Starting Over Sanctuary

Starting Over Sanctuary We are a non-profit animal sanctuary located in Israel, we rescue and rehabilitate donkeys and horses which undergo cruelty and abuse.

Over 1,700 animals residing the shelter, 1,000 of them are donkeys. Please join us in our efforts to save them.

06/06/2026

Bobcat the horsre, giving cats a nose massage 😄😍
There's nothing more charming and fascinating than the bonds between such different animals ❤

30/05/2026

Hi, it’s Sharon.

Looking back over the last decade, I am filled with overwhelming gratitude and emotion. It all started with Tinkerbell, our very first rescue donkey. From that moment on, my life changed - and the lives of nearly 2,500 donkeys across Israel were changed forever.

Over these 10 years, I have witnessed heartbreaking suffering, but I have also seen immense kindness - your kindness. With every step, every rescue, and every challenging rehabilitation process, you have been there by my side, giving me the strength to keep fighting to break the cycle of abuse.

Today, I am turning to you once again: we are launching our 15th rescue flight!

Why flights? Because this is the key to saving the next ones in line. Relocating donkeys to safe sanctuaries in Europe is the only way for us to free up the space, resources, and energy needed to save more donkeys desperate for help.

Maintaining 50 donkeys at our sanctuary for six months costs approximately 100,000 USD. Relocating them to countries where animal abuse and cart-pulling are illegal is not only the best outcome for the donkeys - it is the only sustainable path for our organization. In these incredible European sanctuaries, our donkeys trade a life of pain for endless green pastures and dedicated, loving care.

I need you with me to make this mission a reality.

Thanks to you, we have successfully completed 14 flights since 2022. Let’s make the 15th one a success and guarantee a new life of freedom and happiness for even more donkeys.

Want to be part of this?

Donate now to our 15th flight campaign: startingover.org.il/en-flight15

Please hare this post. Every share reaches another kind heart that could save a life.

Thank you for being the heartbeat of this organization. None of this would be possible without you.

With love and deepest appreciation,
Sharon.

(Watch the video we’ve prepared for you to see how happy our rescued donkeys are in the new homes in europe!)

30/05/2026

Look who officially graduated and joined the herd! 🐪✨

Little Chompy came to us three weeks ago, a heartbreaking sight. We found him crying in a locked shed next to his mother, who had tragically passed away with her legs bound. He arrived hungry, sad, and completely confused, unable to understand why his beloved mother wasn’t responding to his cries. He was just a two-month-old baby, spending days calling out for her.

At first, we tried introducing him to the herd, but the camels were far too overwhelmed by his presence, crowding him and jumping around him like giant spiders. It was clear that he wasn't ready to be part of the group yet. Fearing they might hurt him, we decided to hold off and built a safe, protected space for him within the camel enclosure

After a sweet and gentle introduction period, we decided it was time to try again - and the result was absolutely perfect and deeply moving! Sheila, our 4-year-old female, has taken him under her wing and "officially" adopted him. She watches over him constantly and follows him everywhere he goes.

Welcome to the family, little one!

26/05/2026

Little Chompy came to us three weeks ago. He was found as a helpless orphan, crying inside a locked warehouse next to his lifeless mother, who had been left cruelly tied by her legs.

Chompy arrived hungry, heartbroken, and confused, unable to understand where his beloved mother had gone. At just two months old, he was nothing but a baby, crying and calling out for her for days on end.

At first, we tried to introduce him to our camel herd, but they rejected him immediately. They became aggressive, charging and crowding him so warningly that we feared for his life and had to intervene. We decided to take a step back and build him a safe, protected enclosure right inside the main donkeys habitat.

And this week, it finally happened! Little Chompy moved into the camel area, safely settled in his own protected space for now. The welcome he received from the others was absolutely heartwarming.

In the coming days, we will try to open his gate and integrate him into the herd, with the hope that it will be a successful, safe, and peaceful transition for little Chompy.🩵🐪

23/05/2026

In honor of World Turtle and Tortoise Day (Yes, it's today!), we want to celebrate with some fascinating facts, but first, we’d like to introduce you to two very special residents at our sanctuary: Batz and Gabriela.

Batz is around 50 years old, and Gabriela is about 12. Their journeys to us were very different, but both found their safe haven here. Batz was rescued from Kibutz Beeri in Israel which borders with Gaza shortly after the war broke out in 2023, surviving the chaos of a conflict zone. Gabriela’s rescue took place about two years ago when she was taken out of a petting zoo to start a better life. Today, both of them enjoy a peaceful, protected, and serene life here at our sanctuary. Batz shares a habitat with our two pigs, Thelma and Louise, and they get along wonderfully. Gabriela lives in our birds yard, but we occasionally let her wander freely around the sanctuary just to enjoy herself 🩵

To mark this special day, here are 5 amazing facts about these incredible creatures:

1. Their Shell is Part of Their Skeleton 🐢
Contrary to what cartoons might show, a tortoise cannot "leave" its shell. The shell is actually part of its skeletal structure, fused directly to its spine and ribcage. It grows with them throughout their entire life and provides ultimate protection.

2. They Outlasted the Dinosaurs 🦖
Turtles and tortoises are among the oldest living reptile groups on Earth. Their ancestors roamed the planet around 230 million years ago. This means they successfully survived the extinction of the dinosaurs and have witnessed the world change from age to age.

3. Masters of Longevity 🎂
These creatures are famous for their incredible lifespans. Many land tortoises can easily live well over 100 years. The current record-holder is a giant tortoise named Jonathan, who lives on the island of Saint Helena and recently celebrated his 194th birthday!

4. The Sixth Sense of Sea Turtles 🌊
Sea turtles migrate vast distances across thousands of miles of ocean. Yet, when the females are ready to lay their eggs, they return with incredible precision to the exact beach where they themselves hatched. Scientists discovered they do this by sensing the Earth's magnetic field, using it as a natural GPS.

5. They Can "Breathe" Through Their Rear End 💨
Some turtle species (particularly freshwater turtles in colder climates) can absorb oxygen through a specialized area called the cloaca. This process, known as cloacal respiration, allows them to stay underwater or hibernate in frozen ponds for months at a time during the winter.

Happy World Turtle Day! 🐢 May we always appreciate the calm pace and incredible resilience of these unique animals.

For years she served, carried, and worked - until she was no longer needed. When she finished her "role," the solution t...
19/05/2026

For years she served, carried, and worked - until she was no longer needed. When she finished her "role," the solution they found for her was unbearably cruel: she was tied up in a junkyard, abandoned to her fate, reduced to nothing but skin and bones.

Anyone who looked into her eyes could see the brokenness. The pure sadness of someone who understands she was thrown away, abandoned, as if she knew the world had given up on her. But then, she got lucky. She caught the right pair of eyes.

A massive, heartfelt thank you to Lokman Al-Qaid without whom this rescue would not have happened. Lokman is a true angel who, over the past few years, has saved countless animals. He helps us with our mission at every single moment - to rescue, save, and rehabilitate the animals who need us most.

She arrived at our sanctuary this evening, and her physical condition is heartbreaking. Beyond her old age, her front legs are completely crooked, and there appears to be severe damage to her tendons and joints. Her back is also completely swayed - a painful testament to years of prolonged riding and heavy loads that carried no consideration for her body.

She needs a specialized diet plan to gain weight, comprehensive checkups, X-rays, and medications to ease her pain. Her path to rehabilitation is long and expensive, and we simply cannot do it alone.

All her life she was exploited, and then literally thrown into the trash. We will show her that there are different kinds of humans. That she still has a chance at a life of dignity, compassion, and love.

Open your hearts and help us care for her. Any donation, big or small, will help us fund her medical treatments and rehabilitation: www.startingover.org.il/donation

Thank you from the bottom of our hearts for partnering with us to save lives 🩵

18/05/2026

A Heartwarming Update on Little Chompy! 💔➡️❤️🐪

As many of you know, little Chompy has had a heartbreaking start to life, losing his mother when he was less than two months old. We tried our best to introduce him to our camel herd (we have 5 other beautiful, rehabilitated camels here), but unfortunately, they rejected him.

Right now, we are keeping him in a separate stall. But to make sure he doesn't feel lonely, we placed him right next to the donkeys' medical stalls so he can have constant company!

During his first few days with us, Chompy wouldn't stop crying, and it broke our hearts. But lately, things have taken a beautiful turn. He has become so much happier! The donkeys around him are INCREDIBLY sensitive to his needs and shower him with attention, and our staff is doing absolutely everything possible to spoil him. It’s not the same as having a mother camel around, we know that, but it’s the absolute best we can provide.

Check out this adorable video we made of little Chompy cuddling and bonding with our team! 👇

17/05/2026

An update regarding the female donkey rescued yesterday: She has arrived at our sanctuary.

Yesterday, we received a call from a police officer who simply couldn’t stand by and ignore this jenny's suffering. He reached out to us and asked us to save her.

One of her ears had been cut. They broke her spirit and her soul, deprived her of food and water, and just left her there, waiting for the next abuse. We set out immediately to rescue her from her fate.

She is with us at the sanctuary, protected and safe. She is still very frightened (and who can blame her?), and she has quite a few painful abrasions from the cruel harnesses she was tied up in. But bottom line - she is okay, and she is with us. The physical wounds will heal, and now begins the equally complex work of healing her wounded soul, with a lot of patience and love.

This jenny's story is a painful reminder of a daily reality. They are abused, worked to the bone, deprived of water, and beaten mercilessly. We fight tooth and nail to save each and every one of them, and we promise you (and above all, them): We will keep fighting until we get the very last donkey of this region out of the cycle of labor and suffering!

Thank you to everyone who supported and reached out. You are amazing, and without you, none of this would have happened.
🩵🩵🩵

They cut her ears, broke her spirit and soul, deprived her of food and water, and parked her in the sun until the next a...
16/05/2026

They cut her ears, broke her spirit and soul, deprived her of food and water, and parked her in the sun until the next abuse… A police officer, who couldn't ignore her suffering, turned to us and asked for help.

We are on our way to her, and we are begging for your help on her behalf.

They abuse them just because they are donkeys, work them to exhaustion, deprive them of water, beat them - we are fighting to save each and every one of them, doing everything for their sake.

We need you with us to keep going and stop all these horrors. We cannot keep up with the costs, not even for the rescues. We stand no chance of continuing like this, and they have no one else but us.

Please, donate as much as you can. Every single dollar/euro/pound counts.

We promise to fight until we rescue the very last donkey from the cycle of hard labor! Most, in our region, have already been rescued, but hundreds still remain, waiting for us to free them from their bitter fate as well.

For donations - https://www.startingover.org.il/donation
Of course, we will update you as soon as she arrives to our sanctuary. Thank you 🩵

15/05/2026

To date, we have flown 725 donkeys to incredible homes across Europe. 40 of them arrived this week at the Palace of Versailles!

From a life of suffering and abuse to the lives of princes and kings - exactly what they deserve 🩵

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