The Donkey Sanctuary Ireland 2020 Calendar is now available. It's filled with pictures of donkeys from our farms around Liscarroll. We can send calendars anywhere in the world, simply click on the button below to order your calendar now. Price includes post and packaging.
Note: If you would like to order more than three calendars, please contact us on 00 353 22 48398 or info@thedonkeysanctuary.ie to arrange delivery.
The Donkey Sanctuary Christmas Craft and Food Fair is an established and much loved start to Christmas in North Cork. This year, the fair will take place on Sunday 24th November at Hannigans Farm, Liscarroll.
Enjoy a unique experience as you browse over 30 stalls of local, artisan crafts and delicious foodstuffs in the surrounds of The Donkey Sanctuary. There will be an opportunity to meet our donkeys and children can chat to our grooms as they brush some of our most gentle donkeys. There will be lots of fun with activities for children and a big raffle
Last week Chief Veterinary Advisor, Joe Collins and Donkey Welfare Adviser, Ciara O’Kelly attended Tallow Horse Fair on behalf of The Donkey Sanctuary. Ciara quickly located a thin, young donkey that Gardaí at the fair were concerned for. The donkey was abandoned, tied to a pole with no owner in sight. Ciara knew instantly that he needed our help. Meanwhile, members of the public and other welfare groups also voiced concern for the donkey.
Read about his recovery in our care
Meet our wonderful donkeys
Donkey Welfare Adviser, Ian Colton recently assisted with the Leitrim Pony Riding and Animal Welfare Project with donkeys Phoenix and Baxi on behalf of The Donkey Sanctuary.
Earlier this year the owners of a donkey named Dylan reached out to us for help as they were having difficulty handling and managing him. Welfare adviser Ciara O’Kelly responded and found that Dylan had lived as a solitary donkey for the past three years. Dylan had developed behavioural habits commonly seen when young male donkeys are kept without a suitable companion. Ciara recognised that Dylan would benefit from donkey company and appropriate human interaction and recommended that he come into our care.
The start of a new life for Echo began when welfare adviser Jane Bruce responded to a report of a donkey with extremely long hooves. When she attended the location, she discovered Echo, a severely neglected donkey whose hooves were at least three times the length of normal hooves.
“The neglect of Echo’s hooves stands out as one of the worst cases that I have witnessed”, says Jane. “He was shifting his weight from one foot to another in order to alleviate the pain in his hooves. He could not be left to continue to suffer in this state”.
When we were alerted about a group of donkeys outdoors during a cold snap, we responded to help guarantee their well being.
In January, we received a call from a concerned member of the public about a group of donkeys in Kerry described as ‘underfed and miserable’. With a yellow
weather warning already in place for snow and ice, welfare adviser Ciara O’Kelly responded quickly.
Although donkeys share ancestral origins with horses, they have evolved differently over millions of years and are different. Domestication has done little yet to dull their natural instincts. Dullness (in the sense of apparent despondency) in donkeys is as serious as colic or long-bone fracture in horses: the dull donkey may already be suffering (but hiding) a terminal illness. We sometimes mistake 'stoicism' for indifference. The ‘stoic’ donkey will often mask severe signs of disease – it is not that he is not suffering. It is more that he doesn’t wish to show weakness to the world, as the latter is not a good survival strategy in the wild.
