Christmas has come early for one elderly donkey who has been rehomed in a luxury donkey centre in Surrey after years of grazing in the cold.

Elsa the donkey is between 50 and 60 years old and has spent her entire life grazing on Bushy Park.

Earlier this year however, her owner, an elderly lady, lost the right to graze Elsa in the park, leaving her with no choice but to contact the Kingston branch of the RSPCA to ask if Elsa could be rehomed.

Irene Hansford, chairman of the RSPCA's Hillingdon, Slough, Windsor and Kingston branch, said: "Donkeys can live to be around 60, so Elsa is a real geriatric lady now. It was really about time that she came in out of the cold into somewhere warm which will help with all her aches and pains."

Last week, Elsa was moved to the Lockwood Donkey Centre in Sandhills, Surrey, which provides a home for elderly donkeys.

Mrs Hansford said: "She has really settled in well to her luxurious retirement at Lockwood, where she will stay for the rest of her life. She's met some of the other donkeys and they are all getting on well. Her owner can come visit her whenever she wants."