20/01/2021

Appeal to institutions and individuals: “Help us find a new home”

Due to the lack of replies on the cause of the deaths, the association has decided to leave Tignano (Volterra)

IHP-Italian Horse Protection has decided to leave the present headquarters of the association in Tignano (Volterra), where the Rescue Centre for abused and mistreated equines is also located, and appeals to private individuals and institutions to help them find a new, suitable home. The association will explore all possibilities, from free loan to rental and purchase, for the land and buildings where it will move its operational headquarters and the Rescue Centre—which was recognised in 2009 by the Ministry of Health—where they welcome abused animals that have been seized by the judicial authorities. The centre currently hosts 37 animals.

“It’s a painful decision – says IHP’s President, Sonny Richichi – which we are forced to make due to the lack of certainty. However, it is precisely due to the lack of definite answers as to the cause of the deaths that have been going on for two years now that have driven us to this all-in attempt: we don't know if our horses were killed or if the cause of their deaths can be found in environmental factors. What is certain is that managing the animals in this situation is no longer sustainable, neither for the staff nor for the horses themselves, who are not enjoying the total wellbeing that they deserve. For too long now we have been forced to confine them in very small places for fear of repetitions.  It is also certain that the deaths began immediately after we moved to Tignano:  IHP was established in 2009 and such incidents had never happened before”.

“It is for these reasons, even if these are only empirical assessments not supported by scientific evidence which nobody has been able to provide us so far, that we are looking for a new home, in the hope that moving elsewhere will be sufficient to interrupt the series of deaths.  Obviously, we will continue to push for answers and to seek the truth about what happened by raising the problem in all appropriate forums” continues Richichi, “but in the meantime we are leaving the place where our greatest enthusiasm clashed with a tragedy that no one could have ever imagined:  Tignano was supposed to be the answer to all our dreams, but it turned into a nightmare.

The Association is therefore urgently looking for a property with the following minimum characteristics:  about 20 hectares of pasture land, most of which flat; availability of drinking water for the animals (a spring or other freshwater sources such as artificial lakes or rivers); power supply (existing or feasible), telephone and internet connections; about 10 sheds closed on three sides of about 20 square metres each (existing or feasible in compliance with local building regulations); about 10 boxes (existing or feasible); a shed open on all sides of about 50 square metres to be used as a barn; a warehouse/office with 3 rooms of about 15 square metres each; four small housing units to accommodate the staff (existing or feasible also by means of prefabs in compliance with local building regulations).

“We appeal to the institutions and individuals in the area: anyone who owns land with these characteristics please come forward to help us find our new home, in the hope that this will finally mark a turning point in the life of the association and of the animals we care for, by providing them with a safe environment”, concludes Sonny Richichi.

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