At the annual Riverstown Vintage and Steam Rally.
At the annual Riverstown Vintage and Steam Rally.
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Newsletter No. 6 - Autumn 1995 For once it is possible to open a newsletter with favorable comments about the weather. Truly we have enjoyed the most delicious summer with day after day of clear blue skies and sunshine, clocking record temperatures for this part of Ireland. The donkeys loved it! Occasionally they would come into the sheds away from the flies, which were a real nuisance at times, but mostly they lay abandoned to the sun, basking in the heat. They are, after all, indigenous to semi desert terrain. It was amazing to see the land dry particularly after the unprecedented rain of last winter. I never would have believed it possible to walk up on the bog land in sandals and have dry feet. The donkeys' hooves gave them very little trouble (except for Susie - more later), and for the first time they all completely lost their winter coats before it was time to grow a new one! Day Out Unfortunately the donkeys one real outing to the annual Riverstown Vintage and Steam Rally was on the day before the weather changed. Nine of them were duly delivered to do their piece for the famine village but ended up wet and bored as the rain poured down, and cold, biting winds gave them no ease. At one point they almost became too warm, however, when one of the little cottages built to represent the famine times, caught fire and suffocated us with smoke. Without help from several passers-by who looked after the animals as they were evacuated from their mini-field, the consequences may have been unpleasant but as it was no harm was done, the fire was quenched, and the donkeys probably quite enjoyed the excitement once they had all calmed down. The following day was the first of our long hot summer - weatherwise the donkeys' day out was just one day out! Donkey Cart August saw us taking delivery of our much coveted donkey cart, bought from a neighbour who had built it himself about 50 years previously for his own donkey. It is ironical that we had searched far and wide for a proper small donkey cart (there are any amount of pony carts to be had but these are too large and heavy for most donkeys) and when we did locate one it was just a mile down the road. It had been kept for years hanging in a hay barn and was in beautiful condition apart from one wheel which had seized up and a few areas showing a small amount of rot. The vendor, Tommy Looby, not only did an amazing carpentry job replacing all the doubtful areas with new wood, and freeing the siezed wheel, but also painted the little cart in traditional red, blue and black. It was in this pristine condition that Jacob, one of our oldest donkeys and the founder member of the Sanctuary, pulled it up the hill for us. It is difficult to know who was the most proud to see it on the road, Tommy, ourselves or Jacob, who loved every minute. And he got an extra carrot for his efforts! The cart has rubber tyres so it is easy to pull on the land. |
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