Safe Haven for Donkeys Blog

I’m delighted to bring you some good news today. Yesterday we heard our animal food and medicines shipment had finally arrived in Rafah, in Gaza. Thanks to your support we sent US$10,000 worth of food and medicines to Gaza at the end of December, with help from a local organisation called Sulala who are supporting…

Our rescue donkeys over in Arrana received a special visitor this week – Dr Rakan along with Wael – to provide health check ups and vaccinations. You can see some of the photos Dr Rakan sent us below – you’ll recognise some familiar faces! Whilst writing I would also like to give you an update on…

This week we are delighted to share some photos from the West Bank of our team in Hebron. Most recently they have been visiting some of the villages around the area, helping so many animals in need. Once again we would like to thank you, our supporters, for all your help in funding our work.…

We’re pleased to see that Spring has finally arrived at the Sanctuary in Israel. The paddock has dried out and the donkeys are enjoying being out in the sunshine once again. Our team over at the Sanctuary have sent us some wonderful photos which I’m sharing with you today – including the one below of…

This week I’m bringing you news from Egypt. It’s not even a year since we introduced our new programme and vet team but they’re already having the most incredible impact on the welfare of working donkeys. News from Egypt Since the introduction of our new programme of work over in Egypt last year, we have…

This week I have news from our new rescue centre in Arrana, in the West Bank. We’re delighted to say that Jan and Rakan the donkey were given the green light to move across from the hospital in Nablus to their new forever home. And they couldn’t be happier! Do have a look at the…

As you’ll see below, I’ve included some wonderful new photos from the Sanctuary. Unfortunately the awfully wet weather has continued in Israel (as it has in the UK) and created some challenging conditions at the Sanctuary with muddy paddocks. Our main concern is keeping the donkeys’ hooves clean and dry to prevent disease. We’re planning…

I’m very pleased to bring you an update from Andy, our CEO, about the proposed redevelopment of the Sanctuary. You may remember that last autumn, we were well on our way to finding a new site to move to, but sadly the events in Israel put this plan on hold. Andy and the Trustees have…

My name is George Russell and I’ve had the honour of being a trustee of Safe Haven for many years, seeing the incredible impact we’ve had in caring for donkeys over in the West Bank and Israel. But today I want to share with you the harsh reality for people and donkeys who work in the brick kilns…

Over at the Sanctuary – a bit like here in the UK today – it’s been incredibly wet weather. As soon as it’s dry enough, improvements to the site will begin, with a first priority of improving the fencing, followed by updating the quarantine and hospital areas. We will bring you an update on this soon. Meanwhile it’s…

News from Israel This week, after Dr Eliran finished vaccinating all the donkeys against tetanus and rabies, the team gave the sanctuary a deep clean to keep everything hygienic for the donkeys and to discourage flies – as well as being harmful to the donkeys, flies can be a real nuisance to the neighbours who…

News from Gaza Last week, we told you about the animal food and medication purchased for Sulala, the only registered animal rescue organisation in Gaza. We hoped to bring you news by now but as we write, the food and medication is still waiting at the Rafah border crossing as there is a backlog of…

News from Gaza Safe Haven for Donkeys and Animals Australia have teamed up to send desperately needed animal food and medications to the only registered animal rescue organisation in Gaza. Sulala Animal Rescue looks after abandoned and unwanted cats, dogs and donkeys has been appealing to organisations around the world to help them get vital…

News from El Saf, Egypt In our first update of the year, we’d like to show you our work by the team out in El Saf, Egypt. Since the launch earlier in 2023, they have made incredible progress – all thanks to your support. We are delighted to share that Dr Shaaban and the rest of the…

As we draw near to Christmas we’d like to reflect on the amazing progress we’ve made this year – all thanks to your support. Thanks to you we have been able to fund a third mobile vet team in the West Bank. This has meant we can cover a far wider area and help so many…

News from our mobile vet teams in the West Bank You may remember the donkeys shown below – Dr Rakan visited the foal and its mother back in June. The foal has grown so much. You can see some photos below from all of our mobile teams in the West Bank. Dr Rakan visited the Balata…

News from our new Rescue Centre in Arranah Our new Rescue Centre – in Arranah – is now open! We have transported the first few donkeys over to the new centre, where the donkeys are enjoying their new space. Your donations have helped us to build a whole new home for them – in time for…

News from the West Bank All three of our mobile vet clinics in the West Bank are still operating, providing – in some cases – urgent care to donkeys. Dr Rakan has shared an update which you can read below. Dr Rakan told us: “Here we can see a donkey with a bad case of colic. The…

News from the Sanctuary We have exciting news! Our Sanctuary in Israel has a new addition – a little foal who has been named Be’eri. Our new vet, Dr Rafik, believes he’s around 5 months old and is in good health. Maybe you’d like to support us in caring for rescue foals like Be’eri by buying our…

We are delighted to report that all three of our mobile vet teams are back on the road in the West Bank helping donkeys in need. You can see a few of the donkeys they’ve helped this week in our update below. Dr Rakan, in addition to his mobile vet outreach, has also been assisting…

News from El Saf, Egypt This week we have an update from our veterinary team out in El Saf, Egypt. As you’ll see from the photos below, your support to our new programme is already having a positive effect on the lives of donkeys and mules in the brick kilns. The team are visiting two to three…

News from the West Bank We’re delighted to report that Dr Rakan and his team have been able to resume some mobile veterinary clinics to help donkeys, mules and horses in need, visiting areas around Nablus. Our second team headed up by Dr Omran has also recommenced clinics out in the Jordan Valley area. Unfortunately it’s not possible for our…

As the conflict continues in Israel and Gaza, our veterinary outreach work caring for working donkeys is still being restricted in the West Bank. But rest assured we are continuing to care for the 30 rescue donkeys who live at our Rescue Centre in Nablus.  In the meantime I have an update about our sanctuary renovations below…

As the situation in Israel and Gaza continues, we are trying our best to continue to provide care to working donkeys in the West Bank, but with travel restrictions in force, we are somewhat restricted. I am pleased to report that all our staff and donkeys are safe and well and that Dr Rakan has been able to…

As you’ll be aware, the situation in Israel and Gaza is worrying, but we would like to reassure you that our staff and the donkeys in our care at the Sanctuary in Israel and Rescue Centre in the West Bank are safe and well.  We would like to thank you all for your social media message,…

News from the Rescue Centre in the West Bank You may remember our story of the donkey set alight and cast out onto the streets of Jericho in the West Bank. We’re pleased to say he’s doing well – and has a new name! By popular demand of our supporters he’s now called Rakan, after…

News from the Rescue Centre in the West Bank Dr Rakan has asked us to share this story to show you, our supporters, how we are helping cases of cruelty of donkeys over in the West Bank. Please note that this post includes some graphic photos of the donkey’s ear injury. The story began when…

News from the Rescue Centre in the West Bank Our CEO Andy has been over in the West Bank and Israel visiting our mobile vet teams and also the Sanctuary this week. We’ll have exciting news to bring you soon, but Andy has been scoping out new sites to relocate our Rescue Centre in Nablus. The centre…