Please help us save two beautiful donkeys!

The Olcote Sanctuary team are trying to save two donkeys from Normandy, France. These two beautiful boys where with the meat man where they were scheduled to be shipped to Italy for slaughter and turned into salami, as often happens.

Horses and donkey are used in the meat industry more than people generally realise. Donkeys do get a very raw deal, and are treated horrendously in many part of the world. Unfortunately, when animals are looked at as a product for money rather than the soul they are, this often leads to neglect, and we can only begin to imagine what they may have been through. When these animals are transported for meat they travel in one of two ways, "on the hook" meaning the animals were killed before transport, or "on the hoof" meaning they are transported alive to be killed at their destination. Animals are normally only killed before transport when being transported shorter distances. Our donkeys where heading to Italy and being transported alive. More often than not the animals that travel this way have to go through a horrible and traumatic few days before they reach their destination. They are kept in cramped conditions where they cannot move, they are given no food or water, and depending on the time of year are either freezing in a ice box, or suffocating in a sweat box.

Our team at Olcote are currently liaising with The Pegasus Sanctuary in Normandy who have taken twelve donkeys from the meat man and this horrible future, two of whom were pregnant females due to be slaughtered with their babies. Pegasus have removed the donkeys from their current situation as they were concerned for their well fair, but they do not currently have the facility to save and keep the donkeys so they are operating as a middle man trying to reach out to places that could offer any of the donkeys a forever home free from danger where they can live the rest of their lives in peace. With the Olcote team being such avid animal lovers we already follow many different animal sanctuaries and rescues, including Pegasus. As soon as one of team spotted the post and we realised what these donkeys had been through, we had a meeting that day to access the idea of whether we had the ability to offer any of these beautiful animals a home. So our whole team have been frantically researching, getting quotes and making plans.

We can't do the next bit without YOUR help...

All the teams hard work and research has brought us to the figure of £2,000 to be able to to save these beautiful little boys and offer them a happy and safe place to spend the rest of their lives. The majority of this figure is transportation costs, for us to bring them from Normandy, France to Stoke-on-Trent, United Kingdom. There are only certain companies that can offer this service. We also needed to make sure the company where reliable and had the animals as their number one priority, not to mention are able to deal with all the paperwork now required as the UK has left the European Union. We have found a company we are happy with that tick all the boxes. Their quote to transport the two donkeys, in shared travel (this helps to keep the costs affordable, but doesn't mean the donkeys will be traveling in cramped conditions), is £1,600. The other costs involved are for blood tests that are now requires because we have left the EU and cost around £100 for each donkey, and some renovations we will do to a current building to be able to house the two boys, this will be around £200.

We have told Pegasus that if we can raise the funds for the transport we could offer two donkeys a safe and loving home. Pegasus have told us they would like us to take the two boys pictured, currently know as Thierry & Falko.

Our Team are going to pledge 548 Miles!!!!

To build some excitement and raise the money for these two beautiful boys our Olcote Team, along with their family and friends are pledging between us to covers the 548 mile journey that the donkeys will have to travel from Normandy to their hopefully new forever home in Staffordshire. We've calculated the distance from The Pegasus rescue where the donkeys currently are to Olcote Sanctuary and it is almost exactly 548 miles. Our team are going to run, walk and cycle the whopping 548 miles over 1 weekend.

Our big donkey journey will take place on Saturday 31st July and Sunday 1st August.

Please, please, please sponsor us for the marathon task we have chosen to undertake to demonstrate our commitment and love to this cause. Any donations are received with much love from everyone at Olcote two legs and four.