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The plight of this little donkey in Northern Ireland was extreme - Mary was exhausted, in poor condition and had overgrown feet. She was desperate and miserable. Our Sanctuary staff were able to rescue Mary and rarely left her side for over three weeks nursing her back from the brink. Sadly she lost her unborn foal due to the severe neglect she had suffered.
Mary was exhausted and
needed round-the-clock
care for 3 weeks.
Sadly, she aborted her
unborn foal.
Mary was discovered by our welfare officer Marie McCormack at a market in Northern Ireland in December last year. She was in a terrible state, had a body score of just one - the poorest, thinnest condition a donkey can reach; was suffering from rain scald on her ears and over her whole back and had an infestation of worms as well as neglected painful hooves. To make matters worse, she had a foal by her side in an equally poor state and was in foal again.
Mary was so exhausted when she arrived into our holding base in County Tyrone in Northern Ireland that she couldn't stand up at all for the first three days. Her young foal, despite our best efforts, had suffered too much and sadly passed away.
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Marie and Victor who helps at the holding base, spent three weeks providing Mary with round-the-clock care. They would visit her three times through the night to make sure she was eating and give her much needed vitamin boosters. They also had to lift her up to prevent bed sores and to encourage her to get moving. Very sadly, she aborted her unborn foal, half way through her pregnancy, due to the severe neglect she had suffered.
Mary was in the worst condition Marie has seen in many years and sadly, there are still many troubles facing donkeys in Northern Ireland. With the poor economic conditions the number of donkeys we have rescued has risen dramatically and our base there is constantly busy.
Slow road to recovery
Mary has been making a gradual recovery and is gaining weight and improving in condition daily. She was very depressed having lost both her foals, so when abandoned foal Owen was recently rescued Mary was delighted to become his foster mum and the pair are now inseparable. She now has the strength to roll and canter in her field, and she even entertains the odd enjoyable buck!
Guaranteeing exceptional support and care in the future
A £5 donation could
buy a basic but
essential first aid kit.
A £15 donation could help
towards the cost of
providing an X-ray.
A £30 donation could fund
a routine blood test
for donkeys.
Thankfully, we have a wealth of experience and expertise here at The Donkey Sanctuary to deal with critical cases such as this.
We take in an average of eight donkeys each week throughout the UK and Ireland and our family is ever increasing. Each and every donkey taken into our care receives expert loving care and attention for life, so you can imagine that any donation, no matter how small, makes a real difference.
Your commitment has been phenomenal
Over the last 40 years we have taken over 14,000 donkeys into our care. We also have major overseas projects in Mexico, Egypt, Ethiopia, Kenya and India helping working donkeys; they are essential to their owners, who are themselves often the poorest people. The donkeys often suffer from neglect and intensive hard work and our overseas teams work with local communities to improve the quality of life for their donkeys.
Without the kindness and generosity of our supporters we would not be able to carry out our mission, to protect donkeys and mules like Mary, and promote their welfare worldwide. Any donation you feel able to give during this difficult economic climate will be gratefully received and will help us to rescue and provide a sanctuary for life to donkeys like Mary.
Are you a UK taxpayer?
When making a donation, it would be helpful if you could inform us if you are a UK taxpayer to enable us to claim back money from the tax man through the Gift Aid Scheme by completing our gift aid declaration form.
An overview of the Gift Aid Scheme is available on the HM Customs & Excise website.
Donation enquiries
If you have any queries regarding making a donation, please contact us.
