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Patience is the virtue of the donkeys” French Proverb. 08 May 2021, is World Donkey Day.
The Council of Equine and Equestrian Professionals South Africa (CEEPSA) has lauded the SPCA and traffic police in the Kwazulu Natal Midlands who recently rescued just over a hundred donkeys from crossing over into Lesotho where they would have been slaughtered.
The Executive Director for the non-profit organisation CEEPSA, Allister Jack says the donkeys would have been slaughtered for their skins to be exported as traditional medicine.
He says stealing donkeys has a direct impact on the livelihood of people in our communities. Many people are reliant on their donkeys to assist them with their work and to help them to put food on the table.
“We are working on strengthening the relationship between community members and their local municipalities to help them to protect and, where necessary, rehabilitate their donkeys,” adds Jack.
Communities and local municipalities are encouraged to get into contact with CEEPSA to help them facilitate the establishment of rehabilitation centres, rehoming and general best practices when it comes to donkey welfare. For more information visit www.ceepsa.org
According to www.daysoftheyear.com World Donkey Day is the brainchild of Raziq Ark, a scientist who expressed his concern about deserted animals.
Ark noticed that nobody in the world was celebrating the humble donkey for the efforts in helping people all over the world improve their quality of life.
He set up a Facebook page to tell stories about the trials and tribulations of the species all over the world and eventually World Donkey Day was established in 2018.
