Upcoming Events
JUNE 13/14:
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JUNE 27:
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A Weekend for the Burros and Mules is our large yard sale event planned for the weekend of June 13 and 14. We have been donated a lot of items over the years, and we also have items we no longer need or use, so we want to use the opportunity to raise some funds for hay and other basic needs. We can STILL use more donated items - so please check your barns and homes to see if you have gently used items that you'd like to donate to our fundraiser! The event is a great opportunity for the community to check out our facility and meet some of our animals without having to book a ranch tour or sign up as a volunteer. There will be refreshments and some homemade baked goods for sale as well. Come and join us and see if you find something you'd like to buy to help us feed our animals! |
Past Events
2026
We had yet another fantastic Lazy Sunday Donkey Hike on April 12 with 11 donkeys and about 25 people, five more donkeys than last year. There were 5 standard donkeys, and the rest were minis, including 3 of our adoptees from last year (Esther, Katerina (Emma), and Nico (Chester). Abigail and Chloe were representing TLS, and it was the first time on the trail for both of them. They did great!
Instead of choosing the 2.5-mile burro race course in Cerrillos Hills State Park, we enjoyed a secluded trail off Goldmine Rd, and it was just wonderful! Everyone enjoyed it, and some of the donkeys really learned a lot, including our Abigail. Thanks once again to Joyce and Annarie for hosting this year's hike and offering tea and cookies afterwards! Our public donkey hikes are intended as a community service to both bring together donkey enthusiasts in a meaningful way and to help get 'green' donkey started on the trail in a stress-free and supportive setting. Even donkeys who have never been out on the trail for hiking learn a lot during this event. Please note: This event is non-competitive and does not include racing or running. It is free for the public, though we encourage donations. |
The Turquoise Trail pack burro races attract more visitors every year. It has become a spectacular annual event. Like last year, we had a booth next to the Village of Cerrillos Visitor Center as part of the simultaneous Art in the Park event organized by the Amigos de Cerrillos Hills State Park. Except this year, our booth consisted of three tables (wo)manned by five volunteers.
Awesome day at the pack burro races in Cerrillos. We made almost $900 in total, both from donations (around $350) and from the sale of merchandise (over $500). And we met a lot of friends and new folks. Last year, we started out with one small table and two volunteers, and we made a few hundred dollars. It goes to show how our organization is growing and getting more organized within the community. |
We had a large turnout this year at Camino de los Burros, an annual procession of donkeys and people in 18th Century style attire organized by Jackie Fleming, who runs Shadowlands Ranch, a private reserve for wild mustangs (and some burros). The event's purpose is to honor the contributions donkeys made to the City of Santa Fe.
The route of the procession starts at the parking lot next to St. Francis Cathedral, where the trailers are parked, through the heart of Santa Fe's historic district past the Palace of the Governors, down to the north entrance of Burro Alley and through the alley, where we placed a wreath at the statue of the donkey at the south entrance, just like last year. We then moved up San Francisco Street (east), around the plaza, and back to the Cathedral parking lot for a meet and greet with the public. We brought three donkeys this year, all of different sizes: Pablo the mini, Jessie the standard, and Jackson the large standard (almost mammoth). While Pablo needed a little time to get used to the white stripes on the street (especially the crosswalk at the Plaza), Jessie and Jackson acted like pros after some initial practice on the parking lot. It was a fun event featuring a number of our adopters and their donkeys. |
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2025
Our “Lazy Sunday Donkey Hike” on April 27 in Cerrillos Hills State Park was great fun! We had 6 donkeys on the trail including one mammoth (Poncho). two minis (Fausto and Patootie), and 3 standard donkeys (Pumpkin, Carlotta, and Josey). On the human side, we had about 25 hikers in total. It was great to see old friends, and the lunch at Blackbird's Saloon was delicious! Thank you to Joyce Davis and Annarie Radler for their help with organizing this event!
Our public donkey hikes serve both as a public awareness event for donkeys in general and for the the rescue, in particular, and as a training platform for donkey owners who want to collect some hiking experience for their donkeys without the potentially stressful and noisy setting of a burro race. We use it as such ourselves. At this years' hike, The Longears Safehouse’s Josey quickly became the lead donkey. He was on last year’s hike as well and was a bit of a challenge then. This time around he acted like a pro! Come join us next year, bring your donkeys or just yourselves! July 4th Parade in MoriartyThis was a really big and noisy parade, and Traveler wasn't enjoying it as he had the Camino de los Burros. But he cooperated, wearing a fancy show halter and some patriotic gear. He was happy to get home, though. This may be his last parade, as this sweet guy is getting old.
August 30: Fiesta de los CerrillosThe Fiesta de los Cerrillos this year coincided with the 16th Anniversary of the Cerrillos Hills State Park. Just like at the Turquoise Trail Pack Burro Race in May, we had our table with flyers and merchandise near the Visitor Center. We also participated in the donkey games (Musical Stalls) from 1-2 p.m. with Jackson, and he won second place! It was a hugely fun event.
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Dorothea and Sue had a fun morning at the Turquoise Trail Pack Burro Race in Cerrillos on May 3. We even got some t-shirts and other merchandise sold, and we handed out a lot of flyers and trading cards. It was pretty crowded. This has become a huge event! The event is organized by NM Pack Burros and also includes an Art in the Park section, which is funded and hosted by Amigos de Cerrillos Hills State Park.
Please note that if you purchase our merchandise directly from us at an event or at the farm, you'll get a discount! May 16, 2025:
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Camino de los Burros is an annual procession of burros walking through the heart of Santa Fe's historic district in honor all of New Mexico's donkeys, past and present. The event started at the St. Francis Cathedral parking lot on Cathedral Place at 9.00 am (though we had to be there earlier…!). The procession itself took roughly 45 minutes. It took us past the Palace of the Governors, down to the north entrance of Burro Alley, then through the alley, where we placed a wreath at the statue of the donkey at the south entrance, then up San Francisco Street (east,) around the plaza, and back to the Cathedral parking lot, where there was a meet and greet for the public.
The event was organized by Jackie Fleming, who runs Shadowlands Ranch, a private reserve for wild mustangs (and some burros). She also drew the beautiful poster with a map showing the route of the procession. The event was well attended and a lot of fun. Our old mammoth donkey Traveler enjoyed it very much. Besides Traveler, there were two other mammoth donkeys, two standard donkeys, and three minis. August 23: Mountainair Sunflower Festival 2025We had a great time at the Mountainair Sunflower Festival on Saturday, August 23. We had a table for our flyers and merchandise and we also had a fundraiser going on at the same time. Katie and Justin Boeff of 3B Ranch, a NM event burro outfit, brought their sweet mini donkey Ace, in training to become an event burro. He did very well offering bottled water to festival visitors, and he made $349 in donations for us! If you happen to have an event - wedding, birthday party or whatnot - where a white mini donkey serving beverages would be a great addition, why don't you contact Ace's people to make arrangements?
October 26: HIKING & HISTORY |
November 1:
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We enjoyed a great fundraiser event at Joyce Davis' home in Cerrillos. The event was from 11 to 3 pm. There was a carriage drawn by a team of mules, and we had some donkey games as well. The event included a birthday cake for two birthdays. A huge thank you to Annarie for her exquisite quiches and zucchini bread, to Joyce for organizing the event, and to all the helpers on site! Even though there were no tickets and the event was by invitation only and not advertised, we raised around $1,600, most of which was by donation and only some through merchandise sold.
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This event had been twice rescheduled due to scheduling conflicts, and while many people found the idea great, the location was too far away for most of our NM supporters and associates, and the planned hike seemed a bit too long for many. Despite these shortcomings, we did manage to put together a nice event. We enjoyed Jackie Fleming's hospitality at Shadowlands Ranch, and the wild horse herd came up to check on us just at the right moment. It was gorgeous weather, and the participants all had interesting stories to tell.
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2024
April 5: Informal Donkey HikeOur first public donkey hike at Gutierrez Canyon Open Space in Cedar Crest was both a success and a challenge, since most of the participating donkeys and handlers were still pretty green on the trail. It was a lot of fun, though. They all learned a lot.
Bandit was the hero among the donkeys. He was the calm, steady leader at the front. Trouble, despite his age and alleged past experience as a riding donkey, became hard to handle when near the other donkeys. He had to be walked at the very end. Josey, the greenest of all, was very nervous at first but learned so, so quickly and was almost a different donkey at the end. Pistol was nervous, too, but got better over time. Romeo/Raggy was a darling. Josey, Pistol, and Romeo/Raggy would make great pack burros, but Pistol and Romeo already have a home lined up. Thank you to Tania and Peter for their help with organizing this event and hosting the delicious lunch afterwards at their home! Sue Kersten took most of the pictures during the event. |
We are grateful to Tania and Peter for organizing and hosting this refined fundraiser event, and to Debra for assisting with the preparations as well as with arrangements during the event. Sue donated a delicious apple cake, and JR Chapman provided live music.
I think everyone agrees that our first official fundraiser event was a huge success. We raised $2,304.84 in total from tickets for the fundraiser, raffle tickets for a stuffed donkey handcrafted and donated by artist Tracy Lee Chapman, calendars and Thanksgiving cards sold directly at the fundraiser, a painting made and donated by artist Jane Allen (who has been fostering one of our donkeys since 2020), and some donations that were made specifically on occasion of the fundraiser. That means that the fundraiser alone almost covered our entire expenses for one month of hay and straw, which came to about $2,632 at the time. Thank you so much to everyone who contributed to this huge success! And plus, we all had a lot of fun at this event, too. The host donkeys themselves (all four adoptees of ours) also enjoyed the event. Bandit, however, went out of his way to take advantage of some of the visitors' inexperience: He went about grabbing their purses and clothes, and we had to constantly intercept his attempts to mess up people's belongings. I guess, he wanted to prove that his new name is befitting him! |
December 14: Small pop-up info and sales event
We are grateful to Zach Withers for letting us set up in front of Polk's Folly in Cedar Crest for a couple of hours to hand out some info flyers and sell a few t-shirts and calendars. Thanks to Sue and Debra for (wo)manning the stand! (P.S.: One copy of our calendar for 2025 can be seen inside the Polk's Folly farm market at the door behind the counter.)
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