How do I contact the shelter about Ava?

Use the phone, email, or website link in the sidebar of this page. Tenerife Animal Sanctuary handles screening and the adoption contract directly — TailHarbor doesn't broker the conversation. When you reach out, mention you saw Ava on TailHarbor so they know which animal you're asking about.

Can I adopt Ava if I live in another country?

Yes, in most cases. Rescues across Europe routinely place animals abroad — Tenerife Animal Sanctuary will tell you what they need (EU pet passport, rabies titer, transport coordination) and whether they handle transport themselves or refer you to a partner. Plan for an extra €100–€350 in transport costs depending on distance.

Is Ava already vetted, vaccinated, and chipped?

Most horses on TailHarbor leave their shelter with sterilization, current vaccinations, microchip ID, and an EU pet passport included in the adoption fee. The vet status on this page reflects what the shelter has reported — ask them directly if you need details on specific vaccines, recent bloodwork, or chronic conditions.

What happens if Ava isn't the right fit?

Every reputable rescue accepts an animal back if the adoption genuinely doesn't work — that's part of the standard contract. Talk it through with Tenerife Animal Sanctuary early rather than rehoming privately; they know Ava and can place them more successfully than a second-hand listing can.

Why does the description sometimes read awkwardly?

TailHarbor translates shelter descriptions into English from the source language (ES). Translation is imperfect — names of streets, donors, and shelter-specific terms occasionally slip through unidiomatically. For the cleanest read, click the source link to see the shelter's original page.

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Adopt Ava

Mixed Breed · Unknown

This beautiful little girl could finally let her guard down at our finca. Ava came to us as an emergency rescue horse. She lived a life of abuse and neglect. She was left high up in the mountains, without food or water. It took 4 hours to walk her to the nearest place a trailer could pick her up and bring her to our sanctuary. Her bones grew in unnatural ways, they were weak and fragile. She had skin conditions and infected hooves, and was almost blind. When she came to us, she had no idea what a hay bucket was. It took her two weeks to figure out that those buckets mean food. She only had 5% vision in one eye, and we fought really hard to be able to save her other eye. We gave her around the clock care, as she needed 4 different eye drops with specific time in between. Sometimes she would lose confidence, as she would walk into things. So we made her her own little paddock in between two sets of horses. This way she could have the company, but no pressure from other horses to run around, bumping into obstacles. We were able to treat her skin issues. Unfortunately, she also had developing arthritis. We gave her a special exercise regime, to keep her fit and the arthritis stable. She was a sweet lady, but could be a bit of a diva if she didn’t understand what was happening due to her bad eyesight. She definitely came out of her shell at our finca, loving bath time and the care of our volunteers. Sadly, the arthritis got worse over time. Ava really struggled to pick up all of her feet and was visibly in pain. The vet confirmed our fears, that at this point the only thing we could do was manage the pain. Eventually we faced with a tough decision. Ava was suffering, not being able to go on walks anymore, struggling very hard to stand up or lay down. As horses need a couple of hours sleep laying down every day, otherwise they get sleep deprivation, we decided with sorrow in our hearts that it was inhumane to let her endure her pain. We asked our vet to come and help her cross the rainbow bridge. Ava was surrounded with love until the very end. We couldn't help her in this life anymore, but we made sure that her goodbye was a peaceful and comfortable one, being held by our horse manager and in the company of the people that cared for Ava and loved her. A very precious memory of her is the moment that our horse manager Allana took her for a walk and Ava decided to roll at the little rolling spot, letting her guard down and showing her trust. We are very thankful for everything Ava taught us about caring for horses with impaired eyesight, and we definitely miss her sweet character. Ava arrived with us at December 6th, 2021, and passed away at November 8th, 2023. We can imagine you might want to know more about our point of view on animal euthanasia after reading Ava's story. You can find more information about it here.

Read original (es)

This beautiful little girl could finally let her guard down at our finca. Ava came to us as an emergency rescue horse. She lived a life of abuse and neglect. She was left high up in the mountains, without food or water. It took 4 hours to walk her to the nearest place a trailer could pick her up and bring her to our sanctuary. Her bones grew in unnatural ways, they were weak and fragile. She had skin conditions and infected hooves, and was almost blind. When she came to us, she had no idea what a hay bucket was. It took her two weeks to figure out that those buckets mean food. She only had 5% vision in one eye, and we fought really hard to be able to save her other eye. We gave her around the clock care, as she needed 4 different eye drops with specific time in between. Sometimes she would lose confidence, as she would walk into things. So we made her her own little paddock in between two sets of horses. This way she could have the company, but no pressure from other horses to run around, bumping into obstacles. We were able to treat her skin issues. Unfortunately, she also had developing arthritis. We gave her a special exercise regime, to keep her fit and the arthritis stable. She was a sweet lady, but could be a bit of a diva if she didn’t understand what was happening due to her bad eyesight. She definitely came out of her shell at our finca, loving bath time and the care of our volunteers. Sadly, the arthritis got worse over time. Ava really struggled to pick up all of her feet and was visibly in pain. The vet confirmed our fears, that at this point the only thing we could do was manage the pain. Eventually we faced with a tough decision. Ava was suffering, not being able to go on walks anymore, struggling very hard to stand up or lay down. As horses need a couple of hours sleep laying down every day, otherwise they get sleep deprivation, we decided with sorrow in our hearts that it was inhumane to let her endure her pain. We asked our vet to come and help her cross the rainbow bridge. Ava was surrounded with love until the very end. We couldn’t help her in this life anymore, but we made sure that her goodbye was a peaceful and comfortable one, being held by our horse manager and in the company of the people that cared for Ava and loved her. A very precious memory of her is the moment that our horse manager Allana took her for a walk and Ava decided to roll at the little rolling spot, letting her guard down and showing her trust. We are very thankful for everything Ava taught us about caring for horses with impaired eyesight, and we definitely miss her sweet character. Ava arrived with us at December 6th, 2021, and passed away at November 8th, 2023. We can imagine you might want to know more about our point of view on animal euthanasia after reading Avas story. You can find more information about it here.

Size

Small

Age

—

Location

🇪🇸Santa Cruz de Tenerife

Shelter

Tenerife Animal Sanctuary

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Cared for by Tenerife Animal Sanctuary · Santa Cruz de Tenerife Learn about Mixed Breed →

Listed 2 weeks ago

About Ava

What life with Ava looks like

Ava is a small adult mixed breed horse waiting at Tenerife Animal Sanctuary in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

Adopting a horse is a long-term commitment that almost always requires either land or a boarding stable. The shelter will discuss the horse's training level, vet history, and what kind of work or companionship they're suited for. Expect ongoing costs: feed, farrier, vet, and stabling.

🇪🇸Adopting from Spain

Spanish protectoras generally include sterilization, all vaccinations, microchip ID, and EU pet passport in the adoption fee (typically €250–€400 for a dog, €100–€180 for a cat). Many maintain partnerships with rescue transport providers across the EU.

Santa Cruz de Tenerife, Spain — browse more horses in Spain.

Frequently asked

Adopting Ava, answered.

How do I contact the shelter about Ava?: Use the phone, email, or website link in the sidebar of this page. Tenerife Animal Sanctuary handles screening and the adoption contract directly — TailHarbor doesn't broker the conversation. When you reach out, mention you saw Ava on TailHarbor so they know which animal you're asking about.
Can I adopt Ava if I live in another country?: Yes, in most cases. Rescues across Europe routinely place animals abroad — Tenerife Animal Sanctuary will tell you what they need (EU pet passport, rabies titer, transport coordination) and whether they handle transport themselves or refer you to a partner. Plan for an extra €100–€350 in transport costs depending on distance.
Is Ava already vetted, vaccinated, and chipped?: Most horses on TailHarbor leave their shelter with sterilization, current vaccinations, microchip ID, and an EU pet passport included in the adoption fee. The vet status on this page reflects what the shelter has reported — ask them directly if you need details on specific vaccines, recent bloodwork, or chronic conditions.
What happens if Ava isn't the right fit?: Every reputable rescue accepts an animal back if the adoption genuinely doesn't work — that's part of the standard contract. Talk it through with Tenerife Animal Sanctuary early rather than rehoming privately; they know Ava and can place them more successfully than a second-hand listing can.
Why does the description sometimes read awkwardly?: TailHarbor translates shelter descriptions into English from the source language (ES). Translation is imperfect — names of streets, donors, and shelter-specific terms occasionally slip through unidiomatically. For the cleanest read, click the source link to see the shelter's original page.