Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue

Who Should You Support?

It seems as though everyday Amy and I receive a dozen more donation requests from animal rescues all across the country, many of which we have never heard of.  Aside from Peaceful Valley, we do have a list of charities, many of them animal related, that we give to on a regular basis.

In these tough economic times, donations are more crucial than ever but it is important to make sure that the rescues that we support are doing the most good possible.  Here is a list of things that Amy and I consider before making a donation.

#1: Does this Rescue work Nationally or Locally?
        Many rescues do a good work, but have a limited area of service.  It is our belief that if a Rescue is raising funds nationally, then they should be working nationally.  Rescues that only work within a certain community should look to their area of service for their support.  Peaceful Valley works from Coast to Coast and from Border to Border therefore we have no reservations seeking funds from all states.

#2:  Is the Rescue solving a problem or simply collecting animals?
        Unfortunately in our industry there are many animal hoarders that go around picking up animals, even those that are not in need of rescue.  These organizations then ask for your help in supporting their "collection".  Peaceful Valley pre-screens all potential donkeys to ensure there is a real need before using our assets to take in a donkey.  Peaceful Valley also has an adoption policy where our donkeys can be placed into loving adoptive homes, thereby giving us a way to stabilize our population.  Organizations that do not adopt run the risk of having to turn away animals that are truly in need because of lack of room.

#3:  Is the organization actually involved in the issue that they are writing about?
        We have all received letters asking for money regarding issues that catch our eye.  "Baby Donkeys being eaten in France", "Stop Bull Fighting", "Stop Asian Cat Eating" and so on, many of these statements are false and deliberately misleading others are just ways of getting our blood boiling.  In our opinion, if a rescue solicits funds by using an inflammatory story then they are ethically bound to use the money that is received towards that purpose.  Usually this is not the case.  American Rescues have virtually no chance at all of changing the hearts and minds of a foreign government.  It makes a good headline, but raises the question of ethics.

#4: Is the Rescue financially slovent?
        Rescue that are always in a financial crisis are suspect to us.  If a rescue is always crying poor, then perhaps they are poor planners.  We at Peaceful Valley have had the unfortunate job of rescuing donkeys from failed rescues.  This is even more heart breaking because these animals were removed from one miserable situation only to be put in the same condition by an organization that promised to help.  Peaceful Valley is financially solid and while we depend on donations to succeed in our work, we plan far enough in advance to ensure the safety of the animals.  It is also because of our fiscal policies that we are able to step in without hesitation and take in the donkeys that have been neglected at the hands of so many would be rescuers.

#5:  Is the Rescue addressing the future?
        Peaceful Valley looks at the future in two ways: 
How do we ensure that Peaceful Valley will always be around to ensure the future safety of all donkeys?  What steps can we take to prevent future problems from ever occurring?

         Peaceful Valley is a professional animal rescue with a qualified and dedicated staff.  We are constantly training our existing personal in all of the latest techniques and we are always looking for new people to help grow our organization.  Peaceful Valley's Board of Trustees monitors our success and ensures that our Rescue will continue on for many generations to come.

       Peaceful Valley sets aside a certain portion of our budget each year for outreach and education programs.  These programs include Care & Feeding Manuals, Clinics and Seminars.  Through our hard work we have educated donkey owners all across the country and improved the lives of countless donkeys that will never have to learn the horrors of abuse and neglect. 

 

Thank you for supporting the Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue.  We have set the standard in donkey rescue.  I hope this letter has assisted you as you sift through the endless piles of requests that all of us animal lovers get bombarded with.

Best Wishes,

Mark Meyers
Executive Director
Peaceful Valley Donkey Rescue
mark@donkeyrescue.org