Over our many years of undercover investigations, Animals’ Angels has often witnessed the miserable plight of the donkeys and burros who join horses in the auction pen, and who are shipped to Mexico in deplorable conditions to be slaughtered for their meat. Now, a new and disturbing increase in global demand for donkeys has compelled Animals’ Angels to open an investigation into a secretive trade that poses a growing threat to donkeys in America.

The Secret Ingredient

A traditional Chinese medicine called Ejiao, also known as Colla Corii Asini or Donkey Hide Glue, is becoming increasingly popular due to claims it offers significant health benefits, such as anti-aging powers and increased libido.

Unfortunately, Donkey skin is the key ingredient in Ejiao, which is sold in pill or tonic form, and which contains extracts of the gelatin found in the donkey hide, along with mixed herbs and other ingredients.

The market demand for Ejiao has been rapidly growing, especially in China, and the cost of the product has been rising accordingly. For example, a small, 9oz box of Donkey Skin Glue can cost as much as $320.00 on Amazon.

With demand for the key ingredient of Ejiao expected to rise to a staggering six million skins a year, and the donkey population in China rapidly shrinking, it appears a global hunt is on for the now sought-after ingredient.

In fact, international organizations have started reporting widespread donkey theft and illegal butchering in Africa, and evidence is mounting that buyers are reaching out to suppliers in South America and Mexico.

These indicators of the growing global demand for donkeys prompted Animals’ Angels to dig deeper to determine the potential impact and threat to donkeys in the US. 

Animals’ Angels began the investigation into the impact of the Ejiao trade by identifying auctions across the US that sell a large number of donkeys. After much research and a complex string of investigations, we determined the key auctions are located in Tennessee, Texas, Oklahoma, and New Mexico.

Our investigators then identified the kill buyers who buy donkeys at auction on a regular basis. It was no surprise to us that some of the most notorious kill buyers ended up on the list, such as Mike McBarron & Garry Morris in Texas, Dennis Chavez in New Mexico, and Triple Crown Ranch and George Baker in Oklahoma.

All the kill buyers on our list are well known for their callous treatment of animals in their care, and unspeakable cruelty has been witnessed and documented by Animals’ Angels investigators in the past. Most of these ruthless kill buyers are also known violators of the Commercial Transport of Equines to Slaughter Regulation.

Next, we confirmed that all of these kill buyers had shipped donkeys to Mexico, but we needed to know how many. While the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service lumps together the quantity of donkeys and horses crossing the border to be slaughtered,  our investigators were able to use Mexican records to calculate that kill buyers received an average of 43¢ per pound for donkeys in the first half of 2020 which was a steep increase from the average of 25¢ per pound in earlier years.

We also discovered that Mike McBarron was by far the biggest shipper, responsible for sending approx. 314,034 lbs. of donkeys to a gruesome death. The second largest, Triple Crown Ranch, shipped 57,011 lbs. of donkeys across the border.

These poor donkeys were shipped to slaughter via the Eagle Pass and Presidio export pens, and then on to the notorious Carnicos de Jerez and the Empacadora de Carnes de Fresnillo plants. These plants have been severely impacted by the EU ban on horsemeat from Mexico and are searching for new markets and buyers for the flesh and hides of the animals they slaughter.

Animals’ Angels recently exposed that meat from the Carnicos plant was being used in organic dog food sold in Europe, and we now have evidence confirming that in 2020 they have already sent several large shipments of donkey hides to Chinese importers. There is a high probability that some of these hides were sourced from US donkeys supplied by the sellers identified by Animals’ Angels.

Animals Angel’s investigation into the expanding Ejiao trade reveals a growing threat to US donkeys as the global demand for donkey hides continues to soar. With this in mind, Animals’ Angels will continue to track developments in the donkey market and monitor the key players.

We encourage all our supporters to share the important information in this newsletter with as many people as you can, and to spread awareness of the widely unknown Ejiao trade.

You can make it clear to online trading platforms, such as Amazon and eBay, that they should no longer sell products containing donkey hides; several online petitions are already available to sign.

Animals’ Angels is dedicated to uncovering secret trades, inhumane practices, and legal loopholes that may prove a threat to horses, burros, and donkeys. This month’s newsletter provides much needed information for consumers to make ethical decisions.

Through years of hard and often dangerous work, we have built a strong network of informants and onsite investigators who know just how important it is to stay vigilant in our advocacy for the innocent animals we have vowed to protect. Our efforts are time consuming and expensive, but the value in lives saved is well worth the cost.

We ask you to join us in advocating for the animals today. Your tax-free donation will be used to support future investigations and will enable us to continue our work on behalf of the animals we love. 

Animals' Angels

PO BOX 1056

Westminster, MD 21158

443-821-3343

info@animalsangels.org

Animals' Angels works to fight cruelty against horses, dogs and farm animals in the US, Canada and Mexico. Every week, our team conducts undercover investigations at auctions, kill pens, feedlots and slaughter plants to document the abuse animals face every day.

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