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Therapy donkey saved by Phoenix Police
Phoenix Police got a call on March 27 that was certainly unexpected, but the story has a happy ending. FOX 10's Megan Spector has more.
PHOENIX - Phoenix Police got a call on the morning of March 27 that was certainly unexpected: a donkey stuck in a van.
Apparently the animal, named Josie, got locked inside by mistake, and the owner didn't want to take any chances leaving her inside without air conditioning.
What we know:
At the time of the incident, Josie was on a mission of her own.
"This is the heart of Tender Little Hearts," said Terry Holmes-Stecyk. "This is one of our eight therapy animals. Josie is a qualified therapy donkey."
Josie is part of the Tender Little Hearts nonprofit. The group encourages literacy by having children read to miniature horses and donkeys.
"We go to school and libraries, child advocacy centers—encouraging children to read, helping struggling readers," said Holmes-Stecyk, Tender Little Hearts Mini Tales president.
The program also does enrichment visits. Josie was actually on her way to Ryan House—a nonprofit that provides end-of-life care for children.
Dig deeper:
Before she could make her rounds, however, Josie's handler had to deal with a lockout.
"Got out of my van, locked the door, walked around and realized oh my goodness—the key is in the van," Holmes-Stecyk said. "We know with the warm temperatures it does not take long for the inside of a compartment to get very hot so I had rock in hand ready to break the window if needed."
Holmes-Stecyk called the Phoenix police non-emergency line, but she was transferred to 911.
"And then the second car came. And then a third car came. And the next thing I know we have seven cruisers there to assist us," she said.
She says officers were able to pop the door open in about 5 minutes, getting Josie out safely.
"When she came down, they took pictures, I gave them business cards," Holmes-Stecyk said. "We promised we’d come do a celebration event or bring pizza or whatever we can do to thank them for what they did in helping this little girl."
Following the rescue, Josie went on to complete her visit at Ryan House.
The Source: Information for this article was gathered by FOX 10's Megan Spector.