Beasts Of Burden Get A Home and Haven

How many of us have seen Donkeys being overloaded and carrying bricks, mud, sand especially at construction sites in and around Delhi daily and all we did was sigh…feel bad for that moment and said” Poor Animals” wish I could do something for them and then just walked away and get busy in our day to day works and soon forgot these animals….

Hundreds of donkeys work day in and day out in construction sites bricks kilns under unbearable conditions in soaring temperatures without food, water, and rest all their life long. Many suffer open wounds due to harness, some are beaten by sticks and prodded at the back to work faster by owners who are under pressure to finish their work on time, most have eye injuries and bruises due to bricks and sand, etc falling into their eyes daily.

Had it not been for Bob & Jean Harrison these beasts of burden would have slogged their whole life without any rest and died a painful lonely death uncared and unloved for? They left their home and children back in the UK many years back and came to India to help these animals and give them the life they deserve. They spent all their earning, time, energy despite the lack of funds to rescue, heal and nurture injured donkeys, also dogs, buffaloes, cows in Gurgaon, Haryana.

This couple runs the “Asswin Project” for Donkeys and other animals in India, it’s the UK registered charity which finances a healthcare programme for the needy animals in and around Delhi. It rescues and provides medical treatment for injured, sick working donkeys, street dogs, and other needy animals. The name Asswin reflects the work of Asswins – physicians in the Hindu Mythology who were said to attend to the needs of the sick and reduce the pain and suffering. Every penny they get, donations are all spent on the rescue, treatment, and care of animals.

Every morning their Maruti car is transformed into a mobile hospital and they go visiting the brick kilns and construction sites, Jhuggis, etc, equipped with a first-aid box, bandage gauze, cotton wool, surgical scissors, etc to heal hundreds of donkeys around Gurgaon, treating and cleaning an infected foot, a bruised eye, cut ear, maggot-infested hole. They are seen as God for these animals in these areas and are well known and you can often hear the jhuggi walas saying” yeh hamare janwaron ke liye bhagwan hai” They have arrangements with vegetable vendors to spare them their previous day's damaged fruits and vegetables- bruised bananas, cabbage heads, carrots which donkey love to nibble on, and sometimes mangoes for their dessert a special treat. Their home is a heaven on earth for these animals and they are greeted by 190 animals, 25 dogs…who are given the loving care, and home they deserve after all the hard work they do for us ….remember most of the buildings and houses we live in are thanks to the hard tedious work of these beasts of burden.

A special kind of joy

You can tell how attached they are by the way they talk about their animals: “Aah, this one’s Jack,” Bob tells me while giving me a tour. “He’s our oldest resident. We found him blind one November two-three years ago poor fellow has all those bumps on his nose from banging into doors.”.Jean relies more on gestures and a perfect rendition of the rustic “Oye! Oye! Oye!” to a donkey trying to pick a fight with an ass. Was this the plan for retirement? Well, they just wanted the donkeys to lead better lives. What will happen to the donkeys when they’re gone? They need to find a successor, or two, someone with the same strength, dedication, and love for animals, someone who knows where Bob is coming from when he says, “I get satisfaction from cleaning hooves and knowing you’ve made a donkey comfortable.”

In the end, if it had not been for this wonderful and amazing couple our donkeys would have continued working endlessly under tough conditions and died a lonely painful death ….uncared and unloved… we owe a lot to this couple and must come forward to help them out in any way we can and help them by supporting and joining them in this noble cause. Once again a big thanks to the Harrisons, you are indeed God’s Angels on Earth.

To help & visit this sanctuary :
Contact Bob Harrison:9810164214Asswin Project/Donkey Shelter: Near Dankhot Village, Gurgaon