Rescue

With the New Year, a new life has also begun for some donkeys and mules; the very first ones to join our big family in 2012.

From Almería in South-Eastern Spain, three animals have just joined us. They are Juan, Andrea, Negrita, Rosy and Poppy.

Here's a photo of them and some information on how they came to join us here at El Refugio.

We are glad to introduce you to “Rey” (Spanish for “King”), the latest resident at El Refugio del Burrito.
Although, to be honest, we still don’t know for sure if he will stay with us... and truth be told, we don’t know his real name... I think this is a bit confusing, isn’t it?
OK. Let’s shed some light onto this story:

Minerva must have been, in time gone by, a gorgeous mule; a true goddess like the one in ancient Rome that protected the wise and the artist.

Minerva, when we found her but a week ago, was broken. Just like those ancient Rome marble goddesses that are found, every now and then, always broken.

Abandoned to her fate, by a group of gypsies it appears, in the middle of the fields, surrounded by nothing; no food, no water, no aim... Her hooves were overgrown, her thinness all too evident.

Summer holidays are on full blast, and our residents at El Refugio del Burrito seem to enjoy the season as much as us humans do. Whether they are just laying down and sunbathing, or having a bite to eat with friends, they always sport a truly content smile on their furry faces.

When it gets really hot, our grooms are ready to shower them, and they love these grooming sessions.

It is the perfect time to come over and visit your tender friends the donkeys. We are open every day and the entrance is free of charge.

...Though, to be fair, it’s actually the dentist who comes over to us!
Last week, we told you about the farrier visits. On this occasion, we will talk to you about the important work of our equine dentist at El Refugio del Burrito. Taking care of our donkeys’ dental health, we are also taking care of their general welfare.

On Thursday 9th June 2011 El Refugio del Burrito appeared in "BESTIAL" an animal welfare show from National TV Station "LA SEXTA".

The piece was aired following our Welfare Officer to a typical Andalusian village in the province of Málaga, Ardales, where a very special mule and her owner awaited to say "See you soon". It is the nice story of Española's pick-up. She's such a beautiful and strong mule that has already become a star at our sanctuary.

Faustino has terrible trouble walking. For a long time, his owner did not take care of his hooves as he should have. As a consequence, every step he takes is a painful experience for him. His front hooves are horribly overgrown and the back ones are deformed.

Unfortunately, this is not a rare case; there are many donkey owners out there that - either by lack of knowledge, money or, in the worst scenario, simply because they don’t care about it – don’t give their animals’ hooves the attention they deserve.

We are glad to officially introduce you to our latest resident, Rayao.

Rayao comes from the well-known coastal village of Mijas, where he used to work as a donkey-taxi pulling a cart. His owner really cared for him, and he was not ill-treated at all. He isn’t an old donkey and he doesn’t have any important health issues... Why has he come to El Refugio then? Well, we can say he’s a true James Dean of a Donkey... a rebel without a cause.

Carlitos is a really cute donkey that has been recently rescued at Doña Rosa, in the Spanish Region of Extremadura.
His story has a lot to do with the financial crisis we are currently going through, and unfortunately, it is similar to the story of many other donkeys that are also being affected by these hard times.

We are glad to introduce you to Clemente, our latest rescue.

Clemente used to live with his e owner in the meadows of Extremadura. He worked with him alongside some other animals at the farm the owner had. But his e owner found a different job, and gradually he had less and less animals, until it was just Clemente and himself.