Your Horse (UK)

Brooke – behind the brand

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THE WORLD’S LEADING welfare charity for working equines, Brooke protects and improves the lives of working horses, donkeys and mules across Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East. Over 100 million of these animals are currently working worldwide, earning an income that around 600 million people rely on to put food on their tables, send their children to school and build better futures for themselves and their families. Brooke works with owners, communitie­s, service providers and government­s to make long-lasting improvemen­ts to the lives of these animals and the people who depend on them. 1931 British socialite Dorothy Brooke embarks on a mission to find thousands of ex-war horses in Egypt. She’s appalled to find them emaciated, like walking skeletons, working in the streets of Cairo. She sends a letter to The Morning Post (now the Daily Telegraph) asking the British public for their help. Thanks to their generosity, Dorothy is able to buy back 5,000 ex-war horses. Most were old, exhausted and had to be humanely put to sleep. Thanks to her compassion, they ended their lives peacefully. 1934 Dorothy Brooke establishe­s The Old War Horse Memorial Hospital in Cairo, with the promise of free veterinary care for all of the city’s working horses and donkeys. 1955 Having dedicated her life to her charity, Dorothy dies, aged 72, and is buried in Egypt. Her legacy remains and Brooke starts to grow. 1991 Brooke expands to Pakistan, operating from a single mobile clinic in Peshawar. Here, millions of equines work long days in brick kilns and coal mines without rest or water. 1992 Brooke mobile teams begin operating in India, where there are an estimated 1.1 million working horses, donkeys and mules. Today, India is a key country for Brooke’s work and has its own board of trustees. 2006 HRH The Duchess of Cornwall becomes Brooke’s President. She’s since visited the charity’s work in India, Pakistan, Jordan and Egypt, and regularly attends supporter events in the UK and USA. Brooke also expands to Guatemala, and Kenya celebrates its first annual National Donkey Welfare Day. 2012 Brooke’s East Africa and West Africa offices are establishe­d. It’s also now operating in Kenya, Ethiopia, Senegal and Burkina Faso. 2014 Having released the Happy Horses Holiday Code in 2010, Brooke spearheads a campaign with the organisati­on Care for Petra, in Jordan, which provides advice for tourists on ways to prevent animal suffering in the Petra UNESCO World Heritage Site and encourages visitors to enjoy the monuments on foot instead wherever possible. 2015 Olympic champion Charlotte Dujardin becomes Brooke’s Global Ambassador and embarks on a trip to India to learn about the charity’s work. Brooke USA is launched, with support from The Duchess of Cornwall. Brooke also publishes its Invisible Workers report, which presents evidence showing how equines around the world enable their owners to earn money, to feed, clothe and educate their families. 2016 ITV newsreader Alastair Stewart becomes a Brooke patron. With support from Brooke, the World Organisati­on for Animal Health (OIE) announces a set of welfare standards for working horses, donkeys and mules. Until now, working equines have been largely overlooked by government and policy makers. 2017 Brooke launches its MyHackatho­n fundraisin­g initiative, which encourages horse lovers to hack 100 miles in 100 days and raise £100. By the end of the year, supporters raise a total of £20,000. 2018 Brooke today has moved away from free veterinary treatment, other than in emergencie­s. Instead its teams focus on training and mentoring local vets, farriers and harness makers, so owners can make life better for their horses, donkeys and mules. This year Brooke is also marking 100 years since the end of World War One with its Every Horse Remembered campaign, highlighti­ng the heroic struggle of working horses, donkeys and mules, past and present, to build better lives for future generation­s.

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