World Donkey Day
#WorldDonkeyDay #DonkeyDay #AnimalsDay #WeHelpAnimals #HelpAnimalsDay
What is the World Donkey Day?
The World Donkey Day, which is on May 8th, was created a few years ago now to bring awareness to the treatment, usefulness, and the life of these lovely animals.
Thousands of years.
Donkeys have been helping people for thousands of years. They were part of households, used at farms, in travel and even at times of war. They are sturdy and resilient, but they haven’t always been treated properly in return by humans.
Donkeys and horses are all part of the equids and have common ancestors but have then evolved to be very different animals. Donkeys were first domesticated around 6,000 years ago in North Africa and Egypt for milk and meat. They were later used for carrying goods for thousands of miles, they were also used in vineries and other cultivation areas. They are quite well suited for narrow spaces and paths.
Donkeys in the UK.
In the UK, they arrived in the Roman times (43 AD), but until around 1550’s they were not well documented. From the 17th century, their presence and number increased greatly, often because they were the chosen animals to bear labours of war.
Donkeys today.
Today, many equines are used for work. Alongside horses, ponies and mules, donkeys are part of over 110 million equines used globally. Sadly, their conditions of labour are often bad and although changing, there is still a long way to go to get them treated correctly.
In rural areas, working equids are often used in farming and as transportation: they pull ploughs and carts, deliver goods to market, herd livestock and collect water from wells. In urban areas, they are mainly used in construction, transport of people and goods, and refuse collection. By enabling their owners to participate in work, they boost economic capacity, which is often used towards the cost of education that promotes gender equality by allowing women to be economically active
Simple interventions can empower owners to keep their working equids healthy and ensure their continued productive benefit. These interventions include improved access to good, affordable harnessing, hoof care and veterinary interventions, and, above all, the empowerment of their owners with better knowledge of equine management important livestock, due to their capacity to support income generation.
(Source: Donkey Sanctuary Cyprus).
How can we help donkeys today?
For general public, we would like to highlight a few things we can all do to improve the life of these genuinely lovely animals.
- When on holidays or away abroad pay attention to donkey’s and other equine treatment – it is easy to spot signs of dehydration or outgrown hoofs
- Please do not use them for rides or to get your luggage delivered. If the donkeys are used for transport, please make sure carts are used and pulled, ad animals have sufficient food and water provided
- Help your local and international sanctuaries, there even are a few local ones who also have donkeys:
Local and international sanctuaries:
- https://www.bfas.org.uk/
- https://animals-in-need.org/
- https://www.facebook.com/groups
- https://www.facebook.com/RedheadRescues/
- https://www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk
Please visit and support them.
Learn more about the World Donkey Day
And if you would like to learn more about the World Donkey Day, then please visit:
#WorldDonkeyDay #DonkeyDay #AnimalsDay #WeHelpAnimals #HelpAnimalsDay
