FAQs
The Barron Park Donkeys live in a private pasture along the bike path near Bol Park. You can visit them there any time, and they may greet you at the gate, but you cannot enter the pasture. We bring them for a walk to Bol Park on Sundays between 10:00 and 11:00 and you can meet and pet them. They are also fed at the gate on Sundays at 5:00 which is another good time to see them.
You can help the donkeys by donating money to help pay for their regular care and vet bills. To donate, click here.
They are owned by the community! For their livelihood they rely on donations from community members like you and volunteers who care for them every day.
With proper care, donkeys can live well into their 30s.
We have a strict rule: Never bring food for the donkeys; we feed them a special diet and work very hard to maintain their health! In particular, foods that are high in sugar like carrots and apples are not good for them as they are prone to diabetes which can lead to a painful hoof condition called laminitis.
Since you asked…why, yes! When Perry was a young donkey he was used as the model for Donkey in the Shrek movies! A local company called Pacific Data Images was a contractor for Dreamworks, the studio that made Shrek, back in 2000. They took over one hundred pictures of Perry to capture his gait and movements. Pacific Data Images donated $75 dollars to Barron Park in gratitude for Perry’s image and likeness. Although they did not credit him in the film he is featured on a Wikipedia page.
In the Barron Park pasture, our donkeys serve only the purpose of bringing visitors a new perspective and brightening their days.
