SANTA’S HORSE IS COMING TO TOWN!

THE MARE & Foal Sanctuary will be holding a Christmas Coffee Morning on Thursday, December 8, complete with a children’s choir, tours of the stables, and a chance to meet Santa. To celebrate the occasion, Santa’s sleigh is going to be pulled by beautiful Shire horse Kavaner, a permanent resident at the horse and pony rescue charity’s Visitor Centre, near Littlehempston, Totnes, where the event will take place.

From 10am onwards, visitors will be able to come and see one of our working yards at Coombe Park, meet some of the horses and ponies currently in need of rehoming, as well our Adoption horses and ponies, and watch equestrian displays which will be put on by Sanctuary horses and staff.

Meanwhile, the children of Berry Pomeroy School will be singing carols, and in the Café and Gift Shop there will be homemade cakes, mince pies, and Christmas cakes, as well as hot and cold drinks, a Christmas Hamper Raffle and a range of gifts on sale, many of which are handmade.

All proceeds will go towards continuing the charity’s good work across its sites here in the South West, including the Visitor Centre (which is signposted and is just off the A38 between Totnes and Newton Abbot).

Since its establishment in Devon in1988, the Mare & Foal Sanctuary has rescued,rehabilitated and rehomed hundreds of horses and ponies across the region, including Dartmoor Hill Ponies.For those unsuitable for rehoming, for example due to ongoing medical or behavioural problems, the Sanctuary becomes home, where they are cared for every day by our staff and volunteers.

Teresa Redgrave, Manager of the Mare & Foal Sanctuary’s Visitor Centre, says: “People are welcome to stay a few hours if they like and use it as a time to catch up with friends over coffee or a cup of tea and cake to mark the beginning of the Festive Season. They will be able to do so while enjoying the entertainment provided by Sanctuary staff and volunteers, the children of Berry Pomeroy School, and - of course - the horses and ponies themselves.

“In doing so, they will also be helping raise money to help us to give more horses and ponies the good lives they deserve in future.”

  • For more information about the Mare & Foal Sanctuary or to make a donation, visit or call 01626 355969. For Visitor Centre enquiries, call 01803 866615.