The story of a sad and lonely donkey on Vancouver Island has a happy ending thanks to the dedicated staff of an animal sanctuary and the generosity of the public.
Earl Gray was brought to the Home for Hooves Farm Sanctuary in Duncan. B.C., about six weeks ago after his owner died.
Michelle Singleton, president and founder of the Sanctuary, said Earl had a few issues that needed addressing.
“So one was that he was living solo, and donkeys really need to be with the family, with their herd,” she said. “So he was by himself. Also, his hooves hadn’t been looked after, so it was almost like wearing shoes that were five times too big. So he wasn’t able to run or do anything like that because they were so overgrown and also the space that he was in as well was just a backyard, essentially. So he didn’t have space to run and graze and do all the things that donkeys should be doing.”
Singleton said Earl lost the only person he knew when his owner died, so it was a tough transition and he wasn’t getting along with any of the other animals.
“So we actually had one of our foster moms over here kind of visiting with him and getting to meet him, and she had the idea of giving him a yoga ball because she’s used them for her horses,” she added.
“So she brought it over, gave him the ball, and he was like ecstatic because he had his new hooves, he was able to run around and rip around his pen. And then this ball was just like pure joy for him.”
Singleton said he would chase it and bite and kick it and was having so much fun.
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“It was nice because before that, any time we were spending time with him, as soon as we walked away, he was crying,” she said.
“Every single time, like I could be down here 15 times in the day and every time we walked away he would cry. So it just kind of broke your heart. But we’re trying to get this place ready to bring all the other animals here – we can’t spend our whole day with Earl.”
Singleton said it was great to see the enjoyment Earl received from the ball. However, one day, Earl played with it so hard that it deflated.
“So he was quite upset, a little bit distraught because his favourite ball wasn’t doing what it was supposed to be doing,” Singleton said.
“You’re supposed to be able to chase it and kick it and do all those things, but it was just a deflated ball so he couldn’t play with it. It was just really sad. He was just a really, really sad donkey.”
They decided to put out a call on social media to see if anyone had a yoga ball they wanted to donate.
And the community stepped up.
Singleton said she was inundated with offers of yoga balls with some residents as far away as the Okanagan.
“We have, I think, about 15 to 20 right now because we had Amazon packages delivered,” she said.
“People were just coming and dropping off balls. It was to the point that I had to tell people to stop because I’m going to have an entire garage full from floor to ceiling of yoga balls.”
Singleton said some members of the public pooled their money to buy Earl a Collieball, which is a tougher ball commonly given to herding dogs and that is also in the mail.
Home for Hooves Farm Sanctuary is home to about 170 rescued farm animals that were abandoned, surrendered, or seized by the BC SPCA and provides them with a forever home.
Singleton said they are primarily funded by donations and it costs a lot of money to provide weekly vet care. Donations made until Aug. 29 will be matched up to $40,000.
She said she couldn’t believe the response Earl’s story had generated.
“It’s funny because I just wanted a ball and I really did not anticipate the public attention and how people’s hearts got into this and how much they just adore Earl,” she said.
“Because honestly, he’s just this donkey who came from a backyard. Nobody knew him. And you know, he’s nippy and he has some manners and stuff that we need to teach him, but it’s just nice to see that he has such a fan club.
“He’s really lucky. He’s really special.”
In addition to his ball, and the many backups, Earl now also has three donkey friends who have joined him at the sanctuary.
“It was really quite amazing because ever since that day, since they’ve been here, he doesn’t cry when we when we leave his side anymore,” Singleton said.
“So he has his friends. They’re still sharing a fence line at the moment. But you know, they sleep at the gate together, they eat together. And he has friends and he’s not by himself.”
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