New TV ad highlights devastating donkey skin trade

This is the first time the donkey skin trade has featured in our television advertising and reflects the fact it is the single biggest threat facing donkeys worldwide.

Millions of donkey skins are exported across the world and used to make a traditional Chinese medicine called ejiao. Produced using gelatine from donkey skins, ejiao is successfully marketed as a luxury commodity in China where increasing popularity is driving up production and an increase in donkey slaughter.

Following the rapid decline of China’s own donkey population for ejiao production, agents for the industry are looking elsewhere, targeting vulnerable donkeys and their owners in countries across Africa and around the world.

Communities who depend on donkeys to help provide them with a livelihood wake up to find their donkeys stolen, slaughtered, and skinned during the night. Women in particular are losing the donkeys that they need to survive – to take children to school, to move goods to market, to collect water and help with other labour intensive tasks. Entire families suffer and opportunities are destroyed.

Developed by Friday’s Child, the 90 second advert highlights the challenges faced by donkeys in the UK and around the world. It shows donkeys not only threatened by the barbaric skin trade but also suffering negligence in the UK, exploitation in the global construction industry and ingesting plastic at dump sites in Lamu, Kenya.

Marianne Steele, CEO of The Donkey Sanctuary, said: “The truth about this barbaric and unsustainable trade is that donkeys suffer at every step - from being transported long distances and held, often terrified and in overcrowded conditions, before being slaughtered and discarded after their skins have been removed.

“Donkeys are intelligent and sentient animals who deserve respect and protection. We will continue to work tirelessly to stop this slaughter and create a better world for donkeys everywhere.”

Our campaign to Stop the Slaughter and end the donkey skin trade is the single biggest donkey protection initiative we have undertaken in over 50 years of operation.

The new TV ad has been launched to bring greater awareness to the challenges donkeys face globally and to help drive real change to reduce the suffering and save the lives of millions of donkeys worldwide.