FOSTER WITH EWNZ
Give a horse time
to recover
Our foster families give horses a safe place to keep healing, decompress, learn and simply be horses, with the time and support they need before finding their next home.
Whether you can offer a quiet paddock, specialist handling or retraining, there's a foster role that could suit you. We cover the approved costs, and you'll have our team behind you throughout.
A MEANINGFUL COMMITMENT
Time to heal. Space to be a horse.
Most horses remain in foster care for up to a year before rehoming. We deliberately don't rush this process. Horses coming from neglect, instability or difficult circumstances need time to decompress, rebuild trust, settle into routine and show us who they really are.
That time also allows us to understand what kind of long-term home will suit them best. And sometimes, the right home turns out to be the one they're already in.
Some foster families fall completely in love and become the horse's permanent home. We're very supportive of this when it's the right match.
Others love fostering precisely because they can help one horse move on and then open their paddock to the next.
WE NEED FOSTER HOMES NATIONWIDE
Horses in every corner of
New Zealand need you
Our rescue bases are in Dairy Flat and Kaukapakapa in Auckland, and where we can, horses come to us first for initial care and rehabilitation.
Sometimes a horse is simply too far away to come to our bases, or their circumstances mean they need to move directly into foster care.
That's why we need foster homes throughout New Zealand, including experienced rehabilitation fosters who can work closely with our team, follow individual care plans and provide the structured support a horse needs from day one.
Sharing the care
You provide the wither scratches. We will cover the vet bills.
A SAFE SPACE
At its simplest, fostering means providing a safe, appropriately fenced paddock and suitable shelter, along with your time and day-to-day care. Some horses also need access to a stable.
DIFFERENT HOMES, DIFFERENT ROLES
Not every foster home needs to offer the same thing. Some provide a quiet place to decompress. Others have the experience and facilities to provide specialist handling, rehabilitation, groundwork, retraining or ridden work. We match each horse with the foster home best suited to their individual needs.
Our foster homes range from lifestyle blocks to experienced equestrian properties able to take on more complex rehabilitation cases. Tell us what you can offer, and we'll talk through where you might fit.
WE COVER THE COSTS
EWNZ remains financially responsible for horses in our foster network. We cover approved veterinary care, farrier care, dental treatment, feed, supplements, rugs, medication and other agreed costs associated with the horse. Foster homes provide the grazing and their time.
Some of our foster families generously choose to cover feed or other costs themselves where their budget allows, but this is never an expectation.
SUPPORT, ALWAYS
You aren't simply handed a horse and left to figure it out. Our team stays involved throughout the placement, providing guidance, advice and support whenever you need it.
How fostering works
01.
Tell us about you
Fill in the form below with a bit about your property, your horse experience and how long you can foster a horse
02.
We get in touch
Someone from our team will contact you to talk through what's involved and answer any questions.
03.
Property check
We visit your property and check your references, so we know it's a safe and suitable place for the horse we match with you.
04.
Agreement
You sign a foster agreement setting out what we cover and what we ask of you, including following each horse's care plan. Consistency matters, especially early in their recovery.
05.
Matched and placed
When a horse comes along that suits you and your property, we'll bring them home to you. That could be straight away, or it could take a few months. We'd always wait for the right match.
06.
Ongoing support
We cover the approved costs of caring for your foster horse and stay in touch throughout, with a care plan, guidance when you need it and regular check-ins.
INTERESTED IN FOSTERING?
Tell us a bit about you
If you think you could provide a safe place for an EWNZ horse, we'd love to hear from you.
Complete our Expression of Interest and tell us about your property, experience and what kind of fostering you might be interested in. Our team can then talk through current needs and whether we have, or may later have, a horse who could be a good fit.
Submitting an Expression of Interest doesn't commit you to fostering or guarantee a placement. Before a horse is placed, we'll talk through the individual horse's needs, complete our checks and make sure the placement is right for both you and the horse.
COMMON QUESTIONS
What happens if fostering doesn't work out, or my circumstances change?
Talk to us as early as you can. Equine Welfare NZ stays responsible for every foster horse, so if a placement isn't working or your situation changes, we'll arrange for the horse to move to another foster home or one of our bases. There's no judgement. We'd always rather hear early.
Who do I call if something goes wrong, like an injury out of hours?
Every foster home is given a direct contact for our team before a horse arrives. In a veterinary emergency, call the vet we have given you contact details for first, then let us know. Approved vet costs are covered by Equine Welfare NZ.
Do I need insurance, and who is responsible if something happens?
Equine Welfare NZ remains responsible for the horse's care costs throughout the placement. Your foster agreement sets out who is responsible for what before a horse arrives.
How much horse experience do I need to foster?
It depends on the horse. Some foster horses just need a safe paddock, someone to provide daily care and keep an eye on them each day, while others need experienced handling, retraining or rehabilitation. We'll ask about your experience when you get in touch and only match you with a horse that suits it.
NOT THE RIGHT TIME TO FOSTER?
You can still be part of a horse's recovery
Our foster carers give horses time and space. Our donors make sure the vet bills, hoof care and feed are covered while they heal. A regular gift of $5 a week helps a horse stay in care until they're ready for what comes next.
Equine Welfare NZ Registered Charitable Trust Building on the work of Rodney Animal Rescue
Charity Registration CC63890