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.

In the blistering heat this summer on the Greek Island of Santorini, thousands of tourists will unload from vast cruise ships and be ferried ashore to a port which leads to the small town of Thira. The options of getting to the town located high above the port are either by cable car or donkey taxi, but because the cable car is quickly flooded by the tourists, a queue quickly builds for the donkeys and mules.

Over 200 of them have been tied up in the hot sun for hours waiting for the first of the tourists to arrive. There is a shelter and water available a little way up the steps (which lead up to Thira) but the owners choose not to rest the animals at this location as it’s not convenient for them.