Twenty-five donkeys have been rescued from a horrific illegal slaughterhouse in South Africa. They escaped a brutal death. Now hungry, wounded and traumatized, they desperately need your help.
A disturbing video exposed the cruelty in Makhanda, a historic town in South Africa’s Eastern Cape.
Dead donkeys hung upside down from hooks, their throats partially sawn through as their blood drained beneath them.
Donkeys are gentle, trusting creatures who form close bonds. Imagine the terror of those awaiting the same potential fate, surrounded by the smell of blood and the sounds of other donkeys being slaughtered.
These 25 survivors came frighteningly close to the same horrific end. Their meat could have been sold illegally as ‘beef’, and their skins were destined for the lucrative donkey-skin trade.
Authorities intervened just in time, raiding the facility and rushing the donkeys to our partner sanctuary, Blind Love.
This disturbing footage has been widely circulated on social media. A slaughterhouse in Makhanda, South Africa, has been accused of illegally slaughtering donkeys, with their meat sold as ‘beef’ and their skins supplying the ejiao trade. Credit: Supplied
Rescued from slaughter, but the suffering isn’t over.
An estimated 5.9 million donkeys are slaughtered every year to supply China’s enormous ejiao industry, which boils the skins to produce gelatin used in traditional Chinese medicine and beauty products.
China’s donkey population has collapsed, and the trade has increasingly turned to Africa, where donkeys are often stolen from rural communities, transported in appalling conditions and slaughtered for their skins.
To those exploiting them, they were worth more dead than alive. To us, every donkey’s life is worth saving.
One sanctuary. Twenty-five new mouths to feed.
Our partner rescued 25 donkeys, but many are injured, emaciated and deeply traumatized. They urgently need food, veterinary care and rehabilitation to recover. Credit: NFA/Dan Snyders
Blind Love did not hesitate when these donkeys needed somewhere safe to go. It took in all 25, including three pregnant mothers and four young foals. Many are desperately thin. Some have glass embedded in their hooves. Others have tick infestations and bear wounds from beatings and mistreatment.
They urgently need nourishing food, veterinary treatment, farrier care and the patience and kindness to heal from both their physical and psychological trauma. Their rehabilitation is expected to take at least six months.
Overnight, Blind Love’s rescued donkey population grew from 27 to 52. Food supplies are running critically low and veterinary bills are mounting by the minute.
Our partner has given these survivors a safe place to heal. Now, we must help ensure they have everything they need to recover. Will you help give 25 rescued donkeys a second chance?
They are safe from slaughter, but their fight to survive is far from over. Help us give these 25 gentle souls the kindness, care and second chance they deserve. Credit: NFA/Dan Snyders
Here is how your donation can make a difference:
- $25 (£18) covers farrier care for one rescued donkey’s hooves
- $36 (£27) provides food for one rescued donkey for a month
- $64 (£48) covers medication and veterinary care for one rescued donkey
We cannot bring back the donkeys who were slaughtered before the rescue, nor end this worldwide cruelty overnight. But we can change the futures of these 25 survivors.
You can help replace their fear with kindness, their hunger with food and their pain with loving care.
Please donate as generously as you can today.
