There is never a dull moment for the 11 long-eared residents at Eden’s Barnhill Donkey Retreat which they share with nine golden retrievers, eight chickens – now out of bird flu “flockdown” – and one snow marbled Bengal cat.
Run by Linda Gilbert at Sleagill, near Shap, the donkeys are housed at present in four on-site stables and visitors are welcome to visit on weekdays over the summer between 10am to noon.
There is also a newly erected summer house which has been transformed into a donkey hub. “It’s fantastic,” said Linda. “We have got some really cool stuff – donkey door stops, a big donkey hanging basket bracket, which was handmade in a forge, hip flasks, key rings and fridge posters.
“It’s been really great. As well as the stuff for sale there are posters on the back wall.”
The items for sale – including Christmas cards and calendars which go all over the world – help fund the donkey’s medical treatment, which is not cheap. In November alone, last year, her vet bill was £1,768.
But in its first week, the donkey hub has helped to raise about £200.
“People can go in and put donations in,” said Linda. Part of the donkey hub’s remit it to raise awareness of what goes on with donkeys in this country.
Linda said people say to her: “We didn’t know there was donkey cruelty in this country, we always see them abroad, and that is actually quite sad.
“They say ‘does this really happen’ and I say, yes, look at these photographs.”
The hub contains information and posters which graphically depict the horrific state in which some of the donkeys – when they have arrived in Linda’s care – have been in.
Newcastle-born Linda is from Brampton, near Carlisle. She grew up on a Hereford cattle farm near Lanercost and then went into dairy farming herself.
In the past she has also been a welfare officer for the British Horse Society, but her journey with donkeys really took off after her 28-year-old mare died when she was living at Satur Mill, Dumfriesshire, and wanted to find some company for her show working hunter, Tessa, 12 years ago.
Having put the message out on social media, a 21-year-old donkey called Ebbs arrived. She died in November, last year, aged 32.
But something strange began to happen just three months after they got Ebbs. Linda said: “I woke up in the morning and thought, My God, the donkey’s out, but found that it wasn’t our donkey. Somebody had dumped it. Then more arrived, which the police had picked up on the A74.
“We ended up having CCTV put in to see who was bringing stuff – instead of who was nicking stuff,” said Linda.
One Christmas at Satur Mill, there was about 20 being housed over the winter. Linda, who has been at Sleagill for three years, has got 11 donkeys at present, having just rehomed four, some who were unwanted Christmas presents.
The price of donkeys, like dogs, rose during the COVID-19 lockdown. Linda said she saw adverts which said: “Rare Jesus donkey (because it’s got a cross) £3,000.
