Donkeys are wearing snazzy trousers and we think they look great

They’re sweet and grumpy, like little scruffy horses. We love them.

So it would be pretty rubbish if we just sat back and let them get bitten by bugs, wouldn’t it?

Indeed it would – which is why some animal lovers around the world have been making special trousers for donkeys to wear, to help protect their legs from flies.

Sheila Zanyk, a volunteer at the Donkey Sanctuary of Canada, lovingly made a pair of trousers for a donkey called Ben.

“It took a few tries, but it’s working well now,” she tells Canadian broadcaster CTV News. “The first time we put them on him he was really proud of himself. He walked around the whole barnyard – just ‘look at me, look at me’.”

She adds that Ben will keep his trousers on until winter, when the flies will finally start leaving him alone.

They look pretty snazzy too.

And a bit closer to home, on the île de Ré in the south of France, donkeys are given special trousers to protect them from mosquitos.

Also, donkeys in the south of France are really hairy – who knew?

It’s always good news when people are being nice to donkeys, especially as they tend to be given a rough time.

Just this week, donkey lovers have been warning that donkeys in Santorini in Greece are becoming physically crippled because they’re being forced to carry increasingly heavy loads – mainly tourists.

“People have said it’s fat shaming and it’s not because there’s obviously nothing wrong with being overweight,” June, one of the founders of the Help the Santorini Donkeys campaign, tells BBC Three. “But if you are larger, you need to be mindful of the strain you’re putting on a donkey’s back.”

She adds that donkeys have been seen passed out, dying of exhaustion, and that their owners have abandoned them. “It’s abuse,” June says.

According to the campaigners, donkeys are only supposed to carry stuff up to about 20% of their own weight – which would typically be about eight stone (or 50kg).

The Donkey Sanctuary UK tells BBC Three that it is also concerned about how the donkeys are treated, but adds that, "in Greece, donkeys and mules are an intrinsic part of the tourism industry, providing families and communities with an opportunity to create a sustainable livelihood."

The spokesperson adds: “The Donkey Sanctuary has already expressed concern about the current working conditions and practices of many of the donkeys and mules working on the island, with continued challenges around enforcement of regulations and issues such as lack of shelter from the sun, lack of water, excessive working hours and overloading.”

The positive news from all this is that officials from the municipality of Santorini have announced that they plan to make changes to donkeys' working conditions, pledging to provide more shade from the heat, and reduce the animals' workloads and working hours. 

But it’s pretty clear folks – if you really love donkeys, maybe don’t ride them. Just knit them a pair of fetching slacks.

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