Amber's Donkey
‘The first time Shocks saw Amber coming, he lowered his head so she could wrap her arms around his nose. It was as if they understood each other’s pain. Like two broken beings, helping each other.’
When Shocks the donkey was left for dead on a farm in Ireland, no one ever thought he would make a full recovery.
When Amber and her twin sister Hope were born 26 weeks premature, it was Amber who was separated from her family and rushed into theatre for an emergency tracheostomy. Her parents were given the devastating news that she had Cerebral Palsy and would be unlikely to walk or talk.
Then Amber met Shocks at the Donkey Sanctuary and their lives were changed
for good.
This is their touching story of recovery through friendship.
Julian Austwick (Author)
Shocks is a ten-year-old rescue donkey who was saved from the brink of death by the Donkey Sanctuary. He now helps countless children with assisted needs and was awarded ‘Rescue Animal of the Year’ for his healing abilities.
Julian and Tracy Austwick live in Birmingham with their five-year-old twin daughters, Amber and Hope. Thanks to Shocks, Amber can now walk and talk – defying all of the doctors’ predictions. Thanks to Amber, Shocks has come out of his timid shell and blossomed into the most popular donkey at the sanctuary.
Ruth Kelly is an award-nominated journalist, who has ghosted a string of Sunday Times bestsellers including entrepreneur Michelle Mone’s autobiography, My Fight to the Top, Out of the Darkness by Tina Nash and You Can’t Hide by Tina Renton. Ruth has had ten years’ experience in print journalism and television.