The Donkey Breed Society

Kids for Kids provides many other means of help in villages. It trains Midwives and First Aiders two for each of the sprawling villages. At the end of their training, each medic too is given a cross-bred donkey to enable them to carry out their work; travelling miles to reach someone in need. Simply because of the existence of those docile, lovable , hardworking animals so many lives have been saved.

Cross-bred donkeys are faster and stronger than the usual little local donkey and they are used to draw Donkey Ambulances to the nearest hospital which would be miles and miles away. They pull the water carts which provide water for children in schools, and to enable those same children to water our tree seedlings!

Kids for Kids has planted thousands of tree seedlings and these have to be kept watered. Each family is responsible for a certain number of trees and it is the children who water them which can only be done if we supply donkey drawn water carts so that water can be fetched in greater quantity.

KIDS FOR KIDS, need of these tougher cross-bred donkeys for the heavier work is great,  to ensure the continuing success of the variety of integrated projects we provide, donkeys being the key to so many of these projects, but they are expensive and thus not so readily donated.  If you would like to give a Crossbred Donkey next Christmas you will make a big difference in Darfur.

The people of Darfur, living in one of the harshest environments of the world, want nothing more than to resume their pastoral and farming lives, to obtain education so that they can more easily manage the projects and run the village and animal loan committees themselves, for which we have trained them. Donkeys which we in this country know as gentle bearers of children on our sandy beaches, and as much loved pets, are a lifeline for the survival of a people who had the misfortune to be born in an area of the world that has suffered climate changes, with no possibility of moving elsewhere.

A further update to the KIDS for KIDS project has arrived, so read on: 

It was a shock to see the little babies in hospital, and even worse to know that if they are able to return home, there will be nothing for them to eat.   One brave young girl walked for 4 days across the desert to bring her starving baby to the hospital.

BUT we are not giving up in the face of what seems an overwhelming problem.   There are 800 villages in Darfur, but already we have provided midwives, first aid workers, paravets and our wonderful little goats and donkeys, to 7% of them.  Please tell people we can make a meaningful difference, even now.  Last week I commissioned 10 new handpumps, and 30 more repairs.   This was still at our Gift List price of £4000 for a handpump and £500 for a repair - but I fear they will go up.   We need more.   With the prospect of peace we are planning to support villages north of El Fasher, where my little 9 year old was walking for water 9 years ago, and Dr Salim Ahmed Salim, the Veterinary Doctor who has been working on our programmes, will help us to expand our work even further. 

There is far too much to do - but One Goat at a Time, and this year, One Donkey at a Time to carry water, is our motto.  

Finally - the best news possible - our 40 midwives graduated last Thursday -  with the highest marks overall, ever - and have returned home, not only with their medical kit, donkey, new uniform but now a mobile phone as well.   Mobiles are not on our Gift List but I am going to provide them to all our midwives, first aid workers and paravets - just think how that will save time - and therefore lives - in emergencies.    A mobile - and card - last week cost me £25 in El Fasher.

Diana Everett reflects on 'DONKEYS IN PORT ELIZABETH,SOUTH AFRICA'

It all started about 15 years ago when I first came to South Africa on holiday, driving around Port Elizabeth with friends often spotting the Township Carters with their donkey's ill-fitting harness causing sores, bits of wire in their mouths also causing sores, bits of wire and rope used as harness, the carts overloaded, the Carters whipping the donkeys to go faster cutting in and out of traffic; it absolutely appalled me.

I have been 'into' driving for quite some time, I was a British Driving Society Judge, Competitor, teacher and broke horses to Harness. I was also a Judge for the Donkey Breed Society, as some of you may remember! (many thanks to my very special friend Margot Thompson for putting my name forward to the Judges Selection Committee)

I emigrated to South Africa in 2005 and got involved as a volunteer with the Eastern Cape Horse Care Unit run by Megan Hope as it saddened me so much to see these donkeys being misused and abused.

Once I had been round some of the Townships and seen for myself how these poor animals were being treated, I decided to take action and try to do something about it.

I started off by designing a webbing harness, the webbing being donated as required from a Company in Johannesburg. Because of the different sizes in the Donkeys, we asked the Carters to come to our base for fitting, this went down very well. We had a lot of harness donated as well e.g. bridles and bits, rugs, reins etc., so spent quite a few weeks refurbishing. Some of the Carters would not come to the base because whilst they were with us, they were not making money, so nothing ventured, nothing gained we sat at the local rubbish tip waiting for them to come in and once they had off-loaded, grabbed them and fitted new harness; quite an experience to say the least!!!

When the harness was fitted, they each had an identification number put on the side of their carts as well as reflective strips so that if anyone rang up with a complaint and quoted the number, we knew exactly who it was and could take corrective action with the driver.

There are many Townships in the Eastern Cape and so far we have only managed to re-fit the local ones in the vicinity of the Port Elizabeth base, but we are gradually spreading our wings.

When we re-fit, I also talk to the Carters, sometimes via an interpreter, on how to look after their donkeys. No-one has ever taught them or shown them how to do this, as I say, no donkey, no work, no money, no food! I also compiled and printed a very uncomplicated handbook and had it translated into their mother language. I included little things like, what a red traffic light means, how to signal turning right or left, which way to go round a traffic island, you may smile, but some go straight over it ! And when they stop for their break at lunchtime they should also give their donkeys some food and water. In this regard I arranged for the collection of empty 5litre ice cream cartons and 2litre plastic milk bottles which the carters could carry with them with feed and water for their donkeys in the heat of the African day

Also included was basic animal husbandry The most important of which being not to overload the carts and to not drive on the roads in the dark ? before dawn or after dusk - several accidents have occurred where Carters have broken this rule.

Most earn their income from collecting scrap and garden refuse from the residential areas which they are supposed to take to the Municipal dump necessitating a fair distance of travel for the donkeys on generally busy roads

Most of the Carters have taken notice of our advice and monitoring and I can see a great improvement, especially in the donkeys.

They have been given grooming kits, etc. and so last month we decided, along with Animal Welfare (equivalent to the UK RSPCA) to hold an Animal Awareness day especially for the Township residents. It was superb; I only had four turnouts to Judge but we did a best turned out and then we set up some cones for them to drive through against the clock, it was quite amazing, they were stunned but did well.

Each entrant received a rosette and some money and I gave a prize for both classes. The children from the Township then came with their dogs, and I must admit all looked very well.

We had a dog dipping competition, which at least that got rid of all the fleas and ticks!!! And then again a Best in Show, what amazed me was the fact that there must have been at least 40 dogs present, no leads, we can't afford them!! But very well behaved, with no fighting, or anything else untoward.

A few days later when I was at Base, a Carter had come to collect some more webbing as I had told him on the day of the show that he needed to replace his back strap. He came running over to me, grabbed me by the hand, huge smile on his face saying, thank you, thank you Madam for a wonderful day and please can we do it again. It made my day to see this man so happy.

There is the down side, of course, we have phone calls from other Townships asking for our help, stray dogs have attacked the donkeys and sometimes the foals. The last call out was horrendous, the dogs had killed both mare and foal and were ripping them to shreds, obviously by the time the Unit arrived, there wasn't much left, so unfortunately, off to the local Lion Park with the carcasses.It sounds a dreadful end, but what else can we do.

We often collect the donkeys roaming loose along the roads, as they know that there is more grass on the roadside than there is in the Township, so they come back to base until the owner turns up to collect. Some of them that have been there before, just wander in and know that they will get a good feed and a bit of TLC, we do have regular 'visitors' which gives us the opportunity to give them a 'once-over' - a good groom and sometimes a bath, before they are collected.

There are some dreadful cases reported, donkeys stolen from their owners to do a robbery, one particular mare refused to leave her foal to go to work, so the owner threw a bucket of boiling water over her, you can imagine the pain and suffering she went through. We now have that mare and her foal at base and it is taking weeks of everyday care to get her right.

It is not only the Donkeys that we have worries with, also the Horses and I am not speaking about Township Horses, these are people who live on nice farms and have probably been given the horses as the original owner could not afford to look after them; some of these so called 'farmers' haven't a clue, they think they are like sheep, turn them out in a field and that's it.

I went to one farm, a very nice couple; the Lady of the House had rung us and asked for help. She had two horses, well fed, but oh dear, hooves so long that they could hardly walk and it took us all our time to catch them, in the end it was a matter of lassoing them!! Their coats were filthy, manes and tails so matted that I had to trim them right down to almost nothing, the Blacksmith came along with us and did an excellent job on the feet. I gave the Lady a grooming kit and taught her how to use it. On my last visit to her, the horses were looking fantastic.

Nearly everything we use, from rugs, harness, webbing to the lucerne that people drop off when they have mown their paddocks is all donated, the ECU do not have a big bank balance, so even down to worn out harness, we can use the buckles to make new, it is amazing what we can do with this second hand stuff.

It is now a great pleasure when I see the local Carters with their Donkeys, driving them as near as much correctly as they can, the donkeys looking a lot better than they did, and most important of all, good fitting webbing harness, no overloaded carts. This is in the Port Elizabeth area, as previously mentioned, next we have the whole of the Eastern Cape to sort out, which is about as big as the UK!!!

If any of you reading this would like to help in any way, you may contact me on my e-mail address:  droe@agnet,co.za  I am not begging, or implying ours is a special case, I realize that there is this sort of use and abuse the world over, but every little bit helps.

Rita Dipple believes in 'The Magic of Dreams'

Over the years I visited lots of Donkey Sanctuaries, and adopted donkeys and as much as I could, supported the excellent work they do. By the time I stopped working I had 11 adopted donkeys across the country. My husband took early retirement and we decided to move to West Wales. My husband said that if we could get a house with some land I could have donkeys. I found out how much land was needed for two donkeys, details from Estate agents for any house that did not have enough land were quickly disposed of.

We finally moved in January 2005 to a house with 3 acres.

Someone told us that the local Animal Sanctuary had three donkeys; so we went to look. My first thoughts when I saw them, was that they are so tiny; not miniatures, just a few inches higher, but still tiny. We regularly went to see them, with carrots and love.

I daydreamed about if they should still be there when we had got the house sorted, what I could call them, I decided on Faith Hope and Charity. In March 2005 it was my 50th birthday, the day started out OK and we visited the donkeys at Animal Sanctuary, where unknown to me our friends joined us.

The owner came over and told me the donkeys were mine. My Husband, Mother and Friends had all given a donation towards the donkeys for my birthday. I cried, our friend said that it was the first time he had ever known me speechless. The Sanctuary owner said the donkeys had been at the Sanctuary for 8 years, but had not been known by the names that they had arrived with and to call them whatever I wanted. Just out of interest I asked what the names were she said 'Faith Hope and Charity'..

We had a stable built for them and finally the day of their arrival came. It was probably one of the best days of my life; although being a novice I was very worried that I would do things right for them, however Hope rolled as soon as she arrived, a sure sign of approval.

I got the vet to give them a health check and Charity who I had thought was the baby turned out to be Mum, and aged about 30, Faith the boy was mid teens, Hope was a little younger. Being a complete novice I read everything I could lay my hands on, the Sidmouth Donkey Sanctuary were wonderful, so was their Welfare Officer.

The next few years were just magical during which time, their three characters really came out. Faith was a very 'cheeky chappie' who would come sneaking up from behind when you were doing something and give a big nudge, when you looked at him I was sure he was laughing. He was also very handsome with a wonderful black muzzle; very protective of the girls and eventually me. One summer we had an invasion of cows into their field, and Faith was seen desperately trying to round them up, while the two girls looked on.

Hope was very reserved and did not like her neck, ears or head touched. After almost two years, she finally started to come round more and I taught her to cuddle; when I was sitting or squatting she would rest her head over my shoulder and snuggle in so I could stroke her behind the ears. Although when the vet or farrier was looking at one of the others and I was bending down she would still does the over the shoulder trick!

Charity was just a little sweetie, we had a few problems with her to start with, but she started to trust me, and eventually I could do anything with her and she just oozed love. She often used to look at me straight in the face and then would suddenly lick right up the side of my cheek. Sometimes when she was sniffing around my face she would put one of her nostrils over my nose. The other thing she loved was if she was laying down, I used to sit along side her, she would put her head in my lap, I would stroke her, and she would go to sleep.

In March 2008 we suddenly lost our Golden Retriever, Tia; in April 2008 my husband had a major operation for bowel cancer, which was followed by chemotherapy. In May 2008 Faith was not his usual self, so I called the vet, they checked his blood, which showed that he had liver damage, possibly caused from eating Ragwort in his earlier life. Within 6 days we lost him.

I was devastated, but I could only think of how Hope and Charity must be feeling, they had been with him all their lives. Then I was worried that as they had always grazed together, had they got liver damage? I had their blood tested, but thankfully they were fine. In June 2008 we got two puppy golden retrievers, Poppy and Daisy.

In September 2008 Charity got conjunctivitis, followed by an ulcer which took almost two months to heal. Then she went down with laminitis, when she came off the shavings she could not 'do her muscles'. She got less and less interested in her food, despite the fact that the vet was giving her strong pain killer injections, and then she just stopped eating. On 20th January she was really not well and I had to make the decision we all dread, to have her put to sleep. The vet came and she went peacefully to sleep on my lap and in my arms. She will always be my very precious to me, I loved her so much, and still cannot believe she has gone.

My worries turned to Hope, who now was completely alone; and although our feral cat moved into the stable, Hope would not venture very far from it. I tried to go for walks with her but she would go so far and then went back to the stable, it seemed that without the others her confidence had gone.

Due to her age and small size it proved difficult to find a friend for Hope; but we found Patience; 6 years old and only a couple of inches taller than Hope, who arrived three weeks after we lost Charity. They seemed to get on well from the start, Patience wandering off closely followed by Hope.

To see the two of them grazing or rolling together is a wonderful sight. I am pleased to say that Patience has Charity's lovely long ears and she also has the little fringe that Charity had. She also has lots of Faith's cheeky ways. They have just started grooming each other, which is a wonderful sight and shows that they have really bonded.

Poppy has taken a real passion for Patience, through the gate she licks her face and cleans her ears, while Patience puts her head down for her to do it.

I shall always miss Faith and Charity, they were such wonderful friends, and I am so grateful for the few special years I had with them. I have had to write this in several stages, as I could not see sometimes for my tears.

Love your donkeys and look after them, sometimes donkeys' years just are not enough.

Paula Swarbrick reflects on the worst weeks of her life

We will never forget Sunday 13th September, when Jigsaw was exactly 5 weeks old.

He had seemed fine the night before, but by the following morning was unable to get up. We lifted him up and again everything seemed fine till lunch when he was down again, it was then apparent that there was something seriously wrong with Jigsaw.

We rang the vet who appeared within half an hour. At first he would not say for definite what was wrong but after examining him said he thought it could possibly be tetanus; this was confirmed  later in the day when he returned to inject him with the prescribed anti toxins.

By now Jigsaw's condition had worsened considerably, his whole body had become frozen and rigid, along with his jaw which he could only open a small amount (hence the term lock-jaw).   He was also sweating profusely. Thanks to Pam Moon he was supplied with two rugs which allowed us to ensure he had a fresh rug available at all times to prevent a chill. The vet informed us that there is no actual cure for Tetanus, the anti-toxins he had injected were to fight the toxins that had invaded  every muscle in Jigsaw's little body. He was also injected with antibiotics at the same time to fight the infections, after that it was basically a case of nursing and keeping Jigsaw strong enough to enable his body to fight the disease.

The prognosis was not good, the vet saying that in his experience he had never seen a horse or foal recover from Tetanus; he informed me that equines suffer much more severely than cows or sheep (hence why those species don't get vaccinated). The vet continued to visit for the next 4 days, injecting Jigsaw each time with the required amount of anti-toxins, at the same time we were constantly caring for Jigsaw.  His body had weakened causing him to lose his balance, but it was essential to keep lifting him up in order to maintain his mobility and muscle strength up. At the same time it was also important to allow him to rest so we tried to ensure we laid him down for a couple of hours at a time, If we left him any longer than that we found his body stiffened up more and we were unable to get him to stand alone.

The key problem we faced was feeding, as his mouth would only open about one centimetre which subsequently meant we had no chance of bottle feeding him. We resorted to syringe feeding milk into him every 2 hours,  milked directly from his mother to ensure he had as much essential natural goodness going into his body as was humanly possible supplemented  by adding glucose.

By day 4 his condition had worsened drastically. The vet was not very positive, since Jigsaw's breathing was laboured and rapid and informed us we could ring anytime he was required. We tried not to think negatively and continued doing everything we had been.

By day 6 we had a more stable condition, he could now stand again and was taking his milk slightly better, and for the next 5 days his condition remained fairy constant. 
It was around day 9 we started to see slight improvements; an interest in grass, even though he could not physically pick it up, and to us the interest indicated he must be feeling slightly better.

The next problem we faced was Jigsaw's laboured breathing which sounded almost like he had a smokers cough.
We found this very concerning since we had come so far, and didn't want to risk any other problems so once again the vet was called. 
Jigsaw's temperature was 40.5C. The vet thought he either had an infection or fluid on his lungs hence his heavy breathing and temperature, most likely caused by how we were feeding and the fact that he was lying flat on the floor (he did not have the strength to sit upright).
The most effective way to treat this was to inject Jigsaw daily with antibiotics. The vet instructed me how to do this in order for me to carry out the procedure for the next 10 days. It wasn't a nice job to have to do, but by day 10 I think we had mastered it OK, even though by then Jigsaw had worked out exactly what was coming!   His temperature amazingly came down each day and by day 3 it was down to normal.

Jigsaw was now freely walking around under his own steam and after 3 weeks he drank from a bottle.  We were overjoyed by the progress which enabled us to supplement his bottled milk with another of creep feed dissolved in water which he loved.   We were concerned that he had by now lost quite a lot of weight and may not have been getting enough milk, so the extra nourishment provided by the creep feed was all important.
The other issue we had to face was that Jigsaw could neither sit down or stand up himself.    After a further two weeks he managed this task, firstly by standing up himself and then by sitting down.   Again we were extremely happy to see this as it had been awful going in to find he had fallen in some obscure position when he had attempted to sit down. We could now go to bed knowing he would be OK for longer than a couple of hours.

During all of this the vet has been extremely surprised by the progress Jigsaw has made and has been in touch throughout the course of his recovery, his help and advice has been invaluable. 
It cannot go unmentioned the help that Pam has also given throughout, she was not only called out at 1.00am in the morning at his birth but has now  played a significant part in helping Jigsaws to recovery; so a big thank you.

The reason for writing this is to inform every donkey owner of the importance of vaccinating against tetanus. It is a disease I hope I never see again and I hope for no-one else to experience it either.
However it has also taught me not to let other people's opinion overrule your own; if you fight hard enough there is always a chance of success.

We have come from syringe to bottle feeding to feeding himself over five weeks and looking at him now we feel it is a miracle he is still with us.    I hope to see you all at shows next year and you can all meet Jigsaw then.

After being hand reared and the centre of so much attention he is currently extremely cheeky, hopefully this will have been curbed slightly by then!
 

My Name is Precious by Sue Tredigo

A wise old horse once to me that if you look up the word "Precious" in the dictionary, it says "beloved, of great value or worth, much prized" This makes me feel very proud, especially as for the first five years of my life I didn't even have a name. Nobody cared enough about me to call me anything and this is the story of how I got my name.

I was born in a cold, wet field in France. My mother was thin and weak because she didn't have enough to eat, but after I was born she found the strength, to lick me roughly all over so that t felt warm, then nudged me gentiy until I stood up on wobbly legs and found where to suckle to get a drink of milk This tasted delicious, but there was never enough and I was always hungry. There were other donkeys and foals in the field with me and my mother but they all looked bigger and stronger than we did. The foals used to play and chase each other. I would have joined in but I didn't have the energy to run, so I spent most of the time hunched by a hedge, trying to keep warm and dry.

Every now and then we were all rounded up and chased into a big yard. This was very frightening; big men in flapping coats waved their arms aand shouted. I stayed as close to my mother as I could. She made comforting little noises in my ear, but I knew that she too was frightened, although she pretended not to be.

We all stood around in the big yard. There was nothing to eat and no water to drink. My mother wearily hung her head. After a couple of hours or so the big men with the flappihg arms came back with more people. These people chose the donkeys they wanted to buy and gradually our group got smaller and smaller, until eventually there was only me and my mother left. Nobody wanted us, probably because my mother was so thin, and I hadn't grown as I should have done. We were a sorry sight. What would happen to us? A biq lorry drove into the yard, and I heard alarming noises of friqhtened donkeys coming from inside, I was filled with panic. The big men with fiapping arms chased me and my mother into the yard, then up the wooden ramp into the lorry. Inside were donkeys of all sizes and colours, but they all had one thing in common, they looked terrified. The Men banged the ramp shut and we all huddled together as the engine started; then we began to move; it was hard to keep our balance, but we all leaned into each other which helped a bit.

The journey seemed endless. I was hungry and miserable and wondered where we were going. Suddenly, the outside noises changed and when I looked out through a tihy gap in the side of the lorry ! could see ships. We came to a halt then waited for hours in a queue with lots of other cars and trucks. I couldn't stay on my feet any longer, and slumped to the floor. ! would have liked a drink of water and a bit of hay, but nobody came to us. I could hear my mother's tummy rumbling but she didn`t complain. After what seemed seemed like an eternity, the engine started again and we went up a ramp into the hold of a ferry, and across the channel to England

After another journey along very wide roads with lots of traffic, we finally came to a stop. The ramp was let down and we were chased out into a field.The light was dazzling and hurt my eyes; ! had been in the darkness for so long, my legs were sore and stiff, but I was glad to be out in the fresh air and greedily gobbled some grass, but where was my mother? I looked back at the lorry and saw her lying motionless inside, I ran back towards her, but a man with a stick chased me away, then hurredly closed the ramp and drove off. That was the Iast time I saw her.

The next few years passed by uneventfully. I lived in a field with lots of other donkeys; some were kind and friendly, others were mean and bullies. There were three of us who became friends; they, like me, had come over from France on a big ship and they too were thin and timid.

Whenever the weather was bad, we would huddle together for warmth and shelter, as all the best spots under the trees were taken by the bully donkeys. Occasionally, the big men with flapping arms herded us up together and chased us into a big shed, and other people came to look at us. It was the same old story; the big big, strong donkeys were chosen and we three were left behind. I could tell our owner was tiring of us, and one day I heard him say "Leave them in the shed tonight and take them to the sale tomorrow. Just get what you can for them. I'm sick of !ook at the scrawny, useless things" We spent a miserable night wondering what a sale was and where we would go in the morning. At daybreak, a big lorry rumbled into the yard, and there was a great deal of crashing and banging as the ramp was lowered; we were used to the chasing routine by now and offered no resistance. !t was easier to do what the big men with the flapping arms wanted, rather than get a swift clout with a stick. The ramp was slammed shut and the engine started up. The lorry was dirty and wet inside, so we costantly lost our foothold, slithering and sliding from one side to the other. By the time our journey ended we were bruised and filthy; a covering of wet slime added to our dejection and misery; there had been nothing to eat in the lorry, and no water to drink. I felt weak and shaky and knew my legs wouldn't hold me up for much longer, but I just didn't care what was going to happen any more and hung my head in despair.

A sale turned out to be a place where horses, ponies, and donkeys are taken, and paraded around a fenced ring. Humans surround this ring and an auctioneer sells the animals one by one to the highest bidder. When my turn came to go into the ring, I dropped my head in shame, as I knew that nobody would want me, let alone pay money for me. Optimistically, the auctioneer asked who would like to start the bidding. The silence was interminable. A group of men by the railings started to laugh and I heard one of them say "You'd have to pay ME to take that dirty, scrawny thing home". Laughter erupted around the ring, and gradually the jokes and jibes passed around the whole crowd. I wanted the ground to open up, so that I couid disappear. Suddenly, a bright, high-pitched voice shouted "One hundred pounds!" Everybody turned to see who the voice belonged to, including me. I couldn't believe it! Somebody actually wanted to give One Hundred Pounds for ME! It was an effort to lift my head, but I did and saw a lady with yellow hair holding her hand up in the air and waving it to show that she was bidding.

The auctioneer banged down his hammer quickly as if he was frightened that the lady might change her mind. Swiftly, I was pushed back down the gangway into a pen. I didn't see what happened to my two friends; there were so many pens full of horses and ponies, and I was overcome by weariness and confusion.

The pens began to empty as animals were loaded into vehicles and driven off to their new homes. Hours passed as I looked out for the lady with the yellow hair but she didn't come. i could stand up no longer and slumped to the dirty, wet concrete floor, closed my eyes, and tried to shut out the huge disappointment welling up inside me.

Despite the commotion of engines, men's voices and whinnying horses I must have drifted off into an exhausted, fitful sleep. Suddenly, I felt a gentle hand stroking my neck, and a soft voice whispering in my ear, "Don't worry my precious one, everything is going to be alright. I'm sorry I've been so long but it's been difficult finding someone with a trailer to take you home. I tried to stand up but couldn't, and the yellow haired lady told me to be still while she went to get someone to help. When I saw four big men walk into the pen, I panicked, but the comforting voice and warm hand reassured me that all would be well. The men heaved me up onto my feet, half carrying, half dragging me into a trailer. A thick bed of straw welcomed me, and I flopped down onto it. My new owner bent down and offered me a small drink of water which I greedily gulped. She smiled and said "No more for now my precious one or you will have a tummy ache. You can have some more when we get home". She took my face in her hands, rubbing the sides of my cheeks. "It looks as if I have a name for you already. I shall call you 'Precious'

I had no idea then what the word precious meant but I didn't care? I HAD A NAME ! After a journey of an hour or so, we came to a halt; refreshed by the water I managed to get to my feet, I was eager to see where we were, and waited impatiently for the ramp to be lowered. The four men had travelled with the yellow haired lady, and I heard one of them ask " Do you want her put straight in the stable Bonnie?" "I think so" she replied, and now I knew the name of my new owner - Bonnie.

They helped me down the ramp, across a yard and into a stable. I had never had a place to shelter in, and this stable looked cosy and inviting; straw on the floor, a bucket of water to drink, and a net full of hay to eat. There was a window to look out of, and I could see two donkeys grazing in the paddock outside. Bonnie came over to me and said "You'll be able to join them once you're feeling better and have settled in". She lifted her hand to give me a pat and I jerked my head away from her; I had been so used to being pushed and shoved around that it was hard for me to believe that somebody would ever want to be kind. Bonnie made gentle soothing noises and told me not to worry. "Nobody will ever hurt you again Precious, I promise you? After eating all the hay I went to sleep, and woke up in the morning to find two donkeys looking in at me over the stable door. They had come to say hello.

One of the donkeys was called Mari and the other one Bella, and after a few weeks we became good friends and spent all our time together. Bonnie brushed me every day until my coat shone and a man came to trim my feet which had become badly overgrown. I was very nervous when I saw the man, but Bonnie put her arm over my neck and patted me, telling me that there was no need to be frightened, and afraid I wasn't, not with her to look after me.

Gradually I learnt to trust peope and began to enjoy all the fuss and attention, Mari, Bella and I lived happily together in the paddock, and our stable door was always open so that we could go inside whenever we wanted.

There was always plenty of grass and hay to eat and lovely fresh water froma stream to drink. As I got stronger I started to join in the chasing games which Mari and Bella enjoyed so much. We ran round the paddock, first in one direction and then the other, kicking up our back legs in excitement. One day I noticed that the old horse in the adjoining field had come to the fence to watch our antics. He called me over and said: "Hello, I'm Bobby, I haven't seen you before, what is your name?" "Precious" I replied with pride, still not really believing that I had a name. "Well" said Bobby "aren't you lucky to have a name like that" "Why?" I asked "What does it mean?" He looked at me with wise kindly eyes and said "somone must think you are very special, because the word precious means, Beloved, of great value, much prized" I felt wonderful, ten feet tall, not only did I have a name, but I had the best name in the whole wide world.

Previews from The Donkey 2009

Mary Brown admits that ............Now There Are Four !!

Stanley and I and our elderly sheepdog, Cassie walked along the road adjacent to the field the donkeys were currently grazing; three pairs of long hairy ears appeared to follow us along the top of the hedge. We laughed. A stramge sight to the uninitiated but we knew those ears belonged to  Rosie, Hannah and Polly.They followed along the hedge to the end of the field, at that point there was a rise in the road and we looked down on them from above; ears pricked they watched us, the unspoken question - where were we going and why?
We were going to take some magazines to Doreen, but they wouldn?t understand that, or would they?  Who are we mere mortals to know what they do or do not understand; for they certainly watch everything that we do, everything that our neighbours do, and study everyone who walks past our farm; donkeys are such unashamedly inquisitive animals!!
What a lot we missed before donkeys came to Lower New House.

Rosie a little dark chocolate brown mare bought from my friend Albert, originally from Romania she is avery quiet middle aged lady, her daughter Hannah was born ten weeks after Rosie arrived.  Now at twenty months old she is taller than her mother and with the sun shining on her short black summer coat she is probably the most beautiful of them all, as well as being the most strong willed.  The third donkey Polly is a brown and white filly I bought as a yearling as a playmate for Hannah who was taking great delight in pestering her long suffering mother to join in her games.  This was of course just an excuse on my part to have another donkey!
She is over two years old now and certainly the most cheeky, very lovable and cuddly she just loves to chew trousers and shirt tails, surroptitiously with the odd nip to the flesh beneath, something we try to discourage
Buying Polly as a playmate for Hannah was a great success as they love each other dearly and play their rough and tuumble games together, but Hannah also loves her mother and her mother loves her, and so we learned a lesson in donkey bonding; where one donkey goes, all three go or else none of them go anywhere. 

One sunny Sunday afternoon, a month or so after Plloy came, I thought it would be nice to go for a walk, Stanley thought it would be much nicer to doze in front of the television 'why don't you take a donkey?' he suggested.

So with a picture in my mind of me and my donkey strolling happily through the countryside I set off with Polly; but as soon as she realised Hannah wasn't coming she protested that she wasn't going either. "Hannah will still be here when we get back" I tried to reasure her. I actually got a few hundred yards towards our neighbours farm before I belatedly decided it was pointless and turned back. But I wasn't going back quickly enough for Polly who broke loose and galloped off towards home. But instead of turning up our drive as I thought she would, she carried on to the road.
Now we live in a fairly remote area and it is not unusual for no vehicles to pass along the road for several hours at a time.
Even so visions came into my mind of motor car pile ups and mangled donkeys so I panicked and set off in hot pursuit. Fortunately she had not gone far, having stopped at a gate to tell a neighbour's horse how badly we were treating her. Next day saw us in the local N.F.U. office checking on our Personal Liability insurance ! thank goodness all was in order.

We have not attempted to seperate the donkeys again; we now enjoy donkey walks taking all three with the help of kind neighbours who are delighted to come and lead a donkey around the lanes. Not much donkey training but plenty of chatter,and coffee and cake for the humans at the end of walk party afterwards.

The field shelter I so lovingly restored in 2007 was a bit of a disappointment. It was supposed to be their shelter from bad weather during the winter, but due to the extreme wet there was soon a quagmire outside the door and we were forced to move them to another field where they could shelter in the Sheep shed. In the spring of this year Stanley and I fenced
a yard outside the field shelter and laid sixty 2ft by 2ft heavy concrete paving slabs. Not bad for a couple of Oldies we thought.
I don't know at what point  I began to think that I would like a fourth donkey, but probably earlier this year when Stanley and I decided I should not breed from the filly.  Stanley is often telling me that he thinks I  am working too hard - that I am getting older - as if I needed reminding!     I have no wish to breed donkeys to sell and as Stanley pointed out any I breed now could still be here when I am grooming St. Peter's donkeys.
I accepted what he said for I think I could probably do without the anxiety anyway and any mothering instincts I have are more than satisfied at lambing time.  I let the idea of a fourth donkey mull around in my head for some time before tentatively suggesting to Stanley that we might offer an older mare or gelding a kind home.  'A grey one with a cross' said Stanley but offered no objections, although I have little doubt that he was thinking !how many donkeys does she intend to have??

I made several unsuccessful enquiries; there seemed to be plenty of youngsters offered for sale, but no older donkeys and at one point I was tempted to have a filly or a colt.
Fortunately I phoned Sheila Bell for advice and she put me in touch with Mike who opperates the Llanelli beach donkeys. He also 'rescues' a few donkeys ones that are offered for sale that have been badly treated or neglected. With the help advise of Liz Ellis, the Donkey Sanctuary Welfare Officer for his area he puts them back on the road to good health before selling them on to kind homes.  Stanley and I met Mike in Carmarthen the very next day and after a much need coffee in 'Morrisons' to help us recover from the stress of getting lost in the town, he took us to meet some of his donkeys.
The Beach Donkeys( including Dennis who had won the 2007 Donkey Sanctuary award for the Best Beach Donkey) were all in top condition, and in total contrast to the rescued ones. He introduced us to Rita a little  mare probably about fifteen vears old that he wanted us to have - she was light grey with splashes of  darker grey - but no cross! 
Oh well we were obviously destined to have four donkeys without crosses, for Stanley and I both fell for her and there was no doubt in our minds that she was the one we wanted. She had such a sweet nature and seemed so sad we couldn't help but love her.
Rather naivly I had not realised there was still a welfare problem with donkeys in this country, and as one them Rita was still in the middle of her rehabilitation treatment, hooves, teeth, several wormings and plenty of feed.

We went back to see Rita a second time before we eventually had her ( this time we didn't get lost in Carmarthen) In the mean time Liz kept me informed of her progress and I am so grateful to her for her help and advise. Mike brought Rita here about a month after we first saw her- looking much better but still needing much TLC and individual feeding, she was still far too thin and a little unsteady on her poor legs, a result our Farrier tells us of past neglect to her hooves. But she will improve with time.
We were wary of introducing Rita to our donkeys, she seemed so frail, our three so boisterous, but all was well. A little friction at first which was to be expected, Rosie, Hannah and Polly stood in a little group trying to look superior. You must be kind to her"  I told them "she's had a hard time".   "But, we don't like her", and they showed her they didn't with their teeth and hooves. But surprisingly Rita was more than capable of looking after herself and so a truce was called.
I was somewhat surprised that Rita's passport was issued in Belgium.  Was she born there we wonder? I doubt we will ever know her full story, but at one time she must have been well fed because according to our Farrier she has, in the past had Laminitis. I am therefore thinking that if next year we have a fraction of the grass we have this year, her grazing will need to be restricted. Therefore, we'll consider investing in an electric fence.

Mike told me that he could not guarantee that Rita was not in foal, as a lot of the rescued donkeys are; "Would it be a problem? he asked me   "No, I'd be delighted" I said "but don't tell Stanley! "

 Barefoot Trimming for Donkeys and Mules - Rockhopping Equines an explanation of this holistic approach to hoofcare by
Anni Stonebridge    Barefootworks UKNHCP  Certified Barefoot Trimmer

Keeping and working horses and donkeys barefoot has been going on since humans decided that they looked useful. From hard working pack mules to the pony that folks couldn't afford to put shoes on, there have been equines throughout history that have managed without shoes. Over time though, we have lost the knowledge we once had about what our domestic equines really need to keep healthy and sound barefoot, probably because we have far fewer working horses than at any previous time and we are bombarded by far more marketing and companies claiming miracle results for the products they sell.

Over the last twenty years or so, many horse people have been questioning accepted 'knowledge' about horse keeping, including farriers, vets, horse owners, riders and competitors. All this thought means we now have a better level of knowledge than ever regarding the function of the hoof, the effect of shoeing on the equine foot and limb, barefoot performance, and the needs of different animals in different environments. We are also gaining a better understanding through research of what horses (pictured right) and donkeys need to live long and healthy working lives. 
With equine feet, form often follows function. When we consider where donkeys evolved and the kinds of rocky desert environments they favour in the wild, the anatomy and `design' of the feet has adapted to very hard, rocky terrain in several ways. Donkey feet are more of a compact oval shape for better placement in difficult terrain. The heel bar angle in donkeys is also more of a sickle shape than the triangle seen in horses. There is a difference in the consistency and thickness of the hoof wall and sole between horses and donkeys, with donkey walls and soles being denser and thicker. The hoof is more upright and cylindrical, and soles are also more concave. These adaptations are enhanced by the positioning of the digital cushion and frog to the rear of the heels to allow for more traction, flexion, damping and gripping ability. Keeping horses, donkeys and mules barefoot challenges us to develop a more intelligent and evidence based response to hoof care than shoeing currently provides.

The approach we take in Barefootworks trimming partnership is complex and holistic. Our work at one level is educational, most of our clients turn to barefoot because they are looking for explanations and solutions. We hold seminars and clinics with experts in the fields of anatomy, hoof function, equine nutrition and behaviour to help people make well informed decisions about the lifestyle they are giving their equine partners.

On another level we often need to plan a trimming, nutrition and exercise approach for individual animals, and we work with vets, chiropractors, physiotherapists and other professionals to do so.
There is a lot still to learn, but shared experience is helping barefoot trimmers and owners successfully support horses, donkeys and mules to perform across the disciplines and is giving us more information as to how we can best help them enjoy a long and healthy life.

Jenny Gadie contemplates     'HER LONER'

When I joined the DBS some 22 years ago, it was impressed upon me by just about every other donkey owner I met that DONKEYS SHOULD HAVE A COMPANION.  It is a mantra that I have chanted ever since:  indeed it is something I have totally believed in, agreed with, practised  and preached to any new member who asked my advice.

In 2000, we retired to Scotland and it was decided that owning donkeys was no longer a viable proposition.   My beloved Gus went off to live in Derbyshire and, instead of being one of two, became part of the 'Brownroad Tribe'.   It took him quite a while to settle in to this large and busy group, but he was always more than happy to be involved in any activity, so we both adapted to our 'new' lives.

In August 2007, I was asked to try and re-home a 3 year old gelding that lived not far away from me.   This I eventually did, but the new owner did not have land available., but as she lived quite close to me, I had a chat with our laird who kindly agreed to help out.   Obviously, a companion was needed and after much debate and logistical planning between Olwen Brown and myself, it was decided that Gus should come.
The two donkeys finally took up residence in their newly erected stable , standing snugly in what had once been a large sileage store when Borrowston had been a working farm.  Gus took over the job of nursemaid and seemed  pretty laid back about things, apart from a firm stance about NOT sharing his feed bucket OR his particular corner of the stable.   Amongst many valuable lessons the youngster gradually learned from both his human and donkey companions was to be left alone to walk up to the pasture, the only aspect defeating us being stable hygiene!
At the end of May,  the youngster's owner was offered lodgings with ponies nearer to her home and they moved on.   I have to say, I was in a complete tizzy !   I was so enjoying having a donkey back into my life and he seemed pleased to have most of my attention.   It was going to be heartbreaking to send him back down the road again and after so short a time, too; however, owning and caring for two donkeys was not an option and so, I would have to bite the bullet.     As soon as I learned of the imminent departure, I picked up the phone.
'Don't panic' said Olwen' just leave it a while and see how he behaves. 
Then,  another call, this time to Rosemary Clarke, who also advised me to hang on in there for a month and then review the situation.    

On departure day, Gus and I were helping at a charity event, so there were no farewells, and when  we arrived back, I left him in the yard with his tea.   Later that evening, I went down with a hay-net  and as it was still very cold at night, I put on his rug.
He did not seem at all bothered about the lack of his young companion, but I simply put it down to his being tired after a long day.   The next  morning  I rushed down, fully expecting him to be standing miserably in his corner -  head down , a tear trickling from his eye ! 
Not a bit of it.   'Morning' where's the bucket then ?   Oh ' and don't forget to take the hay-net and refill it when you go back'  and ' will you please have a glance around and give me a huge pat for  being so impeccably tidy '   I've just left you a bit in each corner to clear up! how good is that ?'   I was totally gob-smacked!   He tucked into his feed and later, he set off up his field at a spanking pace, quite different from the usual plodding gait.   I wondered what would happen when he discovered that he was on his own? but nothing did;   he wandered in, put his head down and began to graze.
He has now lived in solitary splendour for six months.   Since May, he has put on some weight ! (I've lost some!} and he is glossy of coat, bright of eye, and for a middle aged chap, quite cheeky from time to time.  
His field is half a mile away from the house, so we both get a daily walk .   He regularly visits the recycling  point in the village, carrying the load on his pack saddle and  he just loves to visit people.   In fact, he genuinely seems to enjoy human company more than animal company.   He chats! to the cows on occasions and enjoys the daily face wash given to him by our little Jack Russell.   His field does not have much in the way of distraction, but I am able to put him into stretches of 'green' lane near by and we have another such lane running past our house.   He really enjoys browsing the hedgerows there and he is now learning to cope with a tether as we have lots of grazing  space within sight of the house where he spends the odd hour, so I am able to vary his grazing, thus making life less boring.  

With Winter looming, he will  be spending more time in his stable and yard, so I must think of ways to keep boredom at bay.   I am hoping to set up small indoor arena at one end of the huge barn where I store my food and hay.   It will mean I can lunge or long rein him whatever the weather and of course, the view will be different for him.   As there is electricity connected, we can install  a radio, which will be a bonus, as he appears to enjoy Classic FM !    I often wonder whether I am doing the right thing, but after  all this time, I know him very well and would soon recognise signs that something was amiss.   I suppose that there are exceptions to rules in all groups of animals as well as humans.   He was kept entire up until his fourth birthday, so naturally had more contact with humans, although he was within sight of other animals and he has lived by himself for a short while when he was with me some years ago with now outward signs of anxiety.   Even with other donkeys/horses around him, he never seems to have 'best' friends and more often than not one would find him on the fringes of a group.   Maybe at the ripe old age of l8, having done it, seen it and collected the Tshirts, he is happy to potter along gently, doing his own thing.   Was it Eeyore who said   'Sometimes I stand and think and sometimes, I just stand'.

All that said, I don't think this way of life is ideal for what, after all, is a herd animal but in future, when asked for advice I shall continue bang on about companionship and then add 'but now and again, there is the odd exception'


Previews from The Donkey 2008

DONKEYS IN THE NEW FOREST by Helen Safe

I am sure most people are aware of the ponies that graze the New Forest but the forest is also home to quite a number of donkeys and even the occasional mule.

When I joined the DBS in the summer I thought it was a good omen when the photo on the cover of Bray Talk was of forest gypsies and their donkey. For years my partner has grazed cattle and ponies on the forest but at the end of last year he decided the time was right to branch out into donkey ownership!

Some friends of mine who I show New Forest ponies for had always had donkeys out on the forest but decided they were getting too old to cope with them and so found them all new homes. We were lucky to get Lulu and her foal Katie who were later joined by a jack, Joseph who had come over from Ireland. In early spring the 3 were hot branded for identification and turned out in Burley village. There were already two jennies running in the village and our donkeys happily teamed up with them. Lulu and Katie had been running the north of the forest and were usually to be found outside the Alice Lisle pub.

In Burley they were happy to switch allegiance to the Queens Head & the White Buck! Lulu was found in the bar of the Queens Head one day when someone left a gate open. (In the forest it is your responsibility to keep stock out of your property). Unfortunately Joseph showed an unhealthy interest in pony mares and hat to be taken home and gelded. It will be interesting to see if there are any mules born next year! The four remaining donkeys love pestering the tourists and doing their bit to control the traffic by lying down in the middle of the road.

Wednesday is their favourite day as it is bin bag day and I?m sure the locals curse when they see their rubbish spread up the road after a thorough going over by the donkeys. We occupy a property which carries forest rights meaning we can turn stock out on the forest. A marking fee must be paid for each animal which goes towards the cost of employing 5 Agisters to check the stock on the forest. A fee of £18 is payable for each donkey rising to £20 if you are late paying! Pigs are only £2 each. In 1956 there were 12 donkeys de-pastured on the forest, none in 1966, a high of 195 in 1994 and 110 in 2006.

The forest donkeys tend to be found around the tourist -hotspots- of Burley, Lyndhurst & Beaulieu and also outside most of the forest pubs ? forest donkeys are definitely people donkeys! However, when their owners want to get them in for anything ? usually feet trimming ? they have a sixth sense and vanish!

I have spent the past few weeks trying to find Lulu and Katie to get photos for this article but they know and have made themselves scarce! My thanks go therefore to Annie Dale who provided me with lovely photos of forest donkeys instead. So, if any of you are visiting Burley look for the two donkeys with the B6 brand on them and give them a pat!

Further info & pictures can be found at www.verderers.org & www.anniesphotos.co.uk

Do Donkeys Go to Church? Jo Parrett knows the answer to that one!!

That was the question left on my answer phone one evening by a local family friend - so as you can imagine I rang back if only out of curiosity to see what he wanted. 'the answer'  Could I provide a donkey for the impending Harvest Festival service at his local church ? St Mary's, Porchester.

I felt it was important to be part of this service as my husband is a farm contractor and with farming going through difficult times, we should all be able to show our gratitude to the farming community for what they provide us with. Now I was fully aware that donkeys around the country are involved with Palm Sunday but Harvest Festival was a new one on me. So it was decided that I should meet the vicar, Charlotteand discuss exactly what was required. It was agreed that a donkey would be the 'special guest' for this service and would come into church at a certain point and be led to the alter.

I have been told that donkeys will either walk in to church without hesitation, or they will 'decline' instantly - it was going to be interesting either way !! I mentioned that neither the donkey or I have done this before so we needed to have a practice, this was duly arranged. I decided that Monty my 3 year old gelding was the perfect candidate as he hadn't been out much this year. So he was loaded up and off we went to St Mary's Church, based within the grounds of Porchester Castle; originally a Roman Fort built around the 3rd Century. Access was not easy due to narrow lanes and lack of turning space, but we duly arrived. Monty walked through the arch ways but steadfastly refused to go over any grids in the road, so we took a detour around the graveyard. Now - would he go into the church !!. in short no he wouldn't even with the encouragement of some food; time for reinforcements and another donkey.

The following day I loaded Rikita, my 2 year old French filly, who has an incredible calm temperament and one not usually fazed by anything. We arrived and had the same problem - she did not want to go in church, but it was agreed that if need be we could just stand outside and the congregation be able to turn round and see her. The day of the service had arrived, Rikita had been washed the day before and was all ready - you've guessed - she decided that she was going to do 'a donkey' and not want to go, normally she loads without hesitation, but not today.

As you can imagine this last minute hitch did not leave much time for variation so with only 30 minutes to go that I would have to take someone else. Rather than select a donkey I walked out to the field and waited to see who was interested and thankfully Mr Magic Man, my yearling gelding came into view. He was quickly loaded and off to church we went, in a bit of a rush as I didn?t know what the parking would be like or even whether I would have time to give him a brush.

I need not have worried as we arrived and parked with plenty of time to spare for a brush and quietly we walked to church. As we arrived at the church, the friend, Roger Bazely who had elicited the original phone call was waiting for us outside, he mentioned that our cue was about 5 minutes time, Magic decided he wasn't waiting and started to walk into the porch!! Oh no, too early, so I turned him round and waited.

Then the vicar announced to the congregation that we have a 'special guest' who wants to make an entrance, with that the church doors were opened and Magic walked into Church, greeted by around 150 people.

There were people with cameras and plenty of children waiting with a pat, he just stood by the font loving every moment. The children were asked why donkeys have a cross and the vicar gave an explanation, at which point Magic decided to let the church know he could have told them that with a very loud eyeore, much to the amusement of everyone present. It was now time for the rest of the service, so I led Magic outside where he did a smashing job 'mowing the graveyard', until it was time for the congregation to join us.

The vicar was delighted with how it had all gone and has already invited Magic and I to be involved with Palm Sunday - I know that is not for some time but, I guess we could practice walking to church.

Previews from The Donkey 2007

Welcome to the 2007 edition of 'The Donkey'.

Thank you to all those members who have sent me articles and photographs detailing their experiences through the last twelve months. It is amazing how donkeys encourage us to do things that we might not otherwise be drawn to, and in so doing allow us to give pleasure to others less fortunate. To own a donkey is a privilege, to find the pleasure and joy of doing things in the company of donkeys is an even greater privilege, and to be able to read about them yet another.

Between pages 53 and 55 you can read about one member's journey to see first hand the work being done for the welfare of donkeys and mules in Egypt, and following that two projects that have received support funding from the Donkey Breed Society, to bring education and much needed relief to donkeys abroad May I take this opportunity to wish you all a Happy New Donkey Year, one in which our Society will be 40 years old and therefore worthy of celebration ? I look forward to preparing the 2008 issue!

Rosemary Clarke

The Year that Lightening Nearly Struck Twice at Lamb Hill.

Carol and I were getting very excited, we were about to fulfil a long held ambition to have two foals born quite closely together so we could have the pleasure of watching them both playing in the paddock.

We had planned everything meticulously; Bonnie and her daughter Belle went off to Guildford to meet their prospective husbands at the Perehill Donkey Stud these were by coincidence father and son, Perehill Brigadier and Perehill Chocolate Soldier. We left the choice of the final mating in the capable hands of Ann Hunt who had far more experience in these matters than either of us. She came up with Bonnie going to the son and Belle going to the father which caused some raised eyebrows amongst our non donkey friends.

As the time grew nearer and both girls grew to enormous proportions we kept a close watch on them, then twelve months to the day of her mating Bonnie was showing all the signs of impending motherhood. We kept her in and waited, at 9.30pm she had a text book foaling and produced a beautiful dark brown colt foal Jacob. After about twenty minutes we realised all was not well the foal was slow to try and stand and when it did it fell over. We looked on as Bonnie struggled to get the foal on its feet to no avail we then realised it was time to take a hand we lifted the foal up and try to get him to suckle - without success - even Bonnie was making sucking sounds to try and encourage him. We had rung Robert the farmer who keeps sheep on our land and he had come round with all of the stuff he used for orphan foals, we milked Bonnie out and tried feeding Jacob from the bottle still with no success. After three hours of struggling he suddenly died in Carol's arms, and devastating as it was for us it was worse for Bonne who was inconsolable, she threw herself around pacing up and down and calling out, it was one of the worst experiences of my life. After a few days things began to get back to normal, Bonnie was back in the field with the gang so we decided that we would make the best of it and decided we would enter her along with Fergus for all of the shows, the entries were filled out and sent off, but at the back of our minds was the worry what if we were to go through it all again with Belle. All of our friends said not to be silly she would be fine, who ever heard of lightening striking twice in the same place.

I was away for a training seminar when at 7.30am I received a phone call from a frantic Carol saying that Belle had foaled and she was attacking it. Seminar forgotten I drove back home as fast as the speed limits would allow.

When I arrived home I found a somewhat calmer Carol saying that the foal a filly was fine and safely away from Belle, she and the redoubtable Robert had tried tying Belle up to let the foal suckle but all hell had broken out and Robert had received a kicking for his troubles. I went down to the barn to look at out new arrival, she was just gorgeous dark brown like Jacob but unlike him she was up and pinging all over the place. Belle was tied up and looked calm so after a while I thought I would just take the foal towards her; I should have known better but even I did not anticipate what would happen and so quickly! Belle whipped round and lashed out - I turned to protect the foal, got the full blast in my back and was kicked across the stable, which is where Carol found me laid in the straw with the foal moaning and feeling sorry for myself.

Gina the vet was sent for next and she arrived checked Belle and the foal over and said they were both fit and well. She then said she would sedate Belle and see if she would let the foal suckle which would hopefully in turn make the maternal instinct kick in. Not a chance even though she was given a horse size shot she still went wild when the foal came near her; the senior vet was sent for next, the one who is used to doing this with race horses Gina assured us.

When he arrived Belle was still sedated and looked really drowsy so the vet told Carol to stand with the foal behind some sheep hurdles and then instructed me to walk Belle slowly towards the foal to let her see it was nothing to be afraid of. I insisted that I put two ropes on her and that he held one as well, the look I received was one of disbelief, I could see him thinking it is only a donkey, man what are you afraid of. I insisted and we both slowly walked Belle across the stable towards the foal, suddenly she took off dragging the vet and I behind her like we were paper dolls luckily the hurdles stopped her.

The vet now with a completely different opinion on the strength of a donkey told us we were in for a long haul and we would have to hand rear the foal. Luckily Belle did not mind being milked so that we got all of the colostrums that the foal required into her and this gave us time to locate foster milk.

We contacted Battles who make the Aintree Milk replacement and they gave us the name a local contact where we could get an emergency supply and they promised that we would have a delivery the next day.

The next call was to the Veterinary Department at the Donkey Sanctuary who e-mailed me a feeding plan for the foal, we had all the materials, we now just hoped we would have the energy to keep up the two hourly feeds for the next three weeks and the three hourly ones for the two weeks after that. There is no doubt about it, it was tough going, we would go down to the barn, milk out Belle who happily kept supplying us with milk for the first three weeks, mix the extra feed to make up the required amounts, feed the foal, sterilise the bottles exercise the foal for ten minutes then go back the house only to find that you would be starting the whole process again in 45 minutes time.

At five days we realised that the foal was lonely and we were aware of the dangers of her becoming humanised, Grandma Bonnie came to the rescue, we introduced them and she immediately took the foal under her wing and took over all of the motherly duties her daughter had failed to do, sadly though she could not help with the feeding as her milk had dried up two weeks before. We were then loaned a lamb feeder by Alec and Sue Horn which was most useful when the foal got on to larger feeds; she flatly refused to drink her milk out of a bucket, water, yes, but not milk.

What advice can we offer other 'Expectant Owners' Just this, plan for the worst eventuality, have a bottle and lamb teat feeder and sterilising tablets ready. Find out from Battles where the nearest emergency supply of milk replacement can be obtained and then pray you don't need it. Was it worth it? Of course it was we have a bouncing filly of five months who now lives with the big gang but still shares a stable with granny; we never did get to any of the shows we entered with Bonnie but she is a Champion donkey in our eyes. Oh yes the foal does have a name, Carol said there but for the 'Grace of God' if I had gone into the stable two minutes later she would have been dead, so it had to be Grace ! Bill Tetlow

Three For The Price of Two !!

When we wrote our article  -From A French Circus to the Leafy Lanes of Cornwall -  documenting the arrival of our two beautiful donkeys Poppy and Penny for the Donkey 2006 we didn't for one moment imagine there would be a sequel.

However somewhere between the hours of midnight and 8.00am one memorable day the most gorgeous little filly made her entry into the world.

We assumed, rather naively on reflection, that because we had asked for two donkeys, not in foal, that is what we would get! In fact we spent ten months assuming just that. From the moment Penny arrived she has eaten voraciously, just as if each blade of grass was the last on earth. So try as we might to control Penny's eating habits, she has always been our rotund little donkey. She ate her way through, the field, the hedgerows and even her straw bedding!! As well as the insatiable appetite, she had always seemed very unsure ? wanting attention but not quite allowing herself to accept it. Hells could fly, teeth could nip and she was a positive embarrassment when the farrier came.

At the beginning of February 2006 comments from two different people set alarm bells ringing in our heads; John the butcher, whose daughter keeps a horse in an adjacent field asked if Penny was pregnant? ?Oh no? we replied ?She?s just fat?

Our donkey expert Jo stopped in the lane, whilst we were on one of our munching expeditions and said ?I think you have more than you bargained for there!?

By Saturday 11th February Penny's shape had changed, she had assumed a bell like appearance, her teats were very visible and an udder was beginning to develop. Rushing home to consult our handbook and to check dates we realized that it was indeed possible that we might have a pregnant Penny. Our two sets of very supportive friends confirmed the diagnosis. As you can imagine we were then in a state of constant agitation and considered Penny as fragile as a piece of glass ? she is of course anything but!! Life went on quite normally for another fortnight; and it was during our daily walk on the 25th February that we decided that Penny's back end had changed considerably in appearance and that her teats were perhaps more distended and her udder fuller. Because the night was due to be very cold, and possibly even wet we shut the donkeys in ? something we seldom do. We went back to check on them at 9.00pm; and found them standing quietly in the stable, so quietly closed the door again; a further check just before mid-night and all was well. At 8.00am the following morning Barbara set off to let the donkeys out ?Be sure to fetch me if there is anything there? was my passing comment as she drove off ? Well you can guess the next bit!

Yes we had a foal. So excited was Barbara to rush home and pick me up that she forgot to close the stable door and on our return ten minutes, Penny as usual desperate for food had taken her foal outside; fortunately it was dry, but bitingly cold. Gasping in horror we quietly managed to get mum and foal back indoors - fortunately no harm done.

We phoned Jo our donkey expert, who came up and checked both mother and baby, proclaiming that all was well, and that the foal, tiny, dark brown, very curly and still slightly damp, was only a few hours old. We have called her Tuppence as her mum is Penny. Within a week Tuppence was skipping and darting about all over the place, and to protect her from the rain wind and snow, Colin (who owns the land we rent) fashioned a ?coat? for her from a sugar beet bag with a baler twine fastening ? just what all the best dressed foals are wearing this year.

Now some six months on, Tuppence is a sturdy and healthy little donkey, full of mischief and high spirits; she has had flu injections and caused pandemonium on her first encounter with the farrier. She looks out from beautiful velvet eyes beneath long fluttering eyelashes, all topped off with a fringe so incredibly long that it is astonishing that she can see where she is going at all! Tuppence pushes herself to the front of the queue for tit-bits and has already managed to tip over the wheelbarrow; is first to the gate when it is time for a walk and has demonstrated her ability to have all four feet off the ground at once. She stands absolutely still to be groomed, pushes a football around the field and has learned how good a ginger biscuit tastes.

And what of mum, Penny? She is a super and protective mum, and is herself a reformed character ? stands perfectly still to be groomed, and just loves having her eyes and nose wiped! Penny now stands as quiet as anything whilst the farrier gives her a pedicure and will quite confidently take herself for a walk when Tuppence needs a firmer hand. To those of you reading this who are expert donkey owners and used to the foaling process ands who must be wondering what all the fuss is about and why on earth we should be writing about it ? the answer is simple.

When we bought Poppy and Penny we felt it enough of an undertaking to have two donkeys, never mind the prospect of a foal. But, now, having learnt quite a bit, we feel we can cope and enjoy this new experience. It has nothing to do with money or time, only to do with our own inadequacies of caring for and doing the right things for these lovely animals.

We've managed to do a great many things in the last two years as well as having full time jobs, all of which we have enjoyed. But the acquisition of the donkeys, one ultimately having a foal has got to be one of, if not the most marvelous experience we have ever had; it is a privilege to look after them. We were told that donkeys would change our lives ? they certainly have; we look forward to many years of pleasure to come, and just had to write this to share our joy with others.

Sue Scobie and Barbara Beckley

HEAD FIRST INTO DONKEYS with Sue Farr

Just about three years ago I heard a programme on the radio in which someone was extolling the virtues of Miniature Donkeys - I was transfixed. They were describing exactly the hitherto mythical animal we were searching for to join our animal family.

My thirty five year enthusiasm for showing and breeding Irish Setters had begun to wane; my appetite for lambing Ryeland ewes, determined to produce their lambs on the very coldest nights of the year had gone too; yet the grass needed to be grazed and I yearned for some occasional showing with a companion animal.

A search for Miniature Donkeys on the Internet told me that there was a Breed, Association in this country and their Home Page began to paint the picture. The enchanting description of gentle affectionate companion animals urged me on to find out more. Numbers in the UK seemed quite low and my experiences with .small canine gene pools warned me that perhaps I should try to benefit the breed by looking further a-field to bring in some unrelated bloodlines. The search extended to America where some impressive lines had been built up from the numbers of Miniatures ?rescued? from Sardinia and Sicily in the 1950s.

The websites of the many stud farms were packed with information and I located a lovely-looking yearling sorrel jennet at The Red Gate Stud in Ohio. Theresa and Scott Ellinger were kindness itself in answering all my questions about Rosetta, sending an impressive video of her being trained in-hand for the show ring. (We were very in awe of the fact that she had a Canadian father until someone suggested that we look at a map of the USA ! ) A visit to my nearest UK breeder, Kim Stanton was equally helpful. I was shown REAL Miniature Donkeys in her fields including her superb little jack Itsy Bitsy Tom Cat, before watching the video together her and Julie Boyce. Rosetta was deemed a `good buy'.

Then something of a bombshell struck - it was impossible to import one jennet on her own without severe risk to the health of a frightened little donkey. I swallowed hard, metaphorically counting rather a lot of pennies and agreed to ask Theresa and Scott to look for a companion jennet. A long fortnight dragged by and then the e-mail came offering me Althea, Rosetta's half sister and great pal, and already a USA Yearling Reserve Champion. The pictures were stunning and I had no hesitation in adding her to the shopping cart !

While we devoured Bonnie Gross's book on Miniature Donkeys, prepared the stables for small equine occupants, joined the MMDA and the DBS, located a suitable farrier and ordered best quality hay and barley straw, Althea and Rosetta had left home for the long trek down the USA to 30 day quarantine in Texas, near to their eventual airport of embarkation in Houston, for the flight to Amsterdam.

Temperatures as they left Ohio in January were a long way below freezing and we were sent a charming picture of them leaving, snug in their red rugs. Thirty days seemed endless, but eventually the firm arranging all the transportation told us that the donkeys had passed their final US veterinary inspection, the Coggins tests for Infective Anaemia were clear and they had left in a KLM plane for Amsterdam. This is a good point of entry into the EU with a speedy veterinary inspection and usually the minimum of hold-ups, though by ill-luck in our case, damage by a tanker to the ferry terminal at Calais meant a nail-biting delay in stables at Amsterdam while the backlog of traffic was allowed through. The World Animal Transport representative in Holland looked after them splendidly for five days, taking them into an Indoor Riding School for exercise each day, seeing that their water wasn't too cold and keeping us in touch, but it was an agonising time for us and for the Ellingers.

At last they were on their way by road to Calais and we set out for John Parker's Stables at Dover. I shall always remember the stable-girl opening the door of a huge loose box and two perfectly composed and curious little donkeys emerging, seemingly without a qualm. It was absolute love at first sight ! Amazingly, after all their long hauls by horse box and delays in stables, they loaded with ease and we were homeward bound. Visitors galore came to see these gutsy little Americans, once they had settled in their new home. We sent pictures back to Theresa and Scott, in snowy Ohio and they cheered when they saw them out in green English grass. Among their visitors was Sheila Bell our DBS representative and from only a few miles away. It seemed sense to join The Donkey Breed Society as well, as by this time we had realised that the Miniatures share all the characteristics of their donkey cousins, and we had become part of a flourishing UK world of donkeys. We were determined to keep the donkeys in-hand training going from the first and they seemed to think we were acceptable as handlers, even if our accents were a little odd !.

I had spent most of my youth on or around horses and it all seemed very familiar. We had endless problems locating leather head-collars suitable for their small heads and broad foreheads, as the show season approached. In our very first class at The Royal Bath and West Show, Althea was placed third in the Two and Three year old colt, filly and gelding class, winning the Donkey Breed Society Special Rosette for Best Two Year old Filly and Rosetta won Best Novice. We were ecstatic! We didn't notice that it was pouring with rain, nor did I register the ignomony Althea heaped on my head by selecting the Showman's Bar as a suitable field shelter, taking me firmly up the steps, to the beery cheers of the occupants. She on the other hand was already learning that she could actually take me wherever she chose and from then on, that was to be precisely wherever Rosie happened to be. Talk about 'Me and my Shadow'.!

Such determination spelt problems for showing them in different classes and we were to learn all about donkeys' propensity for `overbonding' and how single-minded they can be NEVER to be separated, (And how deafeningly vocal when they are !) The solution offered by donkey-owning friends was of course more donkeys !

Back to the Internet I went and this time to another well-known breeder Rhetta McAlister, owner of Country Music Miniature Donkeys in the Texas Hill Country. By this time I knew a little better what I was looking at and I finished up with three lovely dark brown jennets, two by the well-known and handsome herdsire Country Music's George Jones and one by his look-alike son Garth Brooks. We were given lots of help and advice by Rhetta and we have two lovely videos of these little foals with their dams, and later doing their early lead-line training around a small obstacle course; all tremendously impressive. Rhetta and Jim (pictured left) visited them in their carefully chosen quarantine with Diane Nielsen in Texas, and reported back that the weanlings were being excellently cared for and in very good shape.

I was concerned that these foals would only be six months old when they embarked on their long trans- Atlantic trip, but with hindsight I think it is probably better for them to travel when almost everything in their world is a new experience. They were tired and cold when they arrived with us on a chilly December night, but after sleeping in warm straw with an infa-red lamp and with delicious English hay to tuck into, they were more than ready to meet us next morning, suffering no apparent ill-effects from their trip, passing their DEFRA import check with an admiring vet, and growing on strongly from the first.

We have kept the DEFRA paperwork as a reminder of bureaucratic inefficiency; the donkeys are described as Miniature Horses throughout ! No wonder our Immigration checks are like water through a colander.

The EU can have its moments too; I was charged double the correct Import Tax until the mistake was uncovered, but not before my current account had been emptied. No payment, no donkeys, so no argument with EU officials at Amsterdam, though the haulier was abject in his aologies when reclaiming the dues.

Fortunately the larder was already full for Christmas ! Their very early imprinting certainly paid off as they are so affectionate and easy to handle, revelling in all the attention. Rosie and Holly (Althea's pet name) welcomed them over the fence and we were soon able to let them share the same paddock. Although the Country Music donkeys are very similar to look at, they are quite different in temperament; Annie Oakley is highly intelligent and is a rather managing `Head Girl', Stella Blue is gentle and sweet, if a bit of a goodie goodie, while Meagan Michaelis is nicknamed Princess Pushy. She is demonstratively loving, very naughty and tends to leave destruction in her wake. She has nurtured a unique talent for flattening plastic buckets.

Since their arrival I have spent a fascinating time in Texas at a superbly organised, three day Miniature Donkey Expo. Where information, both practical and theoretical was disseminated to owners and breeders from all over the world. Then, at the Country Music's Ranch, I met my donkeys' parents and all the other lovely brood jennets and their foals. It has been a very steep learning curve, but with the kindness of many donkey-owning friends and generous help of breeders and other exhibitors, it has proved a marvellous new experience. It is time-consuming occupation sharing love between five donkeys and five dogs but I relish every minute.

GODS BEAUTIFUL CREATURES By Jane Bramwell and Gill Owen

Watergates Wesley and Watergates Pollyanna, Champion and Reserve Champion Foals 2006

Our donkey ?adventure? began back in April 2005 with the purchase of two lovely mares "Gamlingay Treasure" and "Gamlingay Smalltalk from Janet Lee, along with a coloured gelding called Drummer who just somehow found his way into our trailer!!!! The mares were both in foal and the rest of the year was spent getting to know our donkeys and watching the mares becoming evermore rotund!

Having bred ducks for years I am fully conversant with what comes out of eggs, but placentas and afterbirths were a totally new subject. Helen Naden kindly lent me her foaling "bible" and I read, swallowed and digested the information therein until I felt more confident about my impending role of becoming a grandma!

Next, up came the yard and down went the cable and holes were drilled through the house walls as Gill installed cctv in the stables. The ?donkey channel? thereafter became a firm family favourite, ready to monitor the happy event.

The freezing conditions outside prompted the hanging of infra red heaters under which the mares moulted as if summer had come! On the evening of Februray 8th, Smalltalk went into labour and being the drama queen that she is, allowed ourselves, my mother and three close friends from our local Wesleyan chapel to witness the whole event. We watched in wonderment as everything set out in Helen?s book came to pass with the greatest of ease, and tears of joy were shed as our little wet bundle popped into the world. The world outside shivered at minus 5 degrees as I entered the stable to try to spray the naval. I sought amongst the curly wet hair and voila!! The navel was sprayed bright blue!! But woops! On further inspection I had to sheepishly announce that we had a little boy with an unsprayed navel but a blue "little boyhood"

We named him Wesley. One could not fail to notice as Wesley dried out that he was not grey like his mum, or his dad Peppercorn the Patriarch or indeed his granddad Westra Patrick!! His colour was proclaimed load and clear by Helen during her ?new baby? visit next day. "He's PINK"; Apparently his other granddad Twyford Dempster is strawberry roan!! So our ?pink baby? became a permanent member of the family at Watergates. Over the next few weeks most of our village folk visited little Wesley and one Sunday our local Wesleyan minister called with his family and he laid his hands on Wesley and blessed him as "one of Gods beautiful creatures".

He was thereafter 'adopted' by the members of the church after which he was named, and regular pictures and reports of his progress appeared on the notice board. We have found it wonderful to share our donkeys with the wider community, they seem to make everyone smile!

Wesley was joined on March 30th by little Pollyanna born to Treasure in the middle of the night!! Polly is a carbon copy of her lovely mum and demands love and attention in huge quantities. Our little family was complete.

The summer was spent watching the foals play and attending shows. Thanks to all fellow northern competitors for being so helpful in this, our first year. Showing foals certainly had it's moments as our fluffy friends alternated between leaping for joy with Gill hanging on for dear life, and pretending to lose the will to live as we all baked under clear blue skies. Gazebos were erected over them to keep them cool and much tea was consumed by all !!!Our mares between them won eight classes and we were thrilled.

We decided to take both mares and foals to the Championship Show at Rodbaston, so with mares and Wesley bathed, (Polly might just have dried in time for Rodbaston 2007 so escaped the sponge and soapy water) we prepared to leave for the show. Our nest of swallows in Wesley's stable duly wished him luck by depositing three large white splats on a very clean and polished donkey?s back!!

The journey to the show went well until Gill, pulling the caravan had an untimely senior moment and turned north onto the M6 instead of south!! She then spent the next 2 hours stuck in the cooking fat and bubble wrap incident that had effectively closed the road system!! I arrived in pouring rain at the show with the donks and thanks must go at this time to Jo Parrett, who braved the storms to assist me to my stables - thanks Jo!! The show is all a bit of a blur to me but I have to admit that when Wesley was called in to become British foal champion the emotion was all too much I was just so proud of him and just to topit all to my amazement through my tear filled eyes I looked across to see little Polly called in as reserve champion.

Thanks Helen and Carol for all your help I had not planned for having both foals in the championship. These were unforgettable times!!

News of Wesley and Polly's success was conveyed home and we were told the results were announced in chapel next morning to rapturous applause!!

My final words concern Pollyanna!! She had a burning ambition whilst at the show. It wasn't so much to become British foal champion but to get down and roll in the main ring!! She managed it briefly during the brood mare class but she was quickly restored to the standing position by Helen Naden and Carol Limmer with the deftness of true pro's!! before the judge noticed (I think!!) however she achieved her dream during the matching pairs class. Down she went, upside down, legs in the air, but instead of getting up she sat there, pretty as a picture in the middle of the ring doing her ablutions whilst Olwen Brown?s and Sheila Bell?s teams performed around us. So love them as we do and sometimes despair surely we all have to admit they really are "Gods most beautiful creatures".

More articles will follow in due course

Previously published articles from The Donkey 2006

"NOT BAD! NOT BAD!"

For eighteen years we have tried to plough with donkeys, and this year, for the first time, we consider that we have finally succeeded in completing a plot similar to what the heavy horses do. Twice!

On August Bank Holiday Monday we went off to the Chertsey Agricultural Association Ploughing Match, by invitation. It must have been the hottest day of the year and the public were out in full force.

However, although the tractor ploughing entries were full to capacity, there were only four horse pulled entries and the atmosphere was so friendly and helpful. In fact we had personal tuition from last year's champion ploughman. These ploughmen are always so happy to tell you where you are going wrong!

Having decided that we would only plough fifty metres of the allotted 80 metre length we started well with an amazingly straight opening furrow. Derby George and Busy Bee really got into their stride and at last Busy has decided that she is a proper furrow donkey and stays there all the time. At lunch time we decided that we were proper ploughmen when we were provided with delicious ploughman's lunches. After lunch we were so confident that we decided to attempt the 'split' and even 'the finish'. These are technical ploughing terms!

Tiggy watched what all the others were doing and came back to pace out the necessary distances and off we went again. By the end of the afternoon we had completed our plot and were even rewarded with beer money. What a satisfying day.

Seven weeks later we were invited to the Southern Counties Heavy Horse Association ploughing match at Losely Park near Guildford. This is a very different event where horses outnumber tractors.

There were at least 25 teams of horses ploughing and it's very much a competition and so we do not plough in the same place as the horses. "Just find yourselves place in the car park", they said.

So we did. Fortunately the ground was reasonable and we made a good start with our opening furrow.

The public, who seemed to consist of an amazingly large proportion of ancient, ex ploughmen and people who had owned a donkey when they were young, were either amused, bewildered or just ignorant of our endeavours, some even walked right across our furrows. But we ploughed on and soon we were producing a very obvious patch of turned over ground.

Without any pressure of competition we went for a personal best performance and once again completed a finished plot. As we progressed we attracted a lot of attention from the expert audience and the high spot of the day was when one of the old time ploughmen, having watched our labours, wandered off muttering,

"Not bad. Not bad!" For us, that's praise indeed.

Barbara Rogers

BEAUTIFUL HORSES (and donkeys), BEAUTIFUL VEHICLES AND BEAUTIFUL PEOPLE

And here they come. Carts and drays, trollies, vans ...all manner of private vehicles too. And the horses. Heavy and light, tall and short. Massive Shire or Suffolk, Clydesdale and Percheron - singles, pairs and teams of four. Hackney, Welsh Cob, Shetland pony, donkey. Horses of every type, with two things in common. They are pulling something on wheels, and are having a day out. Taken from the London Horse Parade by Keith Chivers

Have you ever been to the London Harness Horse Parade in Battersea Park on Easter Monday?

Better still, have you ever thought of taking your donkey?

It's an experience worth considering. Each year my husband and our daughter Jenny polish up a donkey and a vehicle and set off for-the event. And each year they return with a First Class certificate and a large rosette. This year I decided to see what it was all about for myself and set off for London by public transport.

I arrived at the park gates just in time to see a park policeman escorting a lovely but inappropriate trotting pony off the premises. As I walked further into the park I could see why.

Every other turnout was beautifully presented, animals glistened and wore all their best harness and adornments, vehicles shone in the sunlight and whips and grooms had dressed smartly to match their outfits. A number attached to the vehicle showed that they had paid their entry fee and identified the owner in the programme.

The Parade was originally started in 1886 as The London Cart Horse Parade. Held on the Whit Bank Holiday it was a chance for everyone to dress up and show off their horse and cart and mark the holiday by carrying drivers' wives, children, aunts, grandfathers and as many other relations as could be accommodated without falling off! It also gave the authorities a chance to check the welfare of the animals.

Horses with ill fitting harness, inappropriately sized vehicle, neglected feet or grooming were all rejected but owners were offered advice for improvement. At this time London's polluted air and hard pavements did no good to the horse's lungs and legs and so it was so important to look after your animal in every other way. You have read Black Beauty haven't you?

But back to the present day. Battersea Park is a perfect venue for the event. There are loads of carriage ways and after you have been inspected by the vet and the farrier and the judges you can plan your own drive along the tracks. Then there is the prize giving when everyone lines up to go past the bandstand to receive their awards.

As a spectator, the best place to stand is by the path just after the bandstand. Everyone leaves at a brisk trot and it shows turnouts at their best. Jenny driving Busy Bee in the governess cart was going at a nice sedate trot only to be overtaken by two gigantic heavy horses pulling a fire engine! I think there were a few heart stopping moments, but the donkeys just seem to take it all in there stride, don't they? Some of you may have seen Jenny and her donkey on the front of the May 2005 Carriage Driving magazine. Actually the picture was taken, two years ago, but still, what an honour?

You certainly see every size of equine and vehicle there. So why not go and see for yourself?

If you want to enter I should warn you that the entry fee is expensive, but that is compensated for by the ease of parking as the donkeys are kept separate. Or just go as a spectator, but wear comfortable shoes.

The Harness Horse Parade has moved to a new venue on the South of England Showground at Ardingly in West Sussex

LONDON HARNESS HORSE PARADE (Charity No. 1035613)

SOUTH OF ENGLAND SHOWGROUND ARDINGLY, WEST SUSSEX

EASTER MONDAY ? 9TH APRIL 2007

Come and enjoy a truly memorable family day out

TRADE STAND SPACE AVAILABLE ENTRIES INVITED

A spectacular Parade of historic and unusual horse drawn vehicles exhibited by all types of horses and ponies including

Heavy Horses, Shetlands, Donkeys and Mules.

HARNESS CLASSES

FOR COMMERCIAL AND PRIVATE HORSES, PONIES, MULES AND DONKEYS

Schedules now available from:

The Secretary, LHHP, Oakley Farm, Merstham, Surrey, RH1 3QN.

'One chance in a million' ? at least, that's what my vet gave my yearling filly.

Here is her story.

5th January - As usual, I went out to feed the zoo before dragging myself off to work. Breakfast for them had got later and later over the Christmas and New Year hols, and all of us were finding it a bit of a struggle re-adjusting to 6:30 a.m. I opened the door of the stable that my two yearling fillies, Liza and Clogz, shared, and was met by just one inquisitive nose. Liza was laying down, looking quite happy, but - most unusual for her - not up and thrusting into the feed bowl. Clogz tucked in as if nothing was amiss. I went over and talked to Liza, and then tried to encourage her to get up. She was quite relaxed, but making no effort to stand. With a lot of hauling from me, we managed to get her up, and she then fed as if nothing was wrong, provided I supported her back end. Something was obviously seriously awry, so it was back indoors, ringing in to make my apologies to work and then back out to the stable, mobile phone and cup of tea in hand, to try and get her up again.

By the time the vet arrived I had helped her to stand whenever she made any effort, and she had eaten, drunk, wee'd and dunged as normal. She was checked over and the verdict 'trauma to the spine' pronounced (I could have guessed that!). Nothing obvious was presenting itself, so it was assumed that she could either have twisted something playing over-night with her friend, or maybe it was some congenital weakness. I bred Liza, and have many of her relatives, so doubted that it was congenital.

The stable was nicely strawed and banked so everything was in place to avoid accidents, but these things happen.

Rest was prescribed along with an anti-inflammatory jab to aid any recovery. At first Liza panicked if she tried to get up and couldn't and there was no-one there to help her. It quickly became clear that 24 hour care was needed, and as long as someone immediately helped, she remained calm and happy.

I built myself a 'nest' of rugs and bales in a corner of the stable, and settled down with several books, the mobile and a regular stream of food and drinks being ferried in from the house. Sleeping in a stable in early January probably rates as one of the most uncomfortable things I've ever done. However next morning of necessity it was up, feed the zoo, then indoors, shower and change and off to work. My parents had come over the previous night and took over the 'day shift' whilst my work colleagues in London's Dockland's were convinced I was completely mad!!

When I returned from work it was indoors, change ? then back to the stable for another night of tea, books and snoozing amongst horse-rugs. It was a very good thing I'd received lot lots of new reading material for Christmas!

The vet came daily and administered a jab, and on day three said 'she's only got one chance in a million of making it. If she were mine, I'd end it now'. Well, I'm not someone who avoids the inevitable, but I was certain that Liza needed more time. She was still happy, eating and drinking well, and even though her ability to stand wasn't improving, I argued that, if I'd hurt my back, I wouldn't be up and about again in three days.

The vet came every day for 5 days, then we mutually agreed that she shouldn't have any more anti-inflammatory, and that we would wait and see.

I'm pretty sure the vet thought I was just a wimp who wouldn't make the final decision, but that wasn't the case at all, Liza just wasn't in the final case scenario at that point. For 8 days we kept up the 24 hour care ? and I do mean round the clock, 24 hours, Liza was never alone for a minute. She soon learnt that she only had to wave a leg and look at you, and that someone would lift her up to feed or wee. As the days progressed, she slowly started to try and 'help' by struggling with you as you hauled her up, and became stronger at trying to take her own weight once you got her up. It wasn't the easiest 8 days I (or my parents and kids) have ever spent.

Everyone in the family had been party to the discussions about her future? and on day eight, while I was at work, my aunt came over to help with the 'baby-sitting'. She and my dad were discussing things, and looking at Liza's back, and they could see a slight 'kink' in her spine near her hip. In a 'make or break moment (and I'm certainly not recommending taking matters into your own hands in most veterinary situations), my dad gave her a sharp 'push' from behind her hip to see if it would help.

When I got home from work, I was met by my aunt, in fits of joy, telling me that Liza had stood up for herself. I have to confess I didn't believe her as I suspected my aunt would have said anything if she thought it would save Liza from the bullet ? but later on that evening Liza got to her feet in front of me - I could have cried! She was up ? shaky but up!!!

From then on, she improved day on day. The vet couldn't believe it. As the weather improved and she could be put out to play, she hopped and skipped and did (slightly sideways) bucks of joy. She has been visited by a horse-physiotherapist who commended her on her good behaviour (she's now been handled so much that you can do anything with her).

Now, after a summer of improvement, she leads a full and happy life. She has a very slight inwards turn on one back leg, but you have to really look for it and it's nothing that would matter outside of a show-ring.

The down-side (in a tongue in cheek sort of way) is that now Liza is totally humanised. As far as she is concerned people exist purely to fuss over her. She had 24 hour care for 8 days, and very regular visits for many days after that, so anyone near her MUST want to talk to her mustn't they? She rushes across the field and insists that you fuss her ? in fact, we now have a new verb, to 'be Liza-ed', as in to be 'mugged' by a very strong, healthy and friendly young filly.

Not bad for a youngster with only 'one chance in a million'!

DONKEY WHISPERING IN WORCESTERSHIRE!

Masquerading as a Bomb Proofing Weekend and held at the home of Area Representative Claire Harper who has recently completed a two year course in Equine Behaviour.

Getting to know and understand your donkey is vital for the bond between you to develop into a strong, trusting and confident relationship.

To build this trust is an important part of any donkey's training in that he is given the opportunity to meet obstacles and situations that could worry or 'spook' him.

By doing this in a safe environment and where there is no pressure, he can learn to be confident in both himself and his handler and this is invaluable training whether it is intended that the donkey be shown, ridden, driven or is a companion for country walks. 'Bomb Proofing' helps the donkey to be a reliable, safe and unflappable animal and makes life a lot easier for us!

In Worcestershire in June of last year twelve donkeys, two mules and sixteen handlers were confronted with twenty six -challenges-. Some were basic groundwork tasks such as poles arranged as a labrynth or weaving in and out of traffic cones, but others such as walking over a large tarpaulin, under flapping strips of cloth, between fluttering flags and through piles of plastic bottles and balls were more exacting. Before the challenge began it was explained how to calm a stressed donkey and how to use the method of Pressure and Release to effect (asking the donkey to move forward and immediately relaxing the rope at the slightest 'try' from the donkey therefore immediately rewarding him) and the handlers and donkeys quietly worked on negotiating the tasks.

By the end of the weekend all the donkeys and both mules were walking willingly through or over the obstacles.

However it was the comments from the participants that really made the weekend worthwhile:  I would never have realized how quick and easy it is to get that feeling of communication and working together.

"It's made me feel quite emotional" Now I can sense the reaction of the donkey and I'm working with him, not just telling him what to do and then forcing him. Now I am looking at an object and working out how to help him accept it. I've learned to keep my hands loose and not tense - it seems to keep both the donkey and me much calmer and I've gained a lot of confidence in myself.-

I am going to try this at home. I would like to have this sort of relationship with my own donkey?.

A Follow up to Bomb-Proofing (Whispering)

Cheryl Browning was there .. and takes up the story

I was becoming increasingly concerned that I did not have a happy donkey. Although Poppy chose us when we went to view her (I had a choice of about eleven so she only has herself to blame!) she turned out to be a very withdrawn, nervous little soul afraid of approaching us as if by keeping herself to herself she would not get hurt.

Whether this was emotionally or physically I couldn't make out. She was uncatchable and only really wanted to know me when I was working with Blossom, my horse. I resolved to give her time as she was only 18 months old, but time didn?t help.

She had good relations with the cattle and pigs, even allowing one piglet to jump up & catch hold of her tail and swing on it! She adores Blossom but didn?t want to know us humans.

Attending Claire Harper's Bomb-Proofing weekend was a revelation. I was given Topsy to handle as Claire felt she would be most like Poppy ? although one could catch Topsy!

It gave me the confidence to try handling Poppy in Claire's way, very gently with pressure and release. By now Poppy had a head collar on courtesy of my blacksmith - thank you Richard! - and as long as Blossom didn't mind being fed pony nuts (as if) I could catch Poppy.

We started very slowly with what I call cuddle sessions, catch, tie up, pick out feet, ginger biscuit, cuddles and strokes and finish with some pony nuts. It became obvious with the greater amount of handling Poppy was getting that her reluctance was due to her fear of physical abuse.

As Blossom had most definitely been abused and still bears the mental scars to this day, I knew I had a long way to go with Poppy, not only to gain her trust but her affection too. Time to call in the professional.

Claire Harper, having qualified after her 2 year Equine Handling Course was wondering if she had the skills to offer to other donkey owners, so I suggested she come and give us a try as I was au fait enough with Monty Robert's handling system to be able to give Claire positive feed back.

The date was set, the forecast was awful but Claire turned up anyway and the rain held off. The session started quietly with Claire getting to know Poppy & Blossom, who would not be left out. Poppy was fascinated by Claire because she could smell Donkey! Gradually Claire made more positive moves towards Poppy and then turned her back to ignore her so Poppy had to make a move towards Claire so that she could get the attention she wanted.

Claire was soon rubbing Poppy's ears inside and out, encouraging her to lower her head by pressing on the poll (Poppy prefers the pressure to come half way down the neck). The lowering of the head relaxes the animal, but the important part is to release the pressure the moment the donkey yields to the pressure and this is the reward for the requested behaviour.

This exercise has since progressed to Poppy lowering her head right down and licking and chewing with me able to rest my head against hers. Poppy was then put into one of Claire's controller halters but unfortunately she thought that the 18? white rope was very scary and so had to learn that it wasn't and to accept it. Each set back became a learning process, which led to Poppy making her own decisions to accept the new concept.

Leading around the yard followed with Claire showing Poppy that if she didn?t want to move forward she would be asked to turn until she had to take a step to balance herself. Immediate release of pressure followed and then she was asked to move forward again. She soon learnt that it was best to give in gracefully and walk forward. All the work was done with calmness and quietness, no shouting or temper, no sticks or whips, with patience and respect and was a joy to watch and be part of. Then it was my turn and although Poppy really didn't want to walk away from Bloss she did walk with me very well.

That was enough for one day so lots of cuddles and pony nuts before she was released. Altogether a very successful session with Claire ably qualified, in my eyes, to be able to help other donkey problems. However the proof of the pudding is in the eating and it was my future progress, which would show whether Claire was working her magic because she was there or because her system worked.

I have progressed slowly and carefully to leading Poppy up our lane, which she absolutely loves, as at long last she is seeing the big wide world that Blossom tells her about after our rides. Unfortunately she is very strong and I have a duff shoulder! Poppy has since developed an abscess in a front foot so stopping our leading sessions but it was easily treated as she was now used to being handled, although when she saw her foot for the first time swathed in silage patches it was really funny! Silage patches incidentally (available from most Agricultural Merchants) make very good foot protectors, and I was able to keep Poppy turned out for the duration.

Poppy's whole demeanour has changed since Claire's visit; she stands tall in her stable doorway and seems visibly bigger as she is now so much bolder. I now have a donkey who is much happier, more confident and is now starting to relate to us, even coming up for a scratch on occasion. For the first time in the 2 years I have had Poppy she came up and rested her head against me the other morning. The rewards for working with the nervous animal are immense although they may be few and far between,and the set backs will always occur.

My guidelines are kindness and consistency in every thing you do, all done with patience and love. I am writing this whilst on holiday in Ireland with my husband David. We came across one donkey in his field and stopped the car to see if he would come up for a chat. Can a duck swim? In spending his time with us (he had one of the nicest faces I've ever seen on a donkey and was wondering if I could get him on the plane home on David's passport!) enjoying strokes and scratches he gave us a little bit of himself too ? what it is, is difficult to explain, but it is some thing we have yet to receive from Poppy.

The fear of further hurt is still too deeply entrenched for her to accept us unequivocally, but it will come, of that I'm sure.