01/03/2026
It's time you met Lenny! 🫏 He's been curled up in our logo all this time—here's the real story behind our sanctuary's most famous face.
Lenny’s story starts in a dried-out piece of land in Oklahoma that didn’t even have enough foraging material to support a donkey – and that’s saying something since donkeys are genetically engineered to need very little to sustain them!
Lenny’s mom, Lola is actually a large miniature donkey and was part of a little herd of jennies and foals who, along with a herd sire named Buddy, were literally starving to death. No care and an owner who just didn’t want to give them up, no matter what condition the poor animals were in. Hoarding is a true mental illness – people suffering from this disease cannot see what is happening to the animals right in front of them. They often start out meaning well – but the desire to have “just one more” ends up overwhelming their resources, and they find it impossible to give the animals up – even in the face of disaster.
Fortunately, the kind ladies in the Circle of Friends rescue group found out about this little herd’s plight and asked for help from Red Bell Run. Many weeks later after numerous conversations with the owner (who was truly distraught at the situation she found herself in but simply felt incapable of letting the little herd be rescued,) a hauler was dispatched to haul Lola, heavily pregnant with little Lenny, and the rest of the herd to safety. The little herd was in dire shape: starving, neglected feet, no veterinary or dental care, to the point that one older jenny went down on the trailer. Thanks to the diligent care of our Oklahoma vet and quarantine provider, the little herd did pull through…and the jennies, including Lola, produced foals in due course.
Lola delivered baby Lenny, and he and his herd (now healthy) were brought to Red Bell Run where they lived in our “donkey nursery.” There is nothing cuter than baby donkeys, and Lenny and his little half-siblings proved to be just as adorable as they could be! Lenny was as irresistible as any other baby donkey, and the picture of him curled up in his little nest of shavings, became the donkey on the Red Bell Run logo.
Lenny and the other foals are all grown donkeys now, and the entire family lives at the Sanctuary’s Longears Lodge where they spend their days being very happy donkeys on our dry lot and track system designed specifically for them. Lenny is now a model citizen and regularly charms visitors to the Sanctuary.
