The importance of horse welfare at Okavango Horse Safaris
- alex582949
- May 27
- 2 min read
Today I wanted to reposit a blog Lucinda at Aardvark Safaris wrote about us highlighting how importantly we take the wellbeing of our horses. It's a topic we think about daily and centre many of our decisions around at Okavango Horse Safaris, a pillar of the company we will never compromise.
Thanks Lucinda for the below!
We believe that a truly exceptional riding safari isn’t just about the landscape you ride through or the wildlife you encounter along the way; it’s about the horses beneath you. Their temperament, their fitness, their happiness. Because a horse that is genuinely well cared for makes for a better, safer and more meaningful experience for everyone.
Farriery
The majority of the Okavango herd, around 75%, are barefoot, and several of the team’s grooms are trained to trim hooves to a professional standard. Trimming is carried out on a rolling basis, with a handful of horses seen every few days to ensure each one is attended to every five weeks. For those who do require shoes, as well as any corrective work or more complex issues, specialist farrier Jared travels in from Maun on the same five-week cycle.
Veterinary Care
The horse team, guides and management are all highly experienced in handling a broad range of conditions – from hoof abscesses and mud fever to colic, biliary and African Horse Sickness. For anything beyond routine care, they have the support of Maun-based vet Rob Jackson, who is on hand to advise remotely or visit camp when needed, and who draws on a wider network of vets across Southern Africa for more complex cases. All horses are regularly wormed and vaccinated against African Horse Sickness. Each animal is groomed and checked over twice daily, morning and evening, with a further check and feed at midnight by the camp’s night watchman.
Schooling and Training
During the quiet season, every horse is given a well-earned rest of one to two months, tailored to their individual temperament and condition. They are then brought back into work gradually, following a structured programme of lunging, schooling and exercise rides before rejoining the guest safari schedule. The head grooms are all trained to lunge, and horse manager Elen has a particular talent for developing the younger horses. Volunteers also join the team periodically to assist with schooling.
Exceptional horse welfare isn’t something bolted on as an afterthought – it is woven into everything we do. From the midnight checks and the bush farriery to the quiet season rest periods and the youngsters carefully brought on by experienced hands, Okavango Horse Safaris is run by people who genuinely love their horses.
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