Alexia Yiannouli learns how Corfu Donkey Rescue came to be and finds out about plans for the future of veterinary care on the island...
Nestled in the sun-dappled olive groves of the northernmost Ionian island lies Corfu Donkey Rescue (CDR), a rescue charity for injured donkeys. The Ionian island is famous for the eponymous Gerald Durrell and his stories of animals and conservation on Corfu, and his love of animals on Corfu continues through organisations like CDR.
When Judy Quinn arrived on Corfu from England, she recognised how many abused and abandoned donkeys were on the island. From rescuing her first donkey, she set up CDR in 2004, with over 500 donkeys passing through since.
Donkeys first arrived in Corfu in the 1800s from Malta and were primarily used for agriculture and transport, especially for olive harvesting. After decades of mistreatment and lack of veterinary care of donkeys on the island, CDR was the first – and only – place on Corfu to offer such care. In 2006, it became recognised as a Greek charity organisation, the first donkey charity in all of Greece.
I have grown up visiting Corfu, my dad’s birthplace, spending all of my summers there. Ten years ago, I volunteered at CDR for a summer before applying to vet school. I have fond memories of volunteering and working with the donkeys and so it seems fitting that a decade later I was able to revisit not only as a qualified vet, but also as a writer.
I hope this article opens your eyes to the running of CDR, but also to the situation with veterinary care on the island. While visiting Corfu, I arranged to meet and speak with Stamatis Paitas, the current manager of CDR, to find out more about him, the donkeys, and the level of veterinary care available on the island.
A meaningful and enjoyable job
An Italian language and literature teacher for 30 years, and holding a masters in linguistics, Stamatis has always loved animals. After his career in Italian language teaching, he wanted to find a job where his work could be meaningful and enjoyable.
Having worked at CDR for the past two years, he was trained by Judy, who has had to take a back seat in the running of the sanctuary due to ill health. Judy was still able to pass on her knowledge to someone who shares her love of animals and continue to be involved in the running of CDR.
Stamatis has a real passion for what he does, and this is evident through listening to him talk and watching his interactions with the donkeys. On a tour of the sanctuary, I found out more about his daily routine at CDR – with no two days being the same.
There are currently around 25 donkeys at CDR, all with individual needs and requirements. The donkeys are divided into two sections – one for those who require close observation and care, and another for the healthier donkeys.
“More than 500 donkeys have passed through the shelter since it was set up – most of them in a very bad condition and very old,” explains Stamatis as he takes me through his daily routine of feeding, cleaning and caring for the individual needs of each donkey.
Limited veterinary care
He goes on to explain that veterinary care on the island is limited to dogs and cats, with no equine specialists based on Corfu. This makes it increasingly difficult to access veterinary care for the donkeys, many of whom have complex medical problems requiring specialist care.
CDR has an equine dentist from Thessaloniki who visits twice a year, and a farrier from Crete visiting three times a year. So while there is some access to specialist equine care, it is limited and requires the staff at CDR to carry out day-to-day care and treatment of the donkeys.
“I dedicate much of my time to ensuring that all the donkeys requiring medical treatments get their necessary medication, spend time checking the donkeys, and also dealing with any emergencies that might arise,” Stamatis tells me. “If something happens out of the blue, we have to make the difficult decisions – many of which involve life and death.”
Stamatis showed me around the medical section, housing donkeys with medical problems varying from cardiovascular disease, flexural limb deformities, and sarcoids – among others. Much of the veterinary care is done by Stamatis and the team of volunteers. The cats and dogs rescued by CDR can be taken to small animal vets to be neutered and during emergencies, something that isn’t possible for the donkeys due to the lack of specialist care on the island.
As we talk, Stamatis explains about a recent emergency involving one of the dogs where he had to rush the dog to the nearest veterinary clinic. This isn’t possible for the donkeys.
Accessing medicine
I was curious to know more about how CDR was able to access medicine for the donkeys, given the lack of equine veterinary presence on the island. Stamatis explains: “We try to use those that we can find easily, so we buy and use medicine that we can find here. If we need something more specialised, we usually get it from Germany. We also have volunteers who send us medicines or bring them when they visit. As an example, the best fly spray we’ve found comes from Germany.”
Cost is also a big factor to consider – and Stamatis explains the ongoing financial difficulties with running CDR. With prices significantly increasing, and the cost of supplies – such as hay – almost doubling, it adds difficulty, especially when the running of CDR relies on donations and the help of volunteers.
I cast my mind back to my time volunteering 10 years ago. Although I can see that over time the island’s attitude towards caring for animals and the veterinary treatment available has improved, it is clear that there are still many gaps in the veterinary care available, with it being limited to small animals. But despite this, the overrunning of stray animals on the island is still noticeable and continues to be a persistent problem.
CDR has volunteers from all around the world – including vets, nurses and vet students. It provides an opportunity to gain hands-on clinical and husbandry experience and also to work towards a meaningful cause. Alongside volunteering and monetary donations, CDR accepts donations in the form of medical supplies. Due to Brexit, CDR encourages anyone from the UK to bring supplies with them when visiting or volunteering instead of sending them by post.
From speaking to Stamatis, it is clear that he is passionate about what he does. “I always say that if you don’t love this work, you can’t do it. We make a very small but important difference,” he explains to me as we finish the tour of the sanctuary. But it is clear that the work of Stamatis and all the volunteers at CDR makes a big impact on the lives of donkeys on Corfu. I was grateful 10 years ago to be involved in that effort, and I’m grateful now to be able to bring the story of CDR to vet practices across the UK and beyond.
If you are interested in finding out more about CDR or if you would like to volunteer, email corfudonkey@gmail.com. You can also find out more on their website: www.corfu-donkeys.com.
Alexia Yiannouli graduated from the University of Surrey in July 2020 and knew fairly early on in the course that she wanted to diversify within the profession instead of going into clinical practice. After working for a time with a veterinary PR company, she completed a Master’s in Science Communication at Imperial College London and moved to Switzerland to be a communications officer in IdeaSquare, the innovation space at CERN. Alexia has just started a three-year stint as a communications officer in the IT department at the new CERN Open Quantum Institute.
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