A situation that calls for our urgent action
There has been a steep decline in the horse numbers of the Kaapsehoop Wild Horses due to African horse sickens, road accidents, veld fires and poaching. However, the poaching incidents have grown steadily and has reached the point where the survival of these horses is seriously threatened. So much so that without urgent intervention in their security they might be decimated within the next 6 months.
The horses are in 7 bands, each horse has a number and ID card (descriptions of recognisable features). The Village volunteers try to keep eyes on these horses over a very large area, which is not sustainable under the current threat of increased poaching.
In 2024 a steep decline was already noted. Merijn Hemels, a student from the Netherlands conducted research on the horses for a year. She recorded only 69 horses and 5 donkeys.
Today, the numbers recorded has dropped to a mere 36 horses of which there are only 13 mares. There were 4 new fillies this year of which 2 died (car accident and sickness respectively). Therefore, the increase in numbers through new fillies is very slow and time consuming.
Through the last poaching incident (in early Sept) a stallion and 2 mares were lost. The stallion also had 2 more mares, both pregnant mares as well as 1 filly. If another stallion takes over the mares, the stallion would very likely kill the fillies - a further knock-on effect regarding poaching and the impact on the horse bands.
Can we save them with the current low numbers?
YES!
but the growth in their numbers will be very slow and needs time.
WE NEED TO BUY TIME.
The Kaapsche Hoop Conservancy Initiative:
The Immediate plan and the urgent need for funding
The immediate focus would be to provide security for the horses in the format of horse monitors that will be strategically placed across the horses’ roaming areas to be further eyes and ears on the ground regarding picking up suspicious activity. First prize would be to place 3 horse monitors 24/7 (12 hour shifts) across the roaming areas for 6 months. We would also like to install trail cameras in strategic areas to further the range of the area monitored.
This will buy us time to get a longer-term solutions in place (example tagging and tracking of horses, monitoring poaching hotspot areas through drones, further leverage our relationships with our surrounding communities and businesses to collectively look after our horses, etc).
(Estimate) Total needed for short term solution: R468,600
How will the project be managed?
Kaasche Hoop village is formally registered as a Conservancy with a formally voted Management Committee. The project will be managed by the Committee, in conjunction with the Wild Horses sub-committee. All finances will form part of the Conservancy’s bank account and annual audited financial statements and will be available for viewing at any time.
Note: we are in process of registering the Conservancy NPO to be tax exempt (but it might not be in place in time to provide you a tax certificate for your donation due to the urgency to have security surveillance in place soonest).
The many benefits when you help save the wild horses
You will help save these wild horses that has been part of the rich history of the area over the last 140 years.
You will help sustain the main tourism attraction (wild horses) in the area, contributing to the filling of guest houses, restaurants, and tourism activities in Kaapsche Hoop and surrounding areas, sustaining a multitude of servicing jobs (in a country where job shedding has reached dire levels).
You will support conserving not just the wild horses, but also other indigenous animals (mountain reed buck, civets, servals, dassies, duikers, etc etc) in the surrounding areas and nature reserve. Not only the horses are being poached...
We look forward to your participation in a project close to all our hearts.
Please contact
Nicola Wilson: 082 495 6253
Carli Scheepers: 082 322 0595
or send us an email to kaapschehoopvillage@gmail.com
Let’s save the wild horses of Kaapsche Hoop!
