps well-named) who doesn’t like other horses, or people, and prefers her own company in her paddock.

Next, I head to the quad of stables, with the heavenly smell of lucerne and horse, where chickens bustle about, looking for bugs or other edibles in scraps of lucerne, and clucking amiably.

I meet the inimitable Regine Cooper King, R&R management assistant, who is on her knees in front of Igor, changing the dressing on his chest and cleaning multiple drainage tubes.

He’d been most dreadfully lacerated (I saw the pictures, from just a few days prior when it happened....), after a car had passed another vehicle, and went head-on into Igor – and the fact that he survived is incredible.

Now his survival depends on his ability to heal, fight potential ongoing infection, continue to eat and take nutrition, stay still enough so that the wound doesn’t re-open with sudden moves.

Regine and Karin show me the photogrpahs taken right after they went to pick him up, gory isn’t even an adequate description.

His entire chest was just torn flesh, punctured with what looked like shrapnel, which she said was bits of the car, with his sternum fully exposed.

The vets believed at the time that this resilient 3-year-old horse could be helped, and watching him munch lucerne after the dressing had been changed, just a few days after the accident, I’m warmed to my soul that there are people who will give so much of themselves, their professional skills, ongoing round-the-clock care, and the longterm investment into rehabilitating an animal that has gone through so much.

He loves carrots, Regine tells me, but he had laid down, possibly feeling a little better because of the heavy medication.

Cape Equine Vets are always on call to come to the Epping facility if a sick horse arrives, before taking it to either Blue Cross Hospital, or the Firlands R&R.

Karin told me about the backlash they receive from the public, that people are often so outraged at the reality of people even being allowed to have carthorses, without the insight that for many people, this is their only sourse of income, its a family’s livelihood – and it’s not illegal, so it’s unrealistic for the public to think they should all just be confiscated – and put where, she said.

We’d love to see every carthorse not working, but what would we replace, as a form of income, she asks, adding that the best thing is to forge and maintain relations with all owners and their animals, and help them in every way possible.

I meet Sihlalo Dingiswayo, who is putting fresh sawdust shavings into a stable, and he takes a quick break for me to capture his image, with a glimpse of a smile.

I headed up to the huge barn, which holds much of the feed, and was convertted to include another 14 stables, and met Mzimkhulu Bomvana (George), bringing hay in a wheelbarrow.

Diana Truter, Chief Inspector, lives on the property, and “sleeps, eats, drinks carthorses 7 days a week”, says Karin.

Both Diana and the Head of Fundraising and Development,

Megan White, from Durbanville, have been with CHPA for about 20 years, and their farrier, Ashley Deelman, has been a stalwart shoeing horses.

GM Penny Lancester, from Rondebosch, has been there for nine years, and Carl Naude, who does the reception and admin, for 17 years.

Looking at what a well-oiled and managed unit this is, I’m struck by how functional it is, despite getting no help from the state, and having to rely on so many infusions of money.

But it’s also about observing a group of people working together well, like a harmonious machine, which is essential, because they’re working with beings, who are are very often traumatised.. and not only that, the caregivers are being traumatised, and need to be debriefed (like in Igor’s case); it’s no small thing.

We then walked through all the different paddocks, and met the chilled inhabitants, rubbing noses and patting flanks, and getting my horse fix (having grown up with horses, they’re my favourite being, up there with cats and dogs).

I hear the back story of each, some that had been taken with harness wounds and other signs of neglect, or were simply given up because their owners – who loved their horses and let them live inside their rudimentary homes with them – knew that they couldn’t care for them anymore and surrendered them, like the lovely Picadilly.

Jan Vonk, with his beautiful feathered fetlocks, had been adopted out, came back, fostered out, came back - he’s the only one that doesn’t get led to his stable, he walks to it every night.

He decided this was his home, and he’ll be here till the day he dies. He whinneys at me, confirming his inalienable position as ambassador and resident-in-chief.

Mr Lonely, who had been abused, beaten on his face and head with a pole – and fortunately it was caught on camera – was confiscated that day, and now lives in this bucolic place, where he only experiences love, and is renamed Sir Luke.

Lunchtime meant that haynets were being filled up, and some of them kicked up their heels as they claimed their individual nets, and then settled down to some serious munching, tails swishing back and forth to keep pesky flies at bay.

As I walk back to my car, I meet the affable farm dogs, tails wagging in welcome. It’s an ongoing job, running this place, with so many moving parts, and it’s ‘heart’ work.

Karin adds: “I want to bring people’s attention to the R&R, the costs involved... it also costs over a million a year, in rates and taxes, fees, broken pipes and pumps needing repair or replacement, electrical wiring needing redone etc, not to mention the actual running costs of the horses themselves.”

I drove away, filled with appreciation, and urge people to look up Carthorse Protection Association on their website, and see more examples of the incredible work they do.

Get involved, get invested, and support their work. It beats the hell out of just calling up and complaining about the lot of these horses.

We can all be a part of the solution, and the complexities of the problem, by and large, is a much bigger story and reality.

Visit their website: About Us – Cart Horse Protection Association