Santorini: Very heavy tourists drive donkeys

There may be nothing more Greek than strolling the streets of the beautiful and mountainous island of Santorini, Greece, on a donkey. But the truth is that this tradition is becoming increasingly heavy for these animals, who have serious spinal problems and many open sores caused by stool.

A group of animal rights activists say that besides donkeys being forced to carry ever greater weights, they do so seven days a week, without rest or water. "It is recommended that animals do not carry more than 20% of their own weight," said a spokesman for Aid to Santorini Donkeys at the newspaper Daily Mail

Santorini receives Thousands of tourists the years, mainly between May and October, and the donkeys were used to transport them to known areas where vehicles do not have access.

Christina Kaloudi, creator of the Santorini Animal Welfare Association, overworked, moved from Athens to the island about ten years ago and says that in the last decade, the number of tourists US, Russian and English overweight in Santorini has tripled.

] According to a spokesman for Help the Santorini Donkeys, animal problems are caused by obese and overweight tourists, as well as by heat and shadowing and deprivation. water that the donkeys undergo. "There should be a weight restriction," he says. "But who was to make sure that was the case, in fact?"

Local residents decided to resort to a cross between donkeys and mules, larger and larger, for the purpose of raising animals. the strongest who can support the heavier tourists. According to them, donkeys make four or five trips every day to the town of Fira, the capital of Santorini, without any conditions, which has become unbearable for these animals

Donkey Sanctuary, a British organization. which has existed since 1969 and is devoted to the welfare of donkeys, has already expressed its views on the treatment of animals on the Greek island. "Donkey Sanctuary does not actively promote the use of donkeys or mules in any form of tourism," said a spokesman for the organization.

In 2008, an international code of practice was signed for work involving horses, side by side. with the Sanctuary of Donkeys, but the truth is that the owners of the animals use them without measure, without respecting the rules.

The British organization now intends to "convene an urgent meeting with the Greek government to discuss welfare". of horses working in Greece. "To this end, he has already sent a request for help to all people, so that they become advocates of this cause.