Grateful for friends like YOU! Part 1: How YOU saved Sophie the donkey…

Giving Tuesday won’t be here until November 30th.

But, as each year, this day of generosity is also wrapped around Thanksgiving (in the US) - at NFA, the month of November is also about thanking YOU…

Without your steadfast support, we simply would not be able to save lives and rescue the cruelly abused and forsaken animals that we do.

That’s why every Sunday this month, we’re counting our blessings for you, by sharing a special story that shows the urgent good you do every time you donate to NFA.

Starting with how love like yours saved
Sophie the Donkey and her friends from the brink of death...

When our team was alerted to several cases of donkey abuse in Bela-Bela, South Africa, we IMMEDIATELY rushed to the scene.

What we discovered was like something out of our worst nightmare.

A herd of starving, injured, traumatized donkeys. Cowering against barbed wire fences, covered with oozing sores and hipbones jutting out.

These gentle, suffering donkeys were just days from death!

Then it got worse...

We discovered that many of these poor, sentient souls had been DELIBERATELY INJURED: cruel owners had burst the donkey’s eyeballs and sliced gaping wounds in their skin, which they then whip to force the agonized animals to work even harder.

It is sick, disgusting and wrong to see donkeys barely a year old starving and carrying loads exceeding ONE TON. Sick, disgusting and wrong to see them flinch at your touch.

That’s why even though this heartbreaking fight isn’t over, we are beyond grateful that loving, urgent support like yours saved Sophie and her friends.

As we spoke softly to these brutalized, broken donkeys, we promised we’d save them. Ever so gently, one of these souls dared to hope... dared to trust.

He nudged us with his nose as if to reassure the others that this was their one way out. And, because of incredible people like you who take the time to give, it was!

Yes, their rehabilitation will be costly. Yes, they’ll need ongoing protection and a lifetime of care. Yes, it will cost many thousands of dollars.

And yes, we are always grateful for your urgent and incredible support.

Today, Sophie and her friends are counting their blessings for you. And so is everyone at NFA, and at our tireless partner organizations in 25 countries around the world.

Thank you for ALL you do, this November and always.

For the animals,

Brian and Gloria Davies (And Max and Flora!)
Founders
Network for Animals

P.S. Network for Animals has also worked with donkey owners in Bela-Bela for several years, helping to educate them about the proper treatment of animals. Funds we raise are also used for microchipping, education programs - and we now have a full-time donkey welfare inspector on the ground! Your kind donation, no matter how large or small, always helps SAVE LIVES! Thank you for helping save beaten and abused animals like Sophie.