Working Animals in Imlil: SPANA and Responsible Trekking
Background on SPANA and working animals in the Imlil valley, and a clear statement of how Toubkal Views cooperates with that welfare work.
Walk through Imlil on a market morning and you will see the actual transport system of the valley: mules and donkeys carrying gas bottles, cement, apples, firewood and trekkers' duffels up paths no vehicle can use.
Working animals are infrastructure here
Above the last road, everything that arrives has been carried. That makes the health of the valley's animals a practical issue for families, not a sentimental one: a lame mule is a household without income.
What SPANA is
SPANA — the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad — is an independent international animal-welfare charity that works with working animals and the communities who depend on them, including veterinary care and community education. It has a long-standing presence in Morocco. Its own site, spana.org, is the authoritative source for what it does and where.
We link to SPANA as an external, independent source. Nothing on this page should be read as SPANA speaking about Toubkal Views.
How Toubkal Views is involved
Here is our statement, deliberately narrow: Toubkal Views cooperates with SPANA's animal-welfare work in the Imlil area concerning working animals and mules.
That is the whole claim. We are not an official SPANA partner. We are not SPANA-certified, SPANA-approved, accredited or recommended by SPANA. If documentation ever supports a stronger description, we will publish it then and not before.
Why we mention it at all
Because it is relevant to a decision travellers make. If you are choosing between trekking companies and animal welfare matters to you, knowing that an operator engages with the welfare work happening in its own valley is useful information — as long as it is stated accurately.
What responsible trekkers can do in Imlil
- Keep luggage light and soft-sided. It is the single most direct thing you control.
- Do not take photos of working animals in distress and move on. Tell your guide instead; local action is faster than a post.
- Buy locally in the village. The equipment operations, cafés and stalls in Imlil are how the valley earns outside the trekking season.
- Ask your operator what they do. Vague answers usually mean vague practice.
Related reading
Our mule welfare guide covers what good practice looks like on the trail. Our responsible trekking page sets out how the wider operation works — accredited guides, the mules, our own equipment operation in Imlil and our mountain accommodation, Afla Sky Views.
If you would like to know how animal welfare is handled on a specific itinerary before you book, ask us on WhatsApp and we will answer for that trek.
Frequently asked questions
- What is SPANA?
- SPANA is an independent international animal-welfare charity working with working animals and the communities that depend on them, with a long-standing presence in Morocco. See spana.org for authoritative information.
- Is Toubkal Views a SPANA partner?
- No. We cooperate with SPANA animal-welfare work in the Imlil area. We are not a partner, certified, approved, accredited or endorsed by SPANA.
- Why are there so many mules and donkeys in Imlil?
- Above the last road everything is carried. Working animals move goods, building materials and trekking loads on paths no vehicle can reach.
