Adopt a donkey

The only Greek Registered Sanctuary for Donkeys in Crete 850/9-9-2011

Bank transfers can be made into the following account
ATE BANK IERAPETRA

NAME - BARBOUR, SUZANNE MARY MICHAEL

GR52 0431 1210 0037 2010 2710 777

BIC ABGRGRAA

ADOPT A DONKEY

If you would like to 'VIRTUALLY ADOPT' one of our rescue donkeys please name the donkey you would like to adopt. You can pay either monthly or yearly. You will receive a certificate and photographs of your chosen donkey.These will be e mailed as a pdf file as we do not want to use precious 'donkey' money on postage.

We also accept bank transfers and Western Union payments

MEDICATE A DONKEY

Help us to give our elderly donkeys a pain free existence. A months supply of Bute for one donkey is 60 euros. Please help

MACKIE (September 2006)

Mackie was brought to us in the back of this pick up truck. She belonged to an 84 year old man whose grandson came to see us. He asked if we would give her a home as he was worried that his grandfather was going to fall off the donkey.

Up until the autumn of 2009 Mackie was a great favourite for the children to ride. But now she has retired and lives with George, Bekko, and Coconut.

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LOUKAS (October 2006)

We bought Loukas from a farm here when he was just 5 months old. He is now 5 1/2 years and is a typical toddler - always into everything and getting into trouble. He loves visitors, especially if he can steal their hats or their bags.

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MARKO

One cold wet day we found a very frightened donkey tied up outside our stable. We discovered that he had been dumped by his owner because he was ‘wild’. Now he knows that he is safe and won’t be hit with a stick anymore he is a lovely donkey and always the first to greet us in the morning with a loud eeeh orrr! He likes to play with Loukas. He is a good riding donkey and useful to me when I need to ride from the stable to the house. Marko is still very shy of strangers and will often try to hide at the bottom of his field.

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TESSA

One day Alistair was approached by a lady in the village who we know as 'Mad Maria'."You must come and take the donkey away tonight", she shrieked in her strong Cretan dialect. After a little investigation we discovered that Giorgos (her husband) was in hospital having had an accident on the donkey after he had been told not to ride her bu the doctor. Poor Giorgos was very sick in hospital and his wife Maria did not want the donkey any where near her. She was very frightened when I went to get her (maybe because of the accident) but she is now calmer and we use her for our picnic walks as she is a youngish and fit girl. Occasionally Giorgos still asks if he can use her but his wife will not let him.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE PHOTOS OF TESSA

MYRTO (March 2006)

Or the ‘big lady’ as we call her, came to us from a good home where she had been bought for the children to ride. But she had in fact done nothing but eat! She has the biggest ears you have ever seen and loves having them scratched inside. We think in a previous life she may have been used for ploughing. She is also retired now as her feet are so big she finds it difficult walking on the stony tracks and often stumbles.

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BOOTS (September 2009)

We met Boots and his owners when we were helping the vet and farrier to treat the donkeys in the nearby village of Males. A year later we received a phone call saying that his owner was very ill in hospital and wanted his donkey to go to a sanctuary.

Boots is quite a young donkey and suzanne walked him to our farm over the mountains, a distance of about 15 kms. He enjoyed the walk and it became obvious that ‘Boots’ was going to be a useful member of our team. Not only does he take children for rides but he also is happy to carry a picnic if asked.

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ZAK (February 2010)

We were alerted to the fact that a donkey was tethered on a small piece of land in a village near Macrigialos. The owner did not want the donkey and we were told he was not looking after him.

When we visited we found a donkey tangled in a shrubby piece of land, and tied with a thin rope to his foot. He could hardly move. On close inspection we saw that his feet were twisted and we could see where the owner had cut them with a saw. We realized that we had to rescue this donkey quickly before his feet became more twisted and the joints became damaged.
He has already had his first professional foot trim, teeth rasped and is best of friends with Coconut and Mia the dog.

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SYD (June 2010)

Syd joined us in June 2010. We first met him in February during an outreach programme in a village near Elounda. He had his front legs tied together and his head tied to his legs so that he could not eat the olive trees. We were unable to rescue him as a week later he had moved to another village. But we found him and his new owner in a village closer to us. She asked us to help to treat an injury on his leg. We went every day for 2 weeks to do this, but unfortunately discovered that he has a more serious problem with either his back legs or his back and should not be carrying heavy things. We persuaded the owner to let us take him away so that he could retire at our sanctuary. In order to do this we had to purchase another donkey which we have lent to this lady!

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WILLOW (September 2010)

Willow is a fit and healthy donkey who used to belong to an englishman who lived in a village near here. When he realised he had to return to the UK, he asked us if we could possibly take his precious donkey and give her a loving home. He did not want to sell her or give her away as a working donkey. We walked her from her village to our sanctuary, taking 2 days to cover a distance of 30kms. We accepted sponsorship for this walk and raised a few hundred euros to help with the care of our re-homed and rescued donkeys.

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MR JANSEN THE MULE

When we rescued Zak the donkey, we had to leave behind a very sad mule that was chained by his foot to a bush with no food or water. The owner would not let us take the mule. Some dutch friends of ours who live in that village took food and water to the mule whenever they could. Nine months later we received a phone call saying that the owner wanted us to take the mule. We had only one week to build a new shelter for him and make a safe enclosure to house him until he gets used to all the donkeys. BUT WE DID IT! We are hoping that Mr Jansen will become our Dutch mascot mule and attract a lot of supporters from Holland with his Dutch name!

Here he is pictured playing with a 'snack ball toy' just three days after his arrival at our sanctuary.

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BEAUTY (January 2011)

We first met Beauty five years ago. She lived by the beach and was a pet donkey owned by a Dutch family. We were contacted by them as they had to move and could not take Beauty with them. They wanted Beauty to come to a good home where she would be happy with other donkeys. When she arrived (January 2011)we discovered a very painful abscess on her foot which was making walking and moving around difficult. We are treating this abscess and after a few days she is already feeling a lot better.

Beauty is quite young for a donkey - probably under 20 years old and we are hoping that when she gets completely better she will enjoy going on walks with our visitors

Beauty is now fit and healthy and enjoying her life here at the sanctuary, she is taking small children for rides and enjoying all the attention she gets from visitors. (May 2011)

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BOBBY

We were told about Bobby by a friend. He lived in a remote village in the mountains and his very elderly owner was in hospital and not able to look after him. We were also told that if we could not take him he would be given to the circus to be thrown to the animals as live feed. So although we had said 'no more', we really had no choice. A beautiful gentle man with very overgrown back feet and quite nervous. He is taking a while to settle down but enjoys the company of other donkeys. (January 2011)

Bobby is now settled in well and is approaching visitors for attention. He has had both his feet and teeth attended to and it has been confirmed that he is probably only about 15 years old (May 2011)

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JOY

We collected Joy from a village close to Neapoli on May 14 2011. Her elderly owner had died and she could no longer be looked after. Every day she becomes calmer and is now enjoying being brushed. She came from the mountains and is not used to other donkeys or other people so we have to take it very slowly.

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POLLY

We collected Polly from her stable in the village of Prina in May 2011. We suspect that she has been in the stable for a long time and is very very thin. But she is very friendly. She has scars on her face from ill -fitting tack and long front feet. But she is enjoying her new found freedom and food!

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LOLA

We found Lola tied in her stable in a nearby village. Her feet are very overgrown but the main concern is her utter obesity. She is now living with the other ladies at the sanctuary and we hope that the exercise she is getting will help her to reduce weight. This has to be done very slowly to prevent illness

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CHRISTY (October 2011)

The owner of this donkey had two donkeys and made the decision to let this one go. He could have sold him but instead wanted him to come to the sanctuary where he knew he would receive proper care and attention. He has the most beautiful striped legs which is unusual here in Crete. He is living with Coconut, Bobby, George, Zak and Syd. He is a bit shy at the moment but is getting braver everyday

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DORA2 (another donkey from Cretan olive oil factory) (October 2011)

The second 'Dora' that we have given refuge to at our sanctuary. We had been advising on her care since the beginning of the tourist season and said that if she did not get more exercise and lose a little weight she was in danger of becoming laminitic. She is now in our care where she is getting exercise and we plan on a very slow weight reduction. She will be getting regular visits from a professional farrier.

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You can read more about Dora here

OUR RESCUE HORSES!

'ULLY' (ULYSEUS)(July 2011)

We were informed by villagers that there was a foal roaming free in an area close to the village of Kalamafka. It took us four days of searching this huge area before we found this tiny orphan foal - 6-8weeks old . We had found 2 dead horses a few days before that were tied to trees. We assumed (rightly) that one was his mother. He was being cared for by a young stallion.After spending a week teaching him to eat and drink goats milk he was tame and strong enough for us to walk him 2 kms up a dirt track and load him onto the trailer. We could not have done this without the help of horse trainer Steve Vergis.

SASHA (July 2011)(RIP)

This is the young stallion (about 2 years of age) who was looking after the little foal after his mother died. He is a beautiful boy and it is incredible to watch how he cares for the baby. When the baby foal lay down in the sun this young man pulled him to his feet by the scruff of the neck. He and Ully the foal are now living in a lovely field close to our sanctuary.

WE ARE VERY SAD TO ANNOUNCE THAT SASHA DIED AFTER BEING ILL FOR JUST A FEW DAYS. ALL HIS ORGANS FAILED HIM AND ALTHOUGH WE DID EVERYTHING IN OUR POWER IT WAS NOT POSSIBLE FOR HIM TO SURVIVE. HIS PROBLEMS WERE CAUSED BY BEING NEGLECTED ALL HIS LIFE.

HE WAS THE MOST INCREDIBLE BOY AND WE MISS HIM SO MUCH September 2011

ECHO (August 2011)

We have called this mare Echo. She was found tied up with no shade, water or food. Close by her were the rotting carcasses of two other horses that were still tied to trees. We visited her twice a day to feed and water her for one month before we were able to bring her to safety. She is doing really well.

LOLA (October 2011)

This is how we found Lola. Tied in a stable and so terribly obese. She arrived in late October and is now free to exercise and hopefully lose weight very slowly.

CHRISTY

Christy came from the next door village of Males where there are many working donkeys.His owner had taken another donkey and wanted this one to come to our sanctuary. He was a little nervous at first but is now rushing up to greet us. He has the most amazing stripey 'zebra' legs

DORA 2

This is the second dora donkey we have taken from the 'tourist attraction' olive oil farm. She is grossly overweight and suffering from laminitis

donkeys who have crossed the rainbow bridge

MELI. died august 2008

In October 2005 George ran away and found this little grey donkey. It was love at first sight and for the next 3 years he would not leave her side.

She was a badly treated donkey, sometimes left for days tied up with her saddle on and no water. When we found her she had an infected saddle sore on her back.

Her owner said he was going to shoot her or hang her so we agreed to take her and look after her. She had three happy years with us but sadly had to be put to sleep in August 2008 following a fall.

PENNY. (died 2010)

Penny came from the village of Meseleri. Her owner became ill and his wife could not look after her. She wanted us to have the little donkey as she knew we would give her a good home. She is a sweet little thing and I am sure she will become a well loved member of the donkey family. She is quite shy of the other donkeys as she has spent many months standing tied up alone in her dark stable.She has now become firm friends with Tessa and they go everywhere together.She likes to trot which makes her a favourite with the older children who want to ride at a faster pace

For the past 5 months Penny has been suffering from recurrent colic. We are doing blood tests and other tests to see what could be causing this. She no longer is able to walk with children

We are very sad to say that Penny died peacefully on October 24th 2010. We miss her cheeky little face so very much. RIP Penny

DORA (died May 2011)

Dora worked for 5 years in the tourist industry. She was used to demonstrate how olive oil was produced in traditional olive mills. This involved her walking round in circles pulling the stone that ground the olives.
Her owner realised that she was getting a bit old for this job and asked us if she could retire at our sanctuary. So she arrived at the same time as Beauty (January 2011) and they have become friends already. She is a little bit nervous of humans and we suspect she does not see very well out of one eye. But she is enjoying her new found freedom and the company of the other donkeys.

We are devastated to say that we lost Dora on May 16 2011 after a very short bout of colic which left her with complications. We miss her so very much but can only take comfort in knowing that she loved her short time with us here at the sanctuary. RIP LOVELY DORA

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BEKKO (died November 28 2011)

we found Bekko lying in an awkward position at the bottom of his back garden. We administered a large dose of pain killer and managed to move him into a more natural position. We dont know whether he had fallen or whether he lay down and his back end gave up on him. It seemed that he may have been paralysed. As is usually the case here we could not get a vet to come and euthanase so all we could do was to make him as comfortable as possible until he died. Bekko had been extremely thin for a long time and although he ate and ate just could no longer keep weight on him. Yesterday morning he was fine and was chasing his lady friends away from his food.

Bekko was given to us by Giorgos in our village of Anatoli when he got a newer donkey for his work. He was a delightful boy and a great favourite with the children. He used to love to go up and ask for head and ear scratches

Bekko was the only boy to live with the 'ladies'. He had formed a close attachment to mackie and could not be away from her for long.

R.I.P. Bekks - we will miss you xx

GEORGE (April 2005) (R.I.P)

Came to us in April 2005. We were told he was only 15 years of age but it soon became obvious that he was well into his late 20’s. He really is the epitomy of the ‘stubborn’ donkey and if he does not want to do something he refuses to move. So the 8 km uphill walk from his old village to ours took us many hours!

George suffers from arthritis in his hips and he is quite thin now but can still run very fast when he is called for supper. He lives in the ‘totteries’ stable and enclosure with Coconut, Zak, Syd and Bobby

George died in January 2012. His arthritis was troubling him and he stopped eating. We tried everything we could but eventually old age got the better of him. George was our first donkey and responsible for us setting up the sanctuary here. We miss him so much.

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COCONUT (September 2009) (R.I.P.)

Coconut was on his way to be killed when he was rescued. He is an old man who has arthritis and often has to be helped out of his bed in the morning. But once he is up he enjoys going for walks and finding nice things to eat. He can also move quite fast when he wants and one day we discovered him in our neighbour's vegetable field eating his sweetcorn.

Now he has discovered human affection he just can’t get enough of it.

Coconut was put to sleep in January 2012. His legs could no longer support his body. He had nearly 2 1/2 years with us and lived very happily with his friends.

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