In September we visited donkeys Foley and Fergus who were rehomed in 2016 to the 'Garden Project' at the Central Mental Hospital. The Garden Project comprises beautifully tended gardens, polytunnels, animal enclosures and paddocks at the 30 acre hospital site in Dundrum.
In 2019 a group of fourteen donkeys from Co. Cork came into our care. Parsley was one of the youngest donkeys in this group. Unused to being handled, he was nervous and frightened.
Parsley was thin and his lice infested coat was dirty and matted. The New Arrivals team knew they needed to treat Parsley urgently. Given that Parsley was a wild foal - due to lack of human contact before his rescue - he was sedated in order for his coat to be fully clipped.
It's the season of goodwill and your duplicate gifts or unwanted toy could help us care for our donkeys.
In March this year a group of 14 donkeys with challenging and diverse needs came into our sanctuary in Liscarroll.
Cancelled - Christmas Fair Sunday 24th November
It is with regret that I announce the cancellation of our Christmas Craft & Food Fair this Sunday (24th November 2019).
A virus has been detected in one of our donkeys at Hannigans Farm. On the advice of our Veterinary Team, Hannigans Farm will remain closed to the public and the fair will not go ahead. I assure you that our donkeys are being monitored and cared for here at our sanctuary.
A young donkey was discovered abandoned and tied to a pole at a horse fair.
Donkey Welfare Adviser, Ian Colton assisted at the Leitrim Pony Riding and Animal Welfare Project on behalf of The Donkey Sanctuary.
We introduced positive training techniques to a donkey called Dylan who had lived as a solitary donkey for the past three years.
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 2019, 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.
