Milaca woman strives to ‘save the brays’

By Abigail Blonigen

Many have heard the phrase “adopt, don’t shop” when adding a pet to the family. However, cats and dogs aren’t the only furry friends who deserve a second chance.

That is where Kym Garvey decided to step in. Garvey is the founder of Save the Brays Donkey Rescue, the first and only organization of its kind in Minnesota. Save the Brays aims to rescue, rehabilitate and rehome surrendered donkeys as well as educate the public on these misunderstood creatures.

Garvey grew up in Cromwell, Minnesota, later moving to Barnum. She grew up with horses and around 2003 acquired her first rescue donkey, a miniature breed. She loved the mini so much that she went on to purchase two mammoth donkeys.

“Then I decided that I got along so much better with donkeys than I did with horses,” said Garvey, and she became almost exclusively dedicated to them after that.

At the same time, Garvey was volunteering for the Minnesota Federated Humane Society doing animal welfare investigations. As she learned more about donkeys’ management and mannerisms, she also saw a need for these animals to have specialized care in rescue.

In 2007, Garvey began making strides toward Save the Brays becoming a nonprofit, but that was interrupted by changing life circumstances. In 2015 she tried again, and Save the Brays officially became a

501(c)3 nonprofit in 2016.

Now located in Milaca, Minnesota, Garvey has an average of 55 donkeys at a time at her rescue. Most cases are owner surrenders, though a few come from neglect cases and from auctions.

Before a donkey is adopted out, it goes through a veterinary exam and treatment as well as some training. Their feet often need to be tended to, as donkey feet are much different than horses. Garvey makes sure they can safely pick up all four feet before they are rehomed.

Most donkeys can be rehomed, but there are some exceptions.

“Sometimes we have ones that have pretty severe emotional needs that I don’t think would make them safe to adopt out, or some have pretty severe health needs,” she said. “Those stay with us until we can’t keep them comfortable anymore.”

Garvey sees donkeys becoming a more popular pet on hobby farms and horse farms.

“With the increase in popularity comes an increase in population, which sadly follows an increase in unwanted animals,” Save the Brays states on its Facebook page.

Another issue is that folks will treat their donkeys like horses, when donkeys actually have very different needs, from diet and training to hoof care.

“Horses have a really high flight mentality and donkeys have the higher fight mentality,” Garvey explained. “We’ll kind of force a horse to do what we want, but a donkey can’t do that. They’ll put on the brakes, and that’s where you get that stubborn image because the donkey is not going to do anything that’s going to endanger itself. If it’s unsure of what we’re asking, or if it doesn’t trust us, you pretty much can’t make them do it. Training wise, there’s a lot of differences, and it takes a lot of patience. Usually, you learn lots of patience when you work with a donkey.”

Though donkeys are often seen as stubborn and sometimes mean, Garvey maintains they are friendly and loving animals when handled correctly.

“Donkeys are kind of like a big dog. They naturally are drawn to people. … They kind of helped my anxiety and everything cuz they’re a lot calmer (than horses).”

Most of the donkeys Garvey adopts out are to hobby farms, though some are adopted out as show donkeys, riding donkeys, a companion to a horse or even for therapy programs.

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