Newsletter No. 16 - Autumn 2000

The donkeys always enjoy visitors.

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Newsletter Autumn 2000

We had our wish! The best summer in these parts since 1995. Largely dry, warm and with plenty of long sunny days it was an excellent summer for the many building projects going on in Ireland at the moment, including our own. One of the old stone sheds in the yard has been torn down and rebuilt in blocks, faced with the original stone to provide an insulated, DRY workshop space with storage. A lean-to against the haybarn fulfils a long held dream to house the main herd of donkeys adjacent to the hay/straw storage and close to the manure heap, which cuts down enormously on the hard work of barrowing all the bales up the hill to the yard stables and the manure down the hill to the dung heap.

The lean-to was made possible through the generosity of friends and relatives who sent donations in memory of Joy, one of the Sanctuary's dearest supporters, who passed on last December. Between them they raised £400. Funds were further swelled by an unexpected donation from Petwatch of Dublin who donated £500 (which we shared with another small animal charity) and then, to cap it all, we received an anonymous donation of a further £500! The overall cost of the lean-to was estimated to be around £1,800 complete, so we were already well on the way when a faithful American 'Friend of the Donkeys' decided to celebrate his birthday by sending 200 dollars! It was like watching a small miracle unfold.

The building is 30 ft x 20 ft, with block built and galvanised sheet sides (with the occasional clear plastic panel for light). Both the concrete floor and the galvanised sheet roof are insulated. There is good ventilation, so with a deep straw bed the donkeys will be dry and cosy whatever the weather throws at us this winter.

En Suite
During the summer months, Flynn, Meggie and a small pony called Lucky Biscuit, took over the almost empty haybarn as their personal quarters. sharing only with the swallows and our neighbour's cat, Mittens, who likes to sleep curled up in the straw beside the donkeys. They had immediate access into their private paddock in the lower field whence they could come and go at will, enjoying the company of the main herd over the fence but safe from their boisterous antics. The scheme worked so well we decided to develop the idea and keep a space for them in the haybarn throughout the winter so they could continue to communicate with their friends next door in the new lean-to. It takes a bit of juggling with gates to keep the two departments separate and safe from curious marauders from 'the other side' but so far so good.

Welfare
Although extremely busy with the building projects and visitors to the Sanctuary, it has been a quiet year so far for welfare work. On the whole the warm, dry summer has suited the donkeys well, though the abundance of rich grass had led to problems with laminitis, an excruciatingly painful condition which causes the laminae inside the hooves to swell and separate from the hoof wall. Laminitis is precipitated by too much protein in the blood but its causes are varied, from eating too much good grass or concentrates, to any form of stress (travelling, trotting on hard surfaces, being separated from either animals or human friends etc). It is a condition which demands immediate attention from a qualified farrier or vet if permanent damage is to be avoided and is usually recognisable by the animal showing distinct signs of pain in the hooves. The front feet are generally more affected than the rear and in order to relieve the pain the donkey or pony will attempt to walk on the back of the heels, keeping as much of the sole as possible from contact with the ground. If the condition is neglected the bones inside the hooves can rotate and drop, forcing their way through the sole of the foot in extreme cases.