The first donkey museum in the region will soon be opened at the Donkey farm in Martinici, and the founder of the farm, the ornithologist Darko Saveljic, has also announced the opening of the visitors' center. "It will be the first farm in the country to have a visitor center and the first donkey museum in the region," he told Newspapers. Saveljic founded the farm in 2015 to protect an animal that is part of Montenegrin natural and cultural heritage. So, it became a refuge for a few donkeys bought by the founders to save them from torture, hunger, and hard work. He said that about thirty years ago, the donkey was the best ally of rural households in the karst part of the country. Today, it has lost the battle with machines and has become one of the most endangered animal species in Montenegro, even threatened by the pelican. Visitors to the future museum will be able to see saddles, wooden buckets (burilo), Polaroid photographs with donkeys on beaches, photographs from the lives of donkeys in Montenegro, and stories from the life of the first donkey farm in Montenegro over 108 square meters.
The Visitor Center will be located within the museum. Saveljic said that the idea is that this space will be free of charge for seminars and workshops on nature protection and agriculture. Two suits within the farm will soon be completed to accommodate volunteers working there.
"The farm is very popular abroad and we have a large number of announcements, especially German tourists, who want to stay at the farm, where they will work and pay for it. It sounds strange, but the foreigners will stay on the farm, work and pay," says Saveljic.
One hundred fifty donkeys live in Montenegro and that is the total number of these animals, counting those on the farm in Martinici.
He explains that it is a form of tourism that is more popular with those who want an active vacation.
"These are mostly families with children. There will also be organic gardens, so we can start the program “Pick, prepare and eat” to complete the offer. Soon the valley of Zete River will be a protected area, so staying in the beautiful and protected nature is a luxurious experience," said the founder.
Apart from being a shelter for donkeys, the farm has the role of sensitizing people to the problems of animal abuse and offers free assistance to families who have problems with autistic children. Donkey’s milk production is also carried out on the farm, and almost half of the product obtained is donated to the most serious diseases and children suffering from diabetes.
More than 57,000 visitors have visited the farm in Martinici so far, and it is recommended by the famous tourist guides Trip Advisor and Lonely Planet.
"Only in December last year, at the fourth New Year’s ball for children and adults, we had more than three thousand visitors in one day," Saveljic recalls. The donkey farm is open for visits on Sundays from 10 am to 1 pm. The entrance ticket is a kilogram of fruit per person.
The construction of the Visitor Center was supported by the Rockefeller Foundation, through the Active Citizenship Fund in Montenegro.
Text by Damira Kalac, on June 5th, 2019, read more at Vijesti
