Welcome to Tierra Madre Horse and Human sanctuary!
%20(1).JPG/:/rs=w:1209,h:909,cg:true,m/cr=w:1209,h:909)
Who We Are
Tierra Madre Horse & Human Sanctuary is a forever home to previously abused, neglected, injured, abandoned, or surrendered horses. Founded in 2006, we only have one job: to give our horses healing, hope, and happiness. And our horses only have one job: to live the best lives they could have ever imagined.
.JPG/:/rs=w:1209,h:909,cg:true,m/cr=w:1209,h:909)
What We Do
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization in Cave Creek, Arizona, Tierra Madre is the only facility in Maricopa County that exclusively serves senior horses, the vast majority of whom have a chronic medical condition that must be professionally managed. In addition to the exemplary medical care provided by our veterinarians at Chaparral Veterinary Medical Center (our partner for 15+ years), we provide to our horses daily turnout, stall cleanings, fresh water, three square meals (with lots of snacks and a handful of treats in between), farrier care, and all the love in the world.
Our history
Over the years, the humans at Tierra Madre began to recognize that while the horses were being healed, the humans who cared for them were receiving healing, too. Today, the horses of Tierra Madre serve as healers to hundreds of visitors and volunteers each year through organic interactions on the ground, continuing our mission of promoting a circle of healing between human and horse that has existed for centuries.
Our vision is that all horses will have a safe place to retire at the end of their working years and be provided a forever home in which they can live out their years in health and happiness. Our mission is to save each and every horse with nowhere else to go, one horse at a time.
In 2018, we underwent a rebranding with a name change from our original founding name, Tierra Madre Horse Sanctuary, and included ‘& Human’ in our name to emphasize how our ranch had become a sanctuary for people, too. Over the past five years, we have offered human-centered programs from equine experiential coaching, equine experiences targeted at individuals with autism and people in recovery, team building, and others.
.JPG/:/cr=t:23.21%25,l:0%25,w:100%25,h:66.26%25/rs=w:1037,h:1037,cg:true)
Our Mission
As we embark into the future, we remain committed first and foremost to the healing, health, and happiness of our horses. While we will continue to be a site for visitors to bring groups for interactions with our horses, our top priority is maintaining our sanctuary for the purpose of providing a forever home to horses with nowhere else to go.
We additionally will continue to be advocates for horses nation and worldwide. This includes domesticated horses in situations of abuse or neglect, senior horses in danger of being discarded due to old age, and all horses in the slaughter pipeline, a cruel industry fueled by overbreeding and supported by organizations within the equine workforce. Our programs that we offer the community are and will continue to be horse-centered, with the goal to be to draw awareness to the challenges horses face—particularly seniors—and educate about the natural care of the horse based on how they see the world. Tierra Madre’s mission can be summed up by an anonymous quote that stands as our motto: “And he said unto the horse: ‘Trust no man in whose eyes you do not see yourself reflected as an equal.’”