Donkey Sanctuary And The Donkey-Human Interaction
This article describes the mission and activities of The Donkey Sanctuary, a British charity with sanctuary/education centers internationally. The charity takes an integrated approach to donkey rescue, using all-local staff, and building trust in the community by assisting with other needs. The article describes the history of donkeys, where and how donkeys still perform work for humans, and welfare assessment, and calls for multidisciplinary attention to studying and improving the lives of donkeys.
[Abstract excerpted from original source.}
“The purpose of this article is to spark interest and raise awareness about donkeys and their lives; and ultimately to help develop a worldwide network for donkey (animal) welfare and shape a more humane world. It aims to encourage greater collaboration between academics involved with animal studies, animal geographies and similar related disciplines, and those involved practically with the welfare of donkeys and mules around the world. It outlines the idea of a multi-dimensional landscape of donkey-human interaction to help us understand the complexity of factors shaping the place of donkeys in the world, and to provide a framework for practical engagement with donkeys and their users around the world. Through its case studies, it describes some lives lived by donkeys. And finally, written from the perspective of a British donkey welfare charity, The Donkey Sanctuary, it outlines an approach to assessing working donkey welfare building from a simple five-point welfare assessment tool; and it illustrates something of that work to bring about long-term improvements in donkey welfare.”