Volunteer with Horses in Africa

Volunteer

Working with Horses Program…

Volunteer and participate in the daily care of the horses and do lots of riding, schooling and exercising our equine team. 

Wild Coast Horseback Adventures in the Eastern Cape South Africa is a unique horse riding experience on a horse farm on the Wild Coast.  

Join us for a wonderful horse riding eco adventure and create memories that will last a life time!

• Are you looking to do some horse riding in your Gap Year or during a Career Break?
• Can you commit to 3 months (12 weeks) adventure working with horses in South Africa?
  
• Are you an experienced and excellent rider?
• Do you have an open, friendly nature and a natural affinity for people?
• Would you love to escape to Africa and be part of a top class horse trail & safari team?
• Then you are the type of person who would fit into our team at Wild Coast Horseback Adventures.

Volunteer exchange offer

• You School our horses and work as part of the team in exchange for Accommodation, meals, laundry, airport transfer.
• You get lots of free time for exploring and the beach!
  
• Ride as backup/groom on overnight trails & safaris.
• You pay for your own air fair and make your own travel arrangements to South Africa.

You must be an active, fit, advanced & experienced rider who is able to work & ride on their own and occasionally take sole charge. 

• Be at least 21 years old
  
• Drivers license(manual), (experience towing horse trailer would be a great help!)
  
• Have a basic first aid certificate.
• be an advanced rider and able to school young horses in flat work/dressage/jumping in the English/European style of schooling, must be able to school the working trail horses & assist with endurance training.
• Previous experience in taking beginner riders on short out rides. (1 to 2 hour beach rides for holiday makers) 
• Be willing and able to assist and teach other riders on our working riding holiday program with their riding and schooling of the working horses
• Animal first aid knowledge is useful, 
• Be hands on grooming, cleaning tack, fixing fences and any other jobs that need doing as your duties will not be limited to riding horses, and will include other general yard work.

Daily Routine

Your daily routine is dependent on prevailing weather and when an overnight trail has been booked!  This is just a guide as to what you can expect during your stay. Our morning starts at 7.30 am for breakfast and we start with the horses at 8 am; we have an hour for lunch and finish around 5 pm in the afternoon.  If it is very hot we might take a longer lunch and ride later in the cool of the evening.

After breakfast you will pack the truck and head down to the beach & game reserve. The other riders on the 4 to 6 week working holiday will be with you.  The horses all need feeding, checking and grooming on a daily basis and each group is ridden 2 to 3 times per week.  This means that your mornings will be spent riding in the bush looking for game or down at the beach while you train and exercise the horses.  Over weekends and occasionally during the week you may have to assist with taking day riders out on rides. 

At the farm, the working horses, stallions & broodmares come in at 8am for feeding (we have full time grooms who do this). We may ask you to help out during the morning stable (this all depends on how many work riders we have at the time)

Lunch is at the farm or you may like to go and have a pizza at Yellowwood Forest in Morgan Bay!

The work horses come in at 2pm and you will assist in feeding & grooming.  During the afternoon you will have the opportunity to do lots of riding. Horses need exercising and young up and coming horses need basic schooling in dressage and jumping.  We have a dressage arena, some jumps, a mini cross country course, a space for barrel racing, dams for swimming the horses, lots of out rides on the farm where you can spot naturally occurring wild game! Your days will be full of great riding!

• You must ride in the classic English/European style and enjoy schooling and bringing on young horses.
  
• Our weight limit for volunteers is 80kgs
• You are expected to be generally fit, as well as riding fit, as days can be long
• The ability to speak other European languages is useful, although not essential for this horse safari work experience.
  
• Volunteers must be prepared to work hard as part of a team
• You must be able to put the clients needs before your own
• You must maintain a positive attitude
• You must be over 21 years old.
  
• Riders will have an opportunity to teach other adult riders in the working riding holiday program.
• Riders will be given an opportunity to go to and possibly ride at an endurance ride (in season)
• Your duties are not limited to horse riding and may include general stable and yard work.
• You will be given at least one long weekend off per month, and other occasional days to enable you to do a bit of sight seeing, go to the beach and visit a game reserve.
• You will be given a letter of reference to add to your resume on completion of your stay.

Accommodation & meals

You will be accommodated at "Horizon House" and will share the accommodation and facilities with other riders who work for us. Alternatively you will stay in "The Loft" depending on availability.

You will be provided with  3 meals a day at Sunray Farm.  Any meals not at the farm and other activities are for your own expense. The house has a kitchen where you can prepare your own meals if you prefer.

Availability 

We have limited places available on the volunteer working with horses program, and can accommodate a couple if required (the partner must be able to participate as a volunteer doing repairs, gardening, painting or any other chores that need a pair of helping hands around the farm ect if they don't ride)

You are issued with a 90 day holiday visa on entry into South Africa and will volunteer at Sunray Farm for 12 weeks.

Cost

We require a nominal fee  of £500.00 to be paid to enable us to meet the legal requirements of hosting volunteer workers.  This fee also guarantees your place and ensures that you are serious about being with us.

Should you arrive with us, and decide that working with us for 3 months is not for you.  Your stay will be converted to a working riding holiday and you will be charged our normal rate.