The "Refugio dos Burros" – the Donkey Sanctuary, came into being in 1991 when Nan Richardson and Peter Lee Lander, both having lived in the Algarve for 12 years and during this time having rescued, rehabilitated and re-homed countless numbers of dogs and cats, decided to buy a small Quinta where their ever-growing family of animals could be housed without annoyance to any neighbours. Soon the news spread and requests came – could we find space for "just ONE more?" and it soon became a full-time commitment. 3.5 Hectares seemed quite a lot of land to start with – now it is far too small!

The donkeys started arriving, all suffering from years of hard labour and no Veterinary care, fortunately, Peter, having been a farmer and also having bred Horses was able to cope with the problems. Fencing, Stabling, Kennels, Food Stores and a bore hole for water were essential. During this time Nan became seriously ill and a "bogus" helper took advantage of her vulnerability, with the result that her remaining assets have become the subject of the case which is still awaiting jurisdiction in the Portuguese Courts. The cost of caring for the animals had now outstripped the private funds available and serious fund-raising activities commenced. Recycled Greetings Cards, Coffee Mornings, Car Boot Sales, Dinners and all the usual means are employed to help with the day- to day expenses.

Very welcome donations have come from other Animal Welfare Organisations and some very generous German benefactors as well as many private well wishers who have visited the Sanctuary and want to enable us to continue our work. The Head of RSPCA’s International Department visited us with their Veterinary Officer on three occasions and the Association which we originally founded was affiliated as a result of their inspection. Some of our original founders, Gordon Hargreaves, Sheena Rawcliffe (who started the Petition for the protection of the donkeys through the "Algarve Resident"), Jean Luckman, Christina Cottis, Vin Orme, Kees and Karin Vlieger, Ernestine van Reis, Baroness Meike Von Gottberg, John and Doreen Pitelen, and many other loyal friends are still with us and are helping in way they can; to these people we can only say that without their support and encouragement we could not have ensured the survival of so many animals.

The trigger point of our concern was the plight of the stray dogs and cats. The life-style of the peasant population means that the females "in Season" are uncontrolled and the result is the multiple conception of large litters of unwanted puppies and kittens who are brought up by their heart-breakingly devoted mothers in secret hide-a ways and when found are often diseased and suffering from malnutrition and if they are found, the means of getting rid of them are not very pleasant - the most common method is to dump them by the roadside or in the Rubbish Bins in plastic bags to die of exposure or being squashed and suffocated. The lucky ones which are rescued – usually by horrified Tourists – are brought to us, some with their umbilical cord still attached, others 6 weeks or more old. They are all treated to the best of our ability but only about 50% survive. We cannot condemn this as cruelty as we know it, when we arrived in the Algarve in 1981 there were only three Veterinary Surgeons in the Algarve and certainly their services were not available to the peasants, and even now the cost is beyond the means of a high percentage of the population.

Even so, there has been a marked improvement in the attitude of the younger generation over the past 15 years, Veterinary Clinics have opened in all towns and help and advice is being sought, stray dogs are not killed with strychnine by the Municipal Dog Catchers but are humanely destroyed by the Ministry Vets but the Pounds in which the strays are kept for three days, to give their possible owners a chance to claim them are a disgrace to some of the local Authorities. In our area of Lagoa we are fortunate in having a sympathetic Ministry Vet and a modern Municipal Kennel, but there are still far to many dogs roaming and there is a marked resistance to the idea of neutering and spaying as it is considered "unnatural". We have held three very intensive Neutering Campaigns with the help of Vets from Germany (who have sacrificed their holidays) and German Animal Welfare Associations, we have succeeded in neutering hundreds of dogs and cats. Apart from these campaigns we normally neuter on average three animals per week, when our funds permit.

The donkeys are in even worse trouble. When no longer capable of heavy work they are either sold to the Circuses and then fed to the lions and tigers, without the benefit of being humanely slaughtered beforehand, or taken out to the old building sites or fields where they are left to die, thus saving the expenses of a Vets fee (15.000 Escudos minimum) and the cost of hiring a JCB for the burial. Fortunately, this has been brought to the attention of the public and, having now spread the word that we will give meat to the lions and tigers and bring in the old donkeys for a chance of a few years of comfortable retirement, we are now having a chance to rescue an increasing number. Our worry now is to keep raising enough funds to take care of them all, we do not have enough Volunteers for the "hands on" daily care nor enough money to employ more than two part-time helpers.

If you live in or are visiting the Algarve and would like to come to see the animals at the Sanctuary, there is always someone available to show you around between 10 am and Mid-day, Monday to Friday. Maps can be sent on request. (Will soon be on these pages – webmaster).

We have two Charity Shops, one at the Quinta dos Areoes Restaurant in Espiches, near Lagos. Open every Saturday and Sunday from 10am until 4pm. Another in the Commercial Centre of Monte Carvoeiro, (run by Christina Cottis) which is open every day except Sundays, from 10am until 4pm.

Thank you for your support

The Donkey Sanctuary
Quinta Sao João
8400 Lagoa - Algarve - Portugal
www.refugiodosburros.nl

Or E-mail info@refugiodosburros.nl

telephone
282 459 207 or 282 431 334