HONOLULU — The last 50 wild donkeys on Hawaii’s Big Island will be rounded up, marking the final step in a six-year effort to get them in adoptive homes.

The donkeys are the last of more than 500 that were cast-offs from the early days of Hawaii agricultural plantations.

When drought conditions forced the donkeys into residential areas in search of water, the herd became a problem. The animals wandered into roadways, tore up golf courses and drank from swimming pools, said Inga Gibson, Hawaii state director for the Humane Society of the United States.

The society and Big Island residents were working Friday to prepare the donkeys for adoption.

“One of our first complaints was the donkeys were actually coming into the school yard,” said Gibson. Some residents were so fed up with the donkeys that they threatened to kill them, while others wanted to use their meat to make jerky.

The herd went entirely unmanaged for nearly 40 years.

The Humane Society stepped in six years ago and has spent about $200,000 to get more than 450 donkeys in homes, including 120 flown to California.