About Johnnie
On November 19, 2013 Johnnie the donkey received a gift from an angel named Lorraine—a second chance to survive the horror of a slaughterhouse. He was pulled from a feedlot in Pennsylvania by Sundew Saves Horses. She tried vigilantly for several weeks to find someone to step up and save him from his harrowing fate. Lorraine’s mission is pulling a handful of equines headed for death, and promoting their stories and photos for an allotted number of days in the hopes that “someone” will want to offer a safe place for them to reside.
Johnnie was “last man standing” and headed to the “truck” when AGES was able to step up to the plate and save him on December 3. So started Johnnie’s journey from feedlot to the stable at Sundew Saves in NJ for quarantine.
His journey here was hampered by several difficult weeks of snow, ice and a “polar vortex” that kept his transport delayed for awhile. Sheriff Johnnie – as we so named him – arrived on AGES soil at 3am in the midst of a frigid, blustery and subzero night on January 5 and we saw pretty quickly that the ailments/injuries poor Johnnie exhibited were that of a donkey that had been used as a “roping dummy.”
Donkey roping is a cruel and completely unnecessary “sport.” Donkeys are anatomically different from cattle, and their bodies cannot stand up to the rigors of roping the way a steer’s can. They are often injured, sometimes seriously. Donkeys are gentle, intelligent creatures and, by nature, are very trusting and this activity also does a lot of mental damage to these gentle creatures.
Johnnie has a 20 percent rotation of the Coffin bone in one of his front hooves and about 15 percent in the other due to years of neglected hoof care and founder episodes. He also was infested with lice, has limited vision due to cataracts and probably a rear hind stifle injury. He also has breathing problems due to throat injuries. But now that he’s had some basic care for his hooves and teeth, he is interested in his surroundings and meeting his fellow equines.
Johnnie has since received veterinary care including having the teeth he has left floated. In performing that dentistry, he can now comfortably chew hay and grain which he had great difficulty with when he arrived. He has had overdue farrier care to address his neglected hoof care and been deloused from being covered head to toe with lice. We will also be addressing a serious Patella injury he sustained during his years of abuse.
Today Johnnie trots around with his head up…and greets the day with energy and a lot less painfully. Your sponsor dollars not only give him a warm, comfortable bedded stall at night – and healthy yummy meals each day…but also help AGES afford the x-rays, continued farrier work, chiropractor adjustments and various other costs he will need for his lifetime.
Sheriff Johnnie is “in charge” of greeting all guests who arrive here at AGES and searches for any “contraband” of carrots or treats anyone might be trying to get past him! Johnnie is about 20 years old. He will remain here at AGES as a permanent resident.
He’s sweet and patient and we want to give him the best life he can have as a permanent resident of AGES. We could really use help with his vet expenses. Please consider making a donation to help us pay for Johnnie’s care. Or, even better, please be a sponsor for Johnnie. Every sponsor will receive a welcome gift of a beautifully hand-sculpted model of Johnnie made by Elvenspun. Please indicate that you would like to sponsor Johnnie at the bottom of our donation page
