A Manchester arena bombing survivor said she had help from an unlikely source on her road to recovery – donkey therapy.
Jenny Howarth, 21, and her cousin Jodie, 15, were among the thousands in attendance at the Manchester arena, when Salman Ramadan Abedi targeted an Ariana Grande concert in 2017.
She was left traumatised after her two aunt, Janet Senior and Josie Howarth, – who were only 10 ft away from Abedi when he detonated the device – were injured while picking up the two young girls from the concert.
Josie made a makeshift bandage from her handbag strap to treat her bleeding leg which saved her life, while Janet sustained a shoulder injury when she was hit by shrapnel and debris, reported The Mirror.
Meanwhile, Jenny and Josie had already fled the stadium after hearing the explosion.
After the bombing, Jenny, from Selby, North Yorkshire, suffered from severe PTSD and was not able to leave her house alone.
She got involved with the Wonkey Donkey Visitor Centre in Knottingley, West Yorkshire and said that thanks to the super steeds, she is well on the road to recovery.
Jenny told The Mirror: ‘The animals sensed when I was upset and would lie down next to me for a cuddle, and all the bad stuff went away. If I felt panicky they had a calming affect on me.
‘I still have days when I feel scared but I’m definitely over the worst.’
But this is not the first time the donkeys have come to Jenny’s rescue.
When she was younger, Jenny was diagnosed with conversion syndrome which meant she struggled with simple schoolwork.
Doctors later discovered she had broken her foot but as it went untreated for so long, her brain blocked out the pain, as well as what she learnt at school.
At that time, her aunts bought her a donkey called Buttons – who had been abused by a previous owner – to comfort her.
She said the pair helped each other get better.
