T Golf: First of all thank you for giving us your time and letting us be a part of something so important. We are honored to help spread the word on the great work you are doing here. To begin can you tell our readers a little about Rancho Fino.
Rancho Fino: The project came about quite by accident. I started rescuing a horse five or six years ago. Without planning it more horses arrived. I do not have any employee, I work alone or with “workaway.info”, which is a platform of people who volunteer. They come, live with me, they help for a while and then they leave. Volunteers come from Holland, England, America, etc.
T Golf: Please tell me about the origins of Rancho Fino. How did you decide to begin this worthy project?
Rancho Fino: I didn´t really decide it. It just happened. Animals just come to me. People call and email me asking if I can take this or that animal. And it grew from there.
T Golf: How do you find the horses that end up here?
Rancho Fino: Once I was contacted by a hiker who found a horse tied up to a tree. Another three are trotting horses who did not win races anymore, so the owner took them to a private stable, left them there and never came back and never paid for their maintenance, so they called me from the stables and here they are.
T Golf: You also have found a safe home for abused dogs. How did you decide to also take in dogs and what is their life like here?
Rancho Fino: I have a dog who has a tumor because he was chained up for ten years lying on a concrete floor. I would love to be able to have him operated on, but I do not have the resources.
T Golf: This must cost a tremendous amount of money to keep these horses. How can the public get involved in the funding of the ranch?
Rancho Fino: Now I offer horse tours to make some money to cover expenses. We also have “Open Days” every six weeks, we have BBQs that are ideal for families. They pay 10 euros per person and the kids get to play with the animals.
T Golf: The expression “we always hurt the ones we love,” seems so appropriate here. Horses and dogs are two of men’s closest friends yet they are often abused, why do think that is?
Rancho Fino: Part of the animals are very sick. I have a dog with a tumor, a horse with cancer on the tail, a blind dog, another dog mistreated after being many years on a chain and as a consequence has atrophied muscles. I am aware that I will not find families for a big part of the animals that I have here which are sick, but to take care of them I need money to put their injections and give them their medicines. It’s all very sad that people do this to such noble animals.
T Golf: Looking into the future, what is your dream for Rancho Fino?
Rancho Fino: In a dream I see this place clean, with less bushes and proper areas for the different animals. I would love to have warm water and windows with glass, as I have them just blocked with a piece of wood. I dream to have medicines for the sick animals and food for all. These animals have suffered so much and I dream of creating a place where they can happily live what is left of their lives.
