Coruba

Yorkshire-born Dr Svendsen devoted her life to improving the lives of donkeys and mules (donkey and horse hybrids). She worked hard to help them live a life free from suffering, and in a world where their value to society was recognised.

Born in 1930, she became fascinated with donkeys when she was eight. During a family day out to St Annes, in Lancashire, her dad drove past a field of donkeys and she immediately adored them. From there on in, every time she went out in the car with her dad, he had to take a detour so she could see the donkeys again.

In the late 1960s and now a successful businesswoman, Dr Svendsen decided to open a donkey sanctuary - she chose the Salston Hotel at Ottery St Mary as an ideal location. Although the large country house had eight acres of land, it was run down, but she managed to renovate it into the sanctuary which opened in 1969. She rescued neglected, abused and abandoned donkeys from everywhere and nursed them back to health.

Over the years, the sanctuary has rescued more than 15,500 donkeys and mules from across the UK, Ireland and from Europe – it has given them a lifelong home and the love and attention they deserve.

In 1980, Dr Svendsen became a Member of the Order of the British Empire and in 2001, she was given the prestigious Lord Erskine Award by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals for her invaluable work. Although she died in 2011 at the age of 81, her legacy lives on in the shape of the sanctuary.