Cartagena de Indias, in Colombia, has started a historic transition in the urban tourism sector: with the entry into operation of electric carriages, the city said goodbye to traction by blood, opening a new phase also for the horses that have worked in the historic center for years. The change does not only concern mobility, but above all animal welfare, which has become one of the pillars of local policies.
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An adoption program for horses
At the center of the initiative is a responsible adoption program which has already involved 39 horses, headed towards a life far from the hot asphalt and the rhythms of tourism. The animals, once an integral part of the carriage circuit, were assessed by veterinary teams and included in a progressive relocation process, designed to guarantee living conditions more suited to their needs.
Each horse was entrusted to selected adopting families, chosen on the basis of technical and ethical criteria. The objective is to ensure adequate space, constant care and an environment compatible with the physical and behavioral health of the animals. Some horses have already reached their new destinations, while others remain in temporary reception facilities, where they receive continuous health monitoring while awaiting permanent adoption.
Not just electric carriages: new services for animals
The project is coordinated by the District of Cartagena through the Unidad Municipal de Asistencia Técnica Agropecuaria (UMATA), with the direct support of the city administration. According to the authorities, the end of animal traction represents a structural choice, the result of a complex process that also involved the owners of the old tourist carriages.
The change is not limited to the replacement of vehicles. The plan includes a series of innovative tools: mobile veterinary units, animal ambulances and health and sterilization programs, designed to strengthen a permanent protection network. The declared intent is to make Cartagena a model of animal protection at a national and international level.
A message also comes from the administration to the citizens: respect for animals is not just an institutional task, but a collective responsibility. The new life of the carreros horses thus becomes the symbol of a city that tries to reconcile tourism, innovation and empathy towards living beings, transforming a controversial page of the past into a path of concrete change.
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