Help working animals

Working animals – such as horses, donkeys and camels – are fundamental in supporting the livelihoods of the world’s poorest people.

More than 200million working animals do the jobs of trucks, tractors and taxis, helping to provide a small income for one billion people in developing countries worldwide.

But, this vast global workforce is largely unknown and ignored.

It’s easy to forget that these animals played a key part in our own history, even for large parts of the last century.

Today, 40% of people in the UK don’t even know what a working animal is, but – from cart and plough horses to pit ponies – they were a familiar sight in the streets, fields and workplaces of Britain for centuries.

Many working animals currently endure hard lives and very few have access to the veterinary care they desperately need when they are sick or injured.

These invisible heroes need our help. Which is why I’m asking everyone to back SPANA’s “International Working Animal Day” on Thursday, June 15.

We need to recognise the massive contribution of working animals and ensure they get the veterinary treatment, respect and compassion they deserve.

If you agree, I kindly ask you show your support for these hardworking animals by visiting www.spana.org/ IWAD Geoffrey Dennis, Chief Executive, SPANA (the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad)