There are three little donkeys that Phil and I always love to visit, and they are Ashley, Zena and Mr Khan! Lots of people know about Ashley the orphaned foal (he even has his own Facebook page) and Zena, the foal born prematurely. Their stories are told elsewhere on this website, so I won't repeat them. Instead I'll tell you about the Ashley, Zena and Mr Khan that we know!
Approaching the paddock at the end of the day, we always call the baby donks by name. Without fail, it's Zena who looks up first. She reminds me of a baby bison with her dark fluffy coat. But although its Zena who notices us, it's Ashley who makes the first move. He trots over, eager for some attention and hopefully some mischief-making. His favourite game at the moment is playing tug-of-war with a welly boot we gave the donks a few weeks ago. Today Phil grabbed the boot and ran off with it - Ashley in hot pursuit. I stood with Mr Khan under one arm and Zena under the other watching the game of chase! Suddenly, without warning, Ashley swung away from Phil and raced full-pelt towards me and the other two little donkey foals! I managed to grab him before he scattered us like nine-pins! Then just as quickly, he tore back to Phil, grabbed the welly boot with his teeth and trotted off triumphantly!
Mr Khan is a lovely, friendly little donkey. His mum is Oonagh and his big sister, Breda, is Ashley's foster mum. Mr Khan likes meeting visitors and he's always really well behaved. He also loves to be groomed. When Ashley is busy stealing the lime-light, Mr Khan quietly gets on with the business of nibbling grass next to his mum... although I did notice him yesterday playing racing games alongside the fence with Mars - a young filly in the next door paddock!
Zena is a pretty little donkey with lovely eyes and dark, shaggy fur and is the foal of Flora. Zena is very affectionate and likes to stick her chin on my chest and have me scratch her ears! She's no push-over when it comes to Ashley either. As soon as she noticed that Ashley had put down his welly boot - she skipped over and grabbed it herself, resulting in a tug-of-war between the pair of them! And that's where we left them this afternoon - playing happily together in the sunshine by Shelter 2.
Related stories
Zena the foal is lucky to be alive
A gorgeous bundle of joy is born - Mr Khan
Ashley
External links
Ashley Foal - Facebook page
I love it , love, LOVE it! Thank you Angela for this great story today about the three foals that are growing up. All so special to me and many. You brought smiles and giggles to me. Three Little Donkeys sounds like a great title for a poem as well! Their simple joy with life at the Sanctuary reminds me of a poem by William Blake here in part:
I happy am,
Joy is my name.
Sweet joy befall thee
Pretty joy!
Sweet joy I call thee:
Thou dost smile,
I sing the while,
Sweet joy befall thee.
Oh, I would love to play with these three as you have done. What fun!
Happiness to all,
Jenny B.
Hi Jenny!
Playing with the donkey foals is indeed a lot of fun! We used to visit them first thing in the morning, but ended up spending way too much time there, so now we visit at the end of the afternoon instead.
They are three very cute little donks!
Best wishes
Angela
I have to say, I would also spend too much time playing with Ashley, Zena and Mr. Khan! Precious moments all, and please take a look at my latest poem inspired by and dedicated to all four of you...with thanks and joy,
Jenny B.