A Co Donegal donkey sanctuary has warned that coronavirus could devastate its ability to care for the animals.
The Donegal Donkey Sanctuary (DDS) in Raphoe said government restrictions mean that normal sources of income will not be available and this could plunge the centre into huge debt.
At any given time it provides shelter and re-homing facilities for up to 100 donkeys.
Manager Danny Curran said most of the money required to run the sanctuary comes from visitors.
However, Irish government travel restrictions mean they will not be able to come over the summer months.
He said the Covid-19 crisis has also raised demand for DDS services as some donkey owners find themselves no longer able to look after their animals.
“In the last 10 days, we’ve taken donkeys in from Mayo, Tyrone, right down to Roscommon. There are quite a few donkeys have been dumped.
“There are two or three (donkeys) and we have volunteers trying to capture them at the moment to get them as far as the sanctuary.”
He said some people who have lost the jobs and sources of income can no longer care for pet donkeys.
“We depend on the visitors coming in the summer months and it’s going to have a huge knock-on effect. If we don’t generate funds at this time of year, it’s going to be impossible for us to pay our vets, our farriers, run our vehicles.”
Mr Curran added that the crisis would impact on the sanctuary’s ability to purchase food for the donkeys next winter.
