{"id":3333,"date":"2026-06-09T13:36:35","date_gmt":"2026-06-09T13:36:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=3333"},"modified":"2026-06-09T13:36:35","modified_gmt":"2026-06-09T13:36:35","slug":"why-rescue-donkeys-are-wearing-donated-socks-from-a-pro-soccer-team","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=3333","title":{"rendered":"Why rescue donkeys are wearing donated socks from a pro soccer team"},"content":{"rendered":"

Socks from Arsenal Football Club have a new life helping rescued donkeys and horses heal from injuries.<\/strong><\/p>

Read more Pope Leo wades into Spain\u2019s culture wars over soccer and the Catalan language in Barcelona<\/a><\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
A donkey from the Redwings Horse Sanctuary grabs a banana from an Arsenal Football Club sock. (Redwings Horse Sanctuary)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

The red-and-white socks were designed for professional soccer players to perform <\/b>at the highest level of the sport. The fabric helps prevent slipping, makes sweat evaporate quickly and provides special cushioning to limit cramping.<\/p>\n

But one of the world\u2019s best soccer clubs had dozens of unused socks piling up. Instead of collecting dust in a team closet, the socks are now getting a new life protecting rescued donkeys and horses, and helping them heal from injuries.<\/p>\n

Employees at the Redwings Horse Sanctuary, which calls itself the largest horse welfare charity in Britain, were shocked when they received an email this year from the Arsenal Football Club, a perennial contender in the English Premier League, one of the world\u2019s most-watched sports leagues. The soccer team offered to donate its old socks to the roughly 1,000 equines living at the English sanctuary.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really one of the most unusual donations we\u2019ve ever had,\u201d said Nicola Knight, the sanctuary\u2019s head of communications and campaigns.<\/p>\n

While they probably don\u2019t appreciate the socks\u2019 performance-enhancing designs, donkeys and horses are using them to protect their legs from flies, hold their bandages and keep their thick leg hairs in place when they\u2019re getting their hooves trimmed. Sanctuary employees have also hidden bananas and ginger biscuits in the socks to give equines fun <\/b>enrichment activities.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe hope they\u2019re going to make a real difference,\u201d Knight said of the socks.<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Donkeys from the Redwings Horse Sanctuary with Arsenal Football Club’s red socks. (Redwings Horse Sanctuary)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

The sanctuary has tried other socks to protect donkeys from fly bites and cover horses\u2019 bandages, but they did not work as well, with most sliding off or not protecting their legs adequately. The new socks have already reduced visits to the veterinarian for treatment, Knight said. Fly bites can cause<\/a> skin irritation, open sores and infections in donkeys.<\/p>\n

Before using the donated socks, employees had cut off the bottom portion of other socks to prevent them from covering equines\u2019 hoofs. Arsenal\u2019s socks are footless to allow players to wear specialized grip socks on their feet. That design makes sliding them onto donkey\u2019s and horse\u2019s legs easier and holds them in place.<\/p>

Read more English rugby official resigns after discriminatory post about Women\u2019s World Cup winner Alphonsi<\/a><\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Donkeys from the Redwings Horse Sanctuary pose with Arsenal Football Club’s red socks. (Redwings Horse Sanctuary)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Typically, the sanctuary gets donations of snacks \u2014 carrots, apples and ginger biscuits \u2014 and other useful items, like buckets and brushes. The 40 pairs of Adidas socks \u2014 most of which Arsenal sent in April \u2014 were the sanctuary\u2019s first socks donation.<\/p>\n

Arsenal did not respond to requests for comment from The Washington Post, but Michael Lloyd, the club\u2019s operational sustainability manager, said<\/a> in a statement: \u201cWe\u2019re always looking for ways to reduce waste and make a positive impact.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
Arsenal’s socks help keep horses’ thick leg hairs in place during hoof rasping. The club sent red and blue socks to the Redwings Horse Sanctuary. (Redwings Horse Sanctuary)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Most of the donkeys have taken to the socks.<\/p>\n

A 16-year-old donkey named Woolfie, for example, is patient when his caretakers pull on the socks. He\u2019s used to such interactions, as he came to the sanctuary in 2013 after English wildlife officials received reports<\/a> of a donkey with overgrown hooves.<\/p>\n

A few others have resisted the socks, though, including Dave the Donkey, 5, who is known for being mischievous and uncooperative<\/a>. Word is that perhaps Dave doesn\u2019t appreciate the red and white socks, as he could be a fan of Arsenal\u2019s rival, Tottenham Hotspur.<\/p>\n

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\"\"<\/figure>\n\n
A donkey from the Redwings Horse Sanctuary wears Arsenal Football Club’s red socks. (Redwings Horse Sanctuary)<\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n

Knight said she hopes the attention<\/a> the donkeys\u2019 new style has garnered will prompt more donations to the sanctuary, which has visiting centers in Essex and Norfolk. Some horses and donkeys get adopted, but others remain at the sanctuary the rest of their lives.<\/p>\n

Knight, a die-hard <\/b>fan of Arsenal\u2019s Premier League foe, the Ipswich Town Football Club, said she\u2019s holding out hope for socks from her favorite team.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve got 1,000 horses and donkeys,\u201d she said. \u201cSo, you know, we could take some more socks for sure.\u201d<\/p>

Read more This World Cup will be bigger, longer, hotter. Will it be better?<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Socks from Arsenal Football Club have a new life helping rescued donkeys and horses heal from injuries.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":3327,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3333","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interesting"],"yoast_head":"\nWhy rescue donkeys are wearing donated socks from a pro soccer team - Moving Insider USA<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=3333\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why rescue donkeys are wearing donated socks from a pro soccer team - Moving Insider USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Socks from Arsenal Football Club have a new life helping rescued donkeys and horses heal from injuries.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/?p=3333\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Moving Insider USA\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-06-09T13:36:35+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/movinginsiderusa.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/6b16a3471452d871a7b9a2d3dc671aa5-1024x576.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1024\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"576\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=3333#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=3333\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/22d40ab81790f6a361021763bb56ef03\"},\"headline\":\"Why rescue donkeys are wearing donated socks from a pro soccer team\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-06-09T13:36:35+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=3333\"},\"wordCount\":791,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=3333#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/06\\\/522cc904b730805af9ed4b445680855e.png\",\"articleSection\":[\"Interesting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=3333#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=3333\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/movinginsiderusa.com\\\/?p=3333\",\"name\":\"Why rescue donkeys are wearing donated socks from a pro soccer team - 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