Donkey work: Having your own real-life Jenny is no easy ride
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An invitation has been issued to actor Colin Farrell to visit and, while they hope the star will call, the staff of The Donkey Sanctuary in Co Cork are busier than ever caring for the hundreds of donkeys in their care.
For many viewers of , Jenny the donkey, who appeared in the movie alongside Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson, was the real star of the hit movie. Indeed, during the 95th Oscars ceremony in March, host Jimmy Kimmel reflected cinemagoers' affection for Jenny by bringing a lookalike donkey on stage during the ceremony.
However, if the film made it look like donkeys have a treasured position in Irish life, the reality is very different. The plight of donkeys here is far from the bright lights of Hollywood, with a growing number of animals being neglected across the country every year.
In fact, the life of a donkey in Ireland is in limbo according to those who care for them, since the animals’ working role on farms was replaced by tractors and machinery.
There has also been a significant rise in cases of neglect — leaving The Donkey Sanctuary Ireland, outside Mallow, Cork, at full capacity. This stems from people with little knowledge of what’s involved wanting to keep donkeys as pets.
Ciara O’Kelly, a welfare advisor with The Donkey Sanctuary Ireland explained: “We are in an equine crisis throughout Ireland, and it is a donkey crisis.
“The problem for us is we can’t take in any more and there’s still a lot of donkeys out in the community. People don’t realise the longevity and the commitment that comes with a donkey — they can live for 40 years. They are neither farm animals nor pets, they’re kind of in between.
“They cost a lot of money, there are farrier and vet bills and food. I always say to people ‘you have really got to think about owning a donkey’.
“But we mostly see neglect with people becoming overwhelmed or not having the money to care for them, or their circumstances have changed: That is why we are also out in the community with donkeys under our care with guardians as well as private owners.
The neglect Ciara has described is evident in their statistics from last year. Up until last October, the sanctuary had responded to 905 calls to help donkeys — which was up from 721 the year before.
Ciara estimates there are less than 10,000 donkeys in Ireland — but the exact number is not known, because not all the animals are microchipped.
The unplanned pregnancy of a donkey is another of the sanctuary’s “biggest challenges”.
“It is a major issue,” said Ciara. “Yes, they are cute but when people are breeding them and there are no homes for them, that is a problem.
“We do a lot of work on addressing breeding in the community, sometimes, as well, stallion behaviour can be quite challenging in private homes and there’s no need for it, so castration is automatic here and we offer that service.
“I can’t say how many we do a year, it would depend on the area, but on the west coast there are a lot more farm donkeys... In Kerry I could do 10 to 15 a year.
“People will ring and say, ‘We are getting a donkey as a pet can you advise us?’ We will go out and check the homes, and we would never recommend one donkey out on its own, they go in pairs. We are the voice of the donkey. They come first no matter what.”
The Donkey Sanctuary Ireland, which is situated in Liscarroll, North Cork, is spread across four farms.
It can take a couple of hours to walk around the land but will most likely take longer when you start meeting the curious donkeys including Ophelia, Mistletoe, and Jo Jo.
At one point I had nine around me, mares and their foals who just wanted their ears rubbed (they actually love this as they can’t reach that part of their head).
The sanctuary has a beautiful walking trail, a memory wall, plaques for loved ones, and lovely areas to sit down and enjoy the view of hundreds of healthy and happy donkeys running around in a haven for wildlife that promotes and preserves local biodiversity.
The donkeys and mules are clearly well cared for with healthy shiny coats, and I do know a thing or two about donkeys because my family has two, Baby Chris and Blue, now in their 20s.
The sanctuary has 1,200 donkeys in its immediate care and around 800 animals in the community.
It is a huge operation with 100 staff including fundraisers, farmers, and vets.
Farm manager Cormac Kenny explained that finances are also a reason for the rise in the neglect of donkeys which cost around €3,500 a year to keep.
“Dentistry is a big part of a donkey’s life, and their feet, which can grow every day,” he said.
“Every eight weeks they may have to have a foot trim. It’s about trying to keep on top of their welfare, but at the same time, they are an expensive pet. People see the feet but don’t always see the teeth. We give them the best care we can.”
The sanctuary has support from the Donkey Sanctuary in the UK and from around the world, but they rely mostly on donations from the public here in Ireland and have felt the impact of the cost-of-living crisis.
“It depends on the harvest and feed prices,” he continued. “We try and bargain.
“Another big cost for us is staffing. We also try and keep in the region of 20 to 25 donkeys per staff member.”
While there are workers at the visitors’ centre and farm in Mallow, there are welfare advisors working in the community with the ISPCA, as well as the gardaí to help protect the animals.
One of the biggest rescues this year by the Sanctuary was in May in south Galway.
The 'Irish Examiner' reported how 20 donkeys were found abandoned in a field, and one had died. It was described as a “watershed moment” because of the large scale of neglect of the animals.
They had been discovered at Christmas by the charity’s welfare officers.
“It was very lucky for those animals that the Donkey Sanctuary was able to step in,” said Ciara.
“They were abandoned on a large farm but the farm itself, there was nobody living on it. There was a lot of unplanned pregnancies and no farrier care and no management.
“The Donkey Sanctuary worked with the local donkey welfare advisor and the Department of Agriculture and the owner of the land to get as many as we could under our care. It was real neglect.
“There were animals suffering on site and we had to bring out local vets. There were X-rays done on site to see if animals were suitable for transport.
“It was a very public rescue but, numbers-wise, that was very big. It was so lucky for the animals that we could step in”.
Ciara, who is based in Cork and Kerry also cited the Animal Welfare Act 2014 which she described as “powerful for animals”.
“It is a very robust law,” she said. “Any act takes time to settle, and we must support it. Our job is to be able to get concerns out to the right authorities and work with them.”
Another shocking incident of neglect involved a donkey being dragged by a car along a road by a rope around its neck in Co Offaly, a video of which went viral in January.
It resulted in seven animals being seized by gardaí with the support of two charities and most of the animals taken into care were donkeys.
“That is horrible cruelty,” said Ciara.
“That animal survived and is doing OK thankfully, and he was very lucky that someone saw it and filmed it. Social media is a new way of highlighting these things”.
Ciara continued: “Donkeys are misunderstood. The old tradition of a stubborn donkey — there is no such thing. It’s their natural response to something. It’s fight or flight. So if a donkey puts on its brakes, like it did in that video, they are not being stubborn”.
There are around 184 breeds of donkeys and there is also no such thing as the Irish donkey (only the ones born here).
“This idea of a little brown donkey alone on lush green grass in the middle of an Irish field — nothing could be further from the truth,” said Ciara.
“Even though they are on all the Irish postcards, they are from the African plains. That is why they need straw rather than grass, which can cause weight gain.
“But we have a great affiliation for them, and they came here to be workers on farms. They are herd animals and form strong bonds and friendships, that’s why we always have them in pairs or a group. The farm staff would know their personalities and friendships well.
“But two donkeys will always get more attention in a private home, however,” she added. “The sanctuary is busy even though they are guaranteed a place for life and will be looked after.
“Donkeys live in the moment. You can come out after having a stressful day and they communicate with you, they give a lot back and are very smart.”
The animal also has an amazing ability to hear its friends from up to 40km away. Cormac Kenny explained: “It worked well on the plains of Africa — that is how they find each other.
“We can hear them braying in Hannigan’s farm up the road. That is where we have 450 donkeys — and some are the much older ones. They are near the veterinary hospital which does wonderful work.”
When asked about the attention that gave donkeys, Ciara praised the cast and crew but spotted an inaccuracy in the film.
“The miniature donkeys in that film were too small for that time in Ireland,” she said “They didn’t exist, if the truth be known, and they certainly wouldn’t have been standing in the kitchen.
“But it did bring attention and make people curious. However, what we want them to realise is that donkey was particularly well trained.”
Nonetheless, the sanctuary said they would love Colin Farrell to visit.
Cormac said: “We invited him to come and see us. He is welcome any time.” Ciara added, “There are two donkeys living on the Atlantic Way honouring you [Colin Farrell] they are called Colin and Farrell, so I think you need to come and see them.
“We don’t give those names to just anyone. So, call us, or rather send us a bray.”
• You can learn more — from advice on keeping a donkey to ways you can help the sanctuary's work — online at TheDonkeySanctuary.ie.