Donkey Walking in Ivybridge

Donkey Walking in Ivybridge
I went down to the DAT Centre in  Ivybridge on Monday 21st January 2013, where I am a volunteer, which was my first stint since Christmas.  It was a very cold day and there was still remnants of the snow and ice that we had experienced over the last few days.We had one school in during the morning, with a second booked in, but they cancelled so we had a little spare time until the next school came after lunch.  The centre was just getting back to normal after the Christmas break, and some of the donkeys had become a little bored, so we decided to take 6 of  them for a nice little stroll around Filham Park lake to stretch their legs and do something a little bit different (although they have been on these strolls before).

Those taking charge of a donkey were asked which donkey they would like, and I naturally chose Pip my very favourite donkey.  We go back a long way, ten years to be precise, as Pip was one of the original donkeys that were used on the mobiles when I first started, so I have a soft spot for him.

We had a nice little walk around the lake, which in places was iced over, and even on the paths there were some little icy patches that we had to negotiate, but we all managed it without any problem, except Tim got spooked a little when a swan decided to stand up and flap his wings.

Pip and I had a nice little chat all the way around, and as he is getting on a bit, and  is semi retired from working, he was obviously glad to be out and about and seemed to enjoy it.

After this little break and then lunch it was back to work with the afternoon schools with the working donkeys.