Donkey cruelty in Russia
The following statement has been produced by The Donkey Sanctuary in Sidmouth,UK in response to the press coverage surrounding donkey cruelty in Russia.
Statement:
We are absolutely shocked and appalled to learn that a donkey was made to parasail over a beach resort in Russia last week as part of an advertising publicity stunt.
Adoption saves Markos from being shot
A young woman, who lives in the village of Agios Ioannis Agros, contacted us as she had heard that a donkey owner was going to shoot or abandon his donkey as he could no longer look after it. She told the owner about the sanctuary and he then rang us to ask if we would take the donkey. On 9th June 2010 we went to collect Markos. The owner didn’t really want to shoot or abandon Markos – it was just that he couldn’t afford or manage to look after him anymore and thought he had no other option.
May 10 Manager’s Monthly Update
Submitted by Evi Stefanou on Thu, 03/06/2010 - 12:04
Just as we thought the hot weather had arrived we get some rain and cooler weather! Maybe that’s why the donkeys hang on to their winter coats for so long? They have been losing hair gradually which is pleasing the birds who often grab bits for building nests before we dispose of it!
You may have read about our two latest arrivals, Roberto and Lindy (Tied to a Truck and Living Amongst the Metal). Roberto is such a big handsome and friendly chap. While he was in our Isolation area he was always eager to say hi to the staff and get a fuss. As he is quite a bit overweight we have taken him to our ‘Fat Camp’ section at our Sterako Holding Base. Hopefully he will drop a few kilos and then join one of the other groups.
Living amongst the metal
Lindy was purchased as a pet for the owner’s children. Unfortunately they were not interested so Lindy only had the sheep for company. Due to the recession her owner had found it difficult to feed his animals so he asked us if it was possible to take Lindy into the Sanctuary.
Lindy had lived in a paddock with 800 sheep for 12 years and was not handled very much. When we went to collect her she was loose in an area that was full of tins, sheets of metal, old timber and general rubbish.
Tied to a truck
Roberto’s owner thought the world of his donkey but due to financial problems, the owner had to find full time imployment in a town and had little time to look after him, so he asked his friend with a cow farm to take him in. The owner had not seen Roberto for some months when he accompanied us to farrier him.
Trucks and clothes are yummy!! The Scallywags at Sterako
Submitted by Evi Stefanou on Tue, 18/05/2010 - 12:47
It’s always interesting to see a donkey’s personality come out after they have arrived at the sanctuary and the staff at Vouni know all the donkeys well! Since we moved donkeys to our two Holding Bases, certain personalities seemed to have become even bigger.
It all started at the Sterako HB, our first one, when the owner of the property, Tommy, took his truck into one of the paddocks to do some work. He had been doing this for a while with no problem until the donkeys decided that when Tommy was out of the way they would try out the wiper blades! They managed to remove them quicker than any mechanic and trotted off around the field with Tommy in hot pursuit. After a few replacement wiper blades, this game became boring so the next thing to try were the wing mirrors!
Abandoned by the roadside
.thumbnail.JPG "Georgie")
I don’t know how it happened? I think my owner didn’t want me anymore because I had a bad leg. He used to hobble me to trees and the rope was so tight it dug into my leg and made it bleed. The wounds were not cleaned so they got infected and I can hardly walk now, it’s so painful.
Moving 10 donkeys to Holding Base Sterako
Submitted by Evi Stefanou on Fri, 26/02/2010 - 13:18
Another 10 donkeys we were able to move from our Sanctuary to our Holding Base at Sterako, not far from Vouni, Limassol on Wednesday 27th January. Even though we are in the heart of the winter, the weather was very kind to us and the transportation was done smoothly without the rain ruining our precious work!
We started early in the morning at 8am, one or two donkeys were not sure what was happening so were a little difficult to get onto our horse trailers for transportation. But all in all they went on very well. After three trips to Sterako the job was completed at midday.
Sierou was saved from being shot
In Cyprus we were experiencing a mild start to the winter, but it was a dull overcast day when we received a telephone call from an elderly farmer who lived in the village of Malia, Limassol District. He had a female donkey which he no longer required for work and was unable to feed through the winter so his only solution was to shoot her. He had been talking about his problem in the local coffee shop in the hope a villager may take the donkey, fortunately he was overheard by the Mukhtar who told the farmer about the Donkey Sanctuary at Vouni.
Valentine's gift ideas!!!
If you are looking to surprise your loved one with something a little different this Valentine's Day, adopting a donkey is just what you are looking for. Our donkeys are all adorable so are guaranteed to make the heart melt, and as our charity relies on donations, the gift you choose will have great meaning as it enables us to not only care for our 120+ donkeys, but also help working donkeys and other donkey owners on Cyprus.
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