With AKI grant, INADES-Kenya rescues, provides sanctuary, & re-homes donkeys

Animal-Kind International
Dec 15
4 min read

INADES Formation-Kenya successfully completed their AKI grant project, Protecting the Future of Working Donkeys in Machakos, Kajiado, and Makueni Counties in Kenya.

The grant had several objectives, and fulfilled them all! INADES aimed to:

Strengthen collaboration with other entities by working with other animal welfare organizations and the National Police Service to fight donkey theft and illegal bush slaughter of donkeys in Machakos, Makueni, and Kajiado Counties.
Build infrastructure for donkeys at INADES' Masii Land Farm.
Conduct routine veterinary assessments and clinical operations to ensure the well-being of rescued donkeys.
Re-home rescued donkeys after thorough assessment and in close consultation with all stakeholders.

In September, INADES Formation was involved in two notable rescues:

The Yatta National Police Officer Commanding Station (OCS) and the National Police in Ikombe Police Post (Machakos County) rescued a stolen donkey from the illegal donkey bush slaughter trade. The donkey had been held at the police station for more than three weeks by the time INADES was notified. INADES immediately transported the donkey to the Masii farm, where he received a check-up and was treated for internal and external parasites.

The second rescue was a bit more complex. INADES received a report of a donkey who had been stolen and mishandled by the thieves. He had a broken forelimb and was unable to walk. INADES coordinated with the County Government of Machakos and the Animal Health Practitioner, Machakos to assess the extent of the injury. They placed a bandage to help the leg heal and to make sure the bone would align properly.

Donkey with a bandaged leg stands on dirt near trees and a wooden structure in Kenya. — Injured donkey needed a cast to ensure the leg healed properly

Due to the extent of this donkey's injury, INADES collaborated with Kenya Society for the Protection & Care of Animals (KSPCA) and the donkey was taken to the KSPCA sanctuary in Naivasha. (In 2024, AKI awarded a grant to the KSPCA to build a donkey shelter in Naivasha!)

Also in September, INADES worked with KSPCA to receive and re-home 16 rescued donkeys. Fourteen of them went to families whose donkeys had been stolen. Two of the 16 were re-homed at the INADES Farm. For each of the 16 donkeys, INADES provided:

Veterinary examination and assessment of body condition and health status.
Ecto-parasite and endo-parasite control through application of pour-ons and dewormers.

Man stands beside a donkey in a dry rural area with trees and a small house in the background in Kenya. — INADES Formation's Onesmus assesses a rescued donkey

Two men tend to a donkey tied to a tree in a rural setting, one in a green coat and the other with a stethoscope in Kenya. — Onesmus and Korir (INADES-Formation Kenya staff), assess a rescued donkey

Four people and a donkey stand near an open van on a dirt road surrounded by trees in Kenya. — Donkey owner (Nancy), KSPCA Officers (Raphael & Fred ), INADES-Formation Kenya staff (Korir) with a rescued donkey

Seven people stand around a donkey on reddish soil with a fence made of sticks in the background in Kenya. — Re-homing: area administration officers, donkey recipients, and INADES-Formation Kenya Staff at a donkey hand-over

In October, INADES worked with their partners to rescue and re-home 29 donkeys, three of them to the INADES farm and the remainder with community members. Again, INADES conducted veterinary assessments of rescued donkeys.

Man in green coat and white boots stands next to a donkey by a chain link fence in Kenya. — Dr. Barack Ougo (Vet Officer, INADES Formation Kenya) examines a donkey for ecto-parasites

INADES trains all new donkey owners about compassionate handling and good practices to ensure new donkey owners are well-prepared to care for their donkeys.

Man and woman converse beside a grazing donkey in a dry field with trees in the background in Kenya. — Onesmus Kimanzi (Advocacy Officer of INADES-Formation Kenya) sensitizes a donkey owner on compassionate donkey handling and best practices

During October, INADES also followed up on cases of bush slaughter that happened in two locations and created media clips meant to disrupt the illegal bush slaughter.

A key part of the grant project was completed in October: A hay barn was established at INADES Formation Kenya farm. It has a capacity of 500 hay bales and maize stovers which can feed the donkeys at the farm for at least 3 months.

A wooden structure on a block foundation in a rural area under a partly cloudy sky, surrounded by trees and dry land in Kenya. — The hay barn at the INADES farm with capacity to hold 3 months of hay and maize for rescued donkeys

Wooden hay store at farm in Kenya with a sign stating support from Animal Kind International. — The hay barn

In November, INADES completed another key piece of their grant project--they constructed the donkey shelter at INADES Formation Kenya farm with a capacity for 10 donkeys. The donkey shelter was constructed of locally available materials and will serve as a model for owners of re-homed donkeys. For those owners, a shelter modeled after this one would help keep their donkeys safe from thieves and protected from weather and other hazards.

Three donkeys stand inside a wooden shelter with greenery visible through gaps in Kenya. — The new shelter for rescued donkeys at the INADES farm

The project strengthened INADES Formation's capacity to collaborate with KSPCA in efforts to rescue donkeys from Kenya's illegal skin and bush slaughter trade, provide sanctuary, and re-home. With the AKI grant, INADES built a donkey shelter and hay store, establishing the INADES farm as a sanctuary for rescued donkeys. The farm can now better serve the local community as well, as a training/demo farm for donkey owners.

Because of the success with their grant project, INADES Formation received a top-up grant from one of our Animal-Kind International donors! This will allow INADES to continue monitoring and treating the condition of the re-homed donkeys and hold community clinics for additional donkeys in drought-affected communities.

About INADES Formation-Kenya: INADES' vision is of a prosperous and influential rural world.

Their mission is to work for the economic and social advancement of the people with special emphasis on rural people’s own free and responsible participation in the transformation of their societies.

Some of INADES Formation's achievements over the last few years have been:

Trained 2,479 donkey owners in arid and semi-arid areas of Machakos, Makueni, and Kajiadoon on proper donkey harnessing.
Advocated for the protection of working donkeys against donkey slaughter for commercial purposes leading to closure of donkey slaughterhouses in Kenya.
Improved access to veterinary healthcare of donkeys belonging to 2,314 donkey owners in Machakos, Makueni, and Kajiado.