Give a horse a place in your heart
Since 2006, the Centaurus Foundation has rescued well over 3,000 horses and donkeys. Today we run the world’s largest horse sanctuary — nearly 1,500 horses and donkeys live under our permanent care.
Our centres, sanctuaries and land cover almost 1,000 hectares, giving rescued animals the space, safety and care they need.
But Centaurus is much more than horses and donkeys.
We also provide lifelong or temporary care for hundreds of other animals. Dogs and cats find safety and the help they need with us. Cows and pigs can live without being treated as production animals. Hens and geese find shelter here, and sheep and goats become part of our diverse herds. We also care for llamas, alpacas and camels, as well as foxes that need the right conditions and specialist care.
Our rule is simple: when an animal needs help and we have the means to provide responsible, long-term care, species is not a barrier.
Some of our horses can find new homes. Many never will. About 100 of our horses today have a real chance of adoption.
We work with experienced trainers and behaviourists so these horses can regain trust, develop the skills they need for a safe life alongside people, and prepare for a new chapter.
Our horses have already found true adoptive homes across Europe, including Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, Italy, Denmark, France, Portugal, Poland and the Czech Republic. For many horses in our care, however, finding a traditional home is much harder.
Many are elderly. Others live with chronic illness, disability or the effects of years of neglect, exploitation or hard labour. Some need ongoing treatment and rehabilitation. Many can no longer be ridden. And it is often precisely these horses that attract the least interest from potential guardians.
A healthy, ridden horse naturally draws more attention. But an old, disabled or chronically ill horse has the same need for safety, care and a life free from unnecessary suffering. A horse does not have to be “useful” to deserve a future.
For many of these animals, Centaurus becomes a permanent home. Some need extensive treatment every month. Others simply spend their days in peace at one of our centres or on the reserve, among other animals and people who know their stories.
You can become part of their story
Our work is possible because people choose to stand with these animals.
If you cannot take a horse home but want to give an older, sick or disabled animal the safety it deserves, you can join us through virtual adoption.
Virtual adoption can be partial or full, and support starts from €20. Your help lets us provide the adopted horse with food, daily care, shelter and everything they may need.
Every month we will send you new photos of the horse you chose, so you can follow their life and stay part of their story — even if you live hundreds or thousands of kilometres away.
Full virtual adoption
You can also cover the full monthly cost of care for a chosen horse. The amount varies because every animal has different needs.
For some older, disabled or non-ridden horses, the cost of care may be around €400 a month. For horses needing intensive treatment, rehabilitation and specialist care, costs can reach €1,000 or more.
These expenses may include food and specialist feed, daily care, veterinary treatment and more frequent visits, medication, rehabilitation, specialist procedures, supplements, farrier care and other individual medical and living needs. In especially difficult cases, even €1,000 may not cover the full monthly cost.
Whether you give €20 or cover the entire cost of care for one horse — your support becomes part of what makes that animal’s life possible.
Prefer to adopt a horse for real?
Virtual adoption does not mean a sick, old or disabled horse must stay with Centaurus forever. If you truly can and want to give such a horse a suitable, permanent home, real adoption is very welcome.
Our priority is not keeping animals with us. The priority is giving them the best life possible. If the right person can provide suitable conditions, care and — when needed — ongoing treatment for an older, chronically ill or disabled horse, we are happy to talk about real adoption.
The fact that a horse is ill or cannot be ridden does not automatically mean they cannot become someone’s true companion.
Meet us!
We also organise Open Days, when people who support us can visit, meet some of the animals, see where and how they live, and witness Centaurus’s work first-hand.
Virtual adoption can begin at a distance, but the relationship does not have to stay purely virtual.
Which horse can I adopt virtually?
With nearly 1,500 horses and donkeys under permanent care, we could not present them all here. That is why this page shows 10 horses at a time that are currently looking for virtual guardians.
A horse can be supported by one person through full virtual adoption, or by several people whose partial adoptions together cover the full amount needed.
When the full monthly cost of care for one horse is covered, another appears on the page — giving the next animal a chance to build their own circle of support.
Looking for a specific horse?
Perhaps there is a story that is especially close to you.
You may want to support a horse with asthma. Former sport horses may feel particularly close to you. Or you may want to help a senior, a disabled horse, a donkey or an animal with a specific story.
If you do not see such an animal among the horses shown on the page right now, contact us. With so many animals in our care, someone may be waiting whose story is exactly the one that speaks to you.
We will look through the animals in our care and — whenever possible — help find the horse or donkey you want to support. They do not have to work to deserve a life.
You do not need a stable. You do not need hectares of pasture. And of course you do not have to be able to take a horse home. Sometimes giving an animal a future simply means helping us provide what they need most: food, treatment, care, safety, dignity and the right to a peaceful old age.
