Firefighters in Arizona were recently fighting a blazing wildfire when they came across a donkey in need of rescuing.
While fighting a section of the 7,000-acre fire near Lake Havasu City, crews from the Desert Hills Fire Department (DHFD) were surprised by the terrified animal.
Incredibly, it was as though the donkey knew the firefighters were there to help him as they cooled his singed body down with water from their hose.
“We have many wild donkeys living in the area, so we’re very used to them here. They’re normally quite skittish, but this one was not,” said DHFD administrator Jeanne Kentch. “This one followed the firefighters. It’s like he knew, ‘If I stick with you, I’ll be safe.’ He kept following them around.”
They even managed to put a hard hat on the scared animal.
The firefighters were not sure if this was a wild donkey or if it escaped from a farm during the wildfire.
“Our firefighters have seen a lot of animals that were killed in the fire, so the situation has been hard on these guys,” said Kentch. “The donkey has really boosted their spirits. He really made their day.”
They eventually found that the donkey belongs to a man named John White. This donkey, three horses and another donkey were returned to him once he was contacted and verified ownership.
The American Wild Horse Preservation Campaign has continued to follow up on the donkey’s care after realizing that there was a left curled up hoof on the animal.
