Even before we arrived in Bonaire, we knew we’d want to go to its donkey sanctuary. And it was – easily – among the most fun things we have ever done!
Be warned, though: as with our Cats of Kotor post, this one is mostly about the photographs…
The Spanish first brought donkeys to Bonaire in the seventeenth century, to do the heavy lifting. By the twentieth century, though, mechanised transport took over their functions. Most of them were set free, and they’ve been roaming the island ever since.
But freedom was not necessarily a gift, because donkeys, though loveable, often walk out in front of cars. Some, especially the young, are mauled by dogs, and some are dehydrated or starve to death. In 1993, a Dutch couple decided to provide care for a wounded donkey, and thus an empire was born. From a single donkey, their sanctuary has grown to 820 donkeys ranging in ages from a few weeks to 46 years old. The most recent survey has found that there are about 1,100 in the wild. And indeed if you walk or drive around the island, you encounter them on a regular basis.
One drives through the donkey sanctuary (slowly), stopping first at the ‘senior meadow’, where the older folks hang out. Then you make your way around the other meadows. On our first trip, the donkeys were curious and friendly, sniffing in the car windows and surrounding us when we got out of the car. At the end of your drive around the sanctuary, you come to the mother’s meadow and an urgent care unit, for orphaned or seriously wounded donkeys.
On our second visit, we had the opportunity to meet Melina, one of the founders of the donkey sanctuary, and to talk to her about her work and about the donkey situation on Bonaire. Over the years, she has also taken a few flamingos on, and some turtles too. We think it takes a special kind of person to do what she has done.
On our second visit, we brought friends and also food. To nobody’s surprise, we found ourselves even more popular with our asinine compatriots. They surrounded our car in a hurry (that’s John above trying to move past them to take some pictures), and the taller ones put their snouts right in through the car windows, in large numbers, and helped themselves to our snacks!
So friendly were the donkeys, in fact, that we feel like we’ve come up with a valuable mental health hack: should you ever find yourself seriously in the dumps, wondering if anybody really likes you, get on the next flight to Bonaire and head over to the donkey sanctuary. Being around these sweet creatures has a wonderful effect on your mood. And even without a carrot, you will discover that you are very much loved!
PS: If you can’t get there, go to their website which has six (!) donkeycams with continuous live feeds!
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