Preserving the soul of Sumba through the protection of its Sandalwood horses and heritage.
On the island of Sumba, the Sandalwood horse is far more than livestock — it is woven into marriage traditions, funeral rites, and the annual Pasola festival. Yet this living heritage faces challenges from financial hardship, limited veterinary access, malnutrition, and fading traditional horsemanship, putting horses and other animals at risk.
The Sumba Horse Project exists to change that. Working alongside local vets, we provide anti-parasite treatment, wound and dental care, emergency aid, and nutritional support, while our charity also helps other animals across Sumba. Every treatment and rescue is paired with education, working alongside traditional healers to bring modern veterinary care together with generations of Sumbanese knowledge.
11 RESCUED HORSES | 30 HORSES TREATED PER CYCLE | $100K CLINIC GOAL | 3–4 MONTHS BETWEEN TREATMENT CYCLES EXPANDING TO MORE VILLAGES | SURRA TREATMENT RESEARCH
Overview
The Sandalwood horse, an ancient breed in Sumba, originated from Mongolian Chinese horses, named after the precious wood they once collected, and has adapted to one of Indonesia’s most demanding environments. Long dry seasons leave water and grass scarce, causing undernourishment and dehydration, while rains bring flooding, impassable roads, and the spread of parasites and disease. Valued as a working horse, a traditional bridewealth (belis) horse, and a competitor in local horse racing, the Sandalwood horse remains woven into Sumba’s cultural and ceremonial life.
Across Sumba, we care for Sandalwood horses and other animals with anti-parasite treatment, wound, hoof and dental care, emergency veterinary assistance, and nutritional support. Alongside direct medical care, we work with local communities to strengthen animal welfare through practical education, bringing modern veterinary knowledge together with Sumba’s cultural values and traditional horsemanship. Together, we help owners prevent disease, improve nutrition, and provide better daily care. Our goal is to ensure the island’s animals live healthier, happier lives while preserving Sumba’s unique customs and heritage.
At the heart of our work are Dr. Osta and the NIHI Stable Team, all born and raised in rural Sumba. Dr. Osta grew up learning traditional animal care from his family and village elders before earning his veterinary degree in Kupang and returning home to serve his community.
Together with the experienced horsemen and caregivers of the NIHI Stable Team, and supported by senior veterinarian Dr. Nanta, they bring modern veterinary science together with generations of local knowledge. Together, they care for animals, share knowledge with communities, and help keep Sumba’s equestrian traditions alive.
Every contribution helps protect Sumba’s animals, support local communities, and preserve the island’s unique equestrian heritage.
- Participate in an Equine Activity at NIHI — NIHI donates $5- $10 from every horse activity booked to support the Sumba Horse Project.
- Sponsor a Village — $600 provides one village with a year of basic veterinary care, parasite prevention, and animal welfare education.
- Sponsor a Veterinary Student — $3,000 per year funds veterinary education in Kupang, helping train the next generation of Sumbanese veterinarians.
- Sponsor a Rescue Pony — $1,800 per year covers full care and rehabilitation at the NIHI Rescue Stable.
- Sponsor the Future Clinic — Help build Sumba’s dedicated veterinary clinic. Every donation brings us closer to our $100,000 goal.
- Sponsor a Malnutrition Recovery Plan — $18 provides a 25 kg bag of feed and rice bran, enough to nourish one pony for approximately 1–1.5 months, depending on its condition.
- Sponsor Emergency Care — Around $750 covers a typical five-day emergency treatment, including sedation, wound repair, pain relief, antibiotics, and veterinary care.
- Sponsor a Check-Up on the Sumba Plains and remote villages — $250 funds a full day of fieldwork to locate, examine, treat free-roaming and village working horses, buffalo and other animals.
ACTUAL CHANGE HAPPENS WHEN YOU
Get involved
Together, we can improve the lives of Sumba’s animals while safeguarding the traditions and communities that have cared for them for generations.
– Sumba Horse Project –
Nihigram
Simple quiet mornings at NIHI. Everyday life unfolds along the beach, with horses wandering the shoreline against this incredible landscape. A genuine glimpse of Sumba in a truly magical setting.
The magic of Nihiwatu Beach lies in the local life that unfolds before your eyes. A meeting place for hundreds of villagers, the beach is a source of food, a place to fish in the morning and hunt for squid at sunset, to wash ponies in the ocean, walk buffalo along the shore and race horses with friends.
Raw and unfiltered. It is simply life in Sumba, natural and shaped by traditions that have lived on here for generations.
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#nihigram @alifeiimagined @tarashupe @lina_jyoga
Not just an ordinary hotel.
Wake to uninterrupted ocean views from your bed, where morning light dances across the water, mist rises from the hills, and Nihiwatu’s white-sand beach awaits below. Discover an island shaped by deep-rooted culture, soulful traditions and the warmth of its people.
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#nihigram by @lucaspinhel
A wellness experience unlike any other awaits at Nihioka Spa.
Five kilometres from the resort, the journey begins on foot, horseback, or by safari Jeep through traditional villages and rolling hills. Your first glimpse awaits at the Nipi Lima Wishing Hand, where NIHI Spa appears between the rice fields and the ocean below.
Set across 100 acres of Nihioka, this is wellness shaped by nature. Design your own experience with open-air treatments that unfold over hours, carried by ocean breezes and skilled hands.
Equine massage, reiki, hidden coves, and even a private villa stay are all part of the magic awaiting you at NIHI Spa Safari.
Sunset scenes at NIHI Sumba. Local boys bathing their horses in the ocean, surfers catching the last waves of the day, palm trees silhouetted against the sky and the water glistening in the golden light. The soul of the island, at its most beautiful.
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#nihigram by @scottybauer_
If heaven was a place on earth, it might look a little like NIHI.
There is something endlessly beautiful about watching horses roam free, running the shoreline and swimming in the ocean, life as it was intended. These majestic creatures are woven deeply into the culture of Sumba, companions to its people and part of the very soul of the island.
Enjoy the quiet life at NIHI Sumba.
Peaceful mornings, the sounds of nature, space to slow down and disconnect.
This is the magic of NIHI, the soul of the island felt in every breeze, every wave and every still moment. A place where the wild beauty of Sumba seems to soften time itself.
Reformer Pilates with @wearetpp comes to NIHI Sumba until 20 October.
Known for expert coaching and a highly personalised approach to Pilates, The Pilates Project brings private Reformer sessions to The Edge of Wildness™️.
Combining strength, stability, mobility and control, each session is tailored to the individual, overlooking the Indian Ocean as Sumba’s horses wander along the shoreline below.
Expert-led Reformer Pilates in a setting unlike any other.
Our 2027 Healing with Horses Retreats with Candice Webster are now open for bookings, and places are filling quickly.
Following the extraordinary energy of our retreat in June, we return with two intimate five-day experiences, bringing together the wild beauty of Sumba, our Sandalwood horses and Candice’s intuitive approach to equine healing.
1–6 June 2027
8–13 June 2027
Each retreat is an invitation to slow down, reconnect and experience the profound relationship between horses, nature and self.
Spaces are limited, with availability already filling fast.
Full details and enquiries are available via the retreat page, linked in our bio.
Reformer Pilates has arrived at @nihi, as part of a very special new partnership.
Move to the sound of the ocean, right on the beach, as NIHI’s horses wander past.
Possibly the best view you’ll ever have from a reformer.
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