The 204 hectare FFH area "Dönche" is located on the western edge of the city of Kassel at an altitude of between 180 and 325 m above sea level. Until the end of the 19th century, the Dönche was used as a communal pasture. After that, arable farming took center stage. Military use from 1936 to 1970 shaped the special character of the Dönche. One problem for the area is its location near residential areas. This leads to the creation of footpaths, illegal dumping of rubbish and high levels of dog excrement. The Dönche is characterized by large areas of poor grassland and small areas of reed beds, tall herbaceous meadows and heathland. There are also small still waters and reed grass remnants. Near-natural wetlands have developed along the Dönche and Krebsbach streams. In order to counteract the threat to the open land character of the Dönche caused by increasing bush and forest growth, grazing by Merino sheep, Suffolk sheep and Boer goats takes place. This measure is supplemented by additional mechanical bush clearing.
The use of large flocks of sheep with several grazing sessions per year was not enough, however, to preserve the structurally rich grasslands. A demarcated area of around 30 hectares was therefore designated for year-round grazing by herds of Galloway and Scottish Highland cattle.