A lonely donkey in Duncan, BC has been given a new lease on life thanks to volunteers, a viral post ‒ and a pile of yoga balls.
Known as Earl, the donkey arrived at the A Home for Hooves Farm Sanctuary following the death of his owner. Poor Earl was alone and needed veterinary and farrier attention.
“His hooves hadn’t been looked after, it was almost like wearing shoes that were five times too big,” Home for Hooves president and founder Michelle Singleton told Global News. “He wasn’t able to run or do anything like that because they were so overgrown and also the space that he was in as well was just a backyard, essentially. So he didn’t have space to run and graze and do all the things that donkeys should be doing.”
Sad Earl with his deflated yoga ball. (A Home for Hooves Sanctuary photo)
Once Earl arrived at the sanctuary his medical needs were addressed, but he wasn’t thriving. He appeared sad and lonely and did not bond with any of the other barn animals. He craved attention from people, and Singleton explained he would cry when you walked away. “It just kind of broke your heart.”
A visit from one of the sanctuary’s “foster moms” proved a game changer. “She had the idea of giving him a yoga ball because she’s used them for her horses,” Singleton told the reporter. “So she gave him the ball, and he was like ecstatic because he had his new hooves, he was able to run around and rip around his pen. And then this ball was just like pure joy for him.”
But it wasn’t long before Earl kicked and bit the ball too hard and it deflated. That’s where social media came into play. Singleton posted to the group’s social channels asking for a new ball:
Earl is heartbroken this evening! His beloved ball has deflated and he’s the saddest donkey you’ve ever seen without his ball 🙁
Earl plays with his ball several times a day and he has spent countless hours chasing after it. If you have a spare exercise ball you’d like to part with (and fill Earl’s heart with joy) please send us a DM or email.
The post went viral. “We have, I think, about 15 to 20 right now because we had Amazon packages delivered,” she told Global News. “People were just coming and dropping off balls. It was to the point that I had to tell people to stop because I’m going to have an entire garage full from floor to ceiling of yoga balls.”
Earl also now has three other donkeys ready to join him in his paddock, as well as his choice of exercise balls.
