Not much is known about Peaches before she was admitted to The Donkey Sanctuary of Canada in the autumn of 2009. She had been abandoned on the front lawn of a small petting farm in Central Ontario, and the family quickly realized that she needed expert attention. They contacted the DSC, and we met to pick her up. From the moment she was loaded onto the trailer, it was evident that Peaches was in a great deal of pain. Her feet were in bad shape – you could see that they had been left to grow for years, twisting in the process, then the excess hoof had been simply cut off without any consideration for the shape or conformation of her feet. As a result, each step she took was awkward and obviously caused her pain.
X-rays taken of her front feet revealed that the contortion of her hooves was so severe and chronic, that part of the lowest bone in both front feet had been worn away. DSC staff consulted with our veterinarians, farrier, the Ontario Veterinary College at the University of Guelph and with veterinary staff from the Donkey Sanctuary in England; all of whom concurred that there was nothing that could be done to ease Peaches’ pain, and that the kindest thing to do was to humanely euthanize her. A life of constant pain was not an acceptable option.
Peaches’ story is an example of what can happen with a lifetime of neglect.