THE STORY OF INDIAN DONKEYS

As an Army Veterinarian I had spent my majority time with Horses and Mules , I had an impression that Donkeys are like horses and I can very well treat them when given a chance. All my convictions were proved wrong when I got the real life challenge to treat a donkey in advanced state of colic. Thanks to the the wonderful animal welfare organisations, Animal Rahat- PETA  and Donkey Sanctuary International (an International donkey welfare organization) which taught me much regarding this unique versatile creation of god. Donkeys are definitely not like horses. In many ways they have a complex psycho somatic difference and very high level of pain tolerance , making a vet very difficult to interpret the concealed symptoms of diseases . During my graduation days much less were taught regarding the care, management and diseases of donkeys. Even today the VCI syllabus addresses very less or nil regarding the donkeys.

I would like to dedicate this segment to the vets and animal welfare professionals who work for donkeys. I believe their work is indeed noblest of all . God has created donkeys with elements of extra dose of tolerance, resilience and much versatility.

Donkeys belongs to the class equidae . Much similar to the  domestic cousin- Horse and wild relative zebra, donkey possess its own individuality and  character making him poor man’s friend and ultimately “ beast of burden”. Donkeys are agile, firm and much resilient animals with a great deal of tolerance and complacence. The donkeys differ in horses in following ways . Chromosome number of a horse is 64, Donkey has 62 chromosomes (Zebra has chromosome number 46).

Donkeys are not like horses; they differ physically, mentally and emotionally.

More  stoical  in  their  behaviour  , donkeys  show  limited  fear  response  to  novel  situations  and  this  can  be  mistaken  for stubbornness rather than fear.

Donkeys (Equus asinus) are very efficient at metabolising their food . Donkeys form  very  strong  bonds  with other  donkeys  and  animals,  and even  short  term separation from a companion can be stressful.

Donkey ergots are more prominent  than for horses– Often look more like a digital pad

Donkey inferior check ligaments– Have an extension from the deep flexor tendon to the superficial flexor tendon in the front legs (not found in the mule).  No Inf Check Ligament  in the rear leg  

Laryngeal anatomy slightly differs from horses and nasal passages  are smaller than equal sized horses – Smaller NG tubes required

Gestation period of a donkey is 370 were as for horses it is 340. Average life span of donkey is 35 were as for horses it is 25.

Crossing a donkey with a horse produce Mules and Hinnies.

Mule- female horse bred to a male ass- 63 chromosomes

Hinny-  male horse bred to a female ass- 63 chromosomes also Both crosses are considered sterile even though there are documented cases of fertility in the female mule (Mare Mule or Molly Mule).

THE REAL LIFE OF INDIAN DONKEYS

I made a small clip about the life of donkeys in India from the collection of photographs that I gathered during all these days. 

YOU CAN WATCH THE CLIP BELOW

Large number of donkeys are bred and exploited as pack animals in our country especially in North India. Donkeys are mainly used in brick klins. In south you can see a great number of Donkeys in Maharashtra- Sangli and Solapur district and many areas of Tamil Nadu. Much compact body, a docile nature, a “no problem “,“no complaints” attitude makes a donkey -poor man’s friend and beast of burden.

When it comes to tolerance , heaven is the limit for donkeys . It is absolutely true when we say that India's infrastructure was built off their forced servitude in the brick industry. Donkeys are routinely overloaded; young, undersized and ill or injured animals frequently haul loads of more than 50 bricks with little to no padding between the load and their backs. As a result, donkeys can develop chafing wounds, bruises and abrasions which can become infected and infested with maggots. Their hooves can become painfully overgrown, cracked and sore, and lameness is exceedingly common.

Donkeys can suffer from a host of diseases, including rabies, trypanosomiasis, extensive dermatitis, ophthalmic infections and a wide variety of polythene impactive colics (which may not be prevalent outside India). Stoic and acquiescent, donkeys are easy targets for abuse, and their suffering often goes unnoticed. Impoverished people with little knowledge of humane husbandry methods perpetuate many cruel practices against these animals. Donkeys have their nostrils cut open, ostensibly to increase air flow, and their ears are also cut open to drain what's perceived as "bad blood" and to prevent tetanus. Most donkeys never see a veterinarian during their entire lifetime, and there is little scientific research pertaining to the health and welfare of donkeys in India. I was shocked to see donkeys been used for drawing sand from river bed . These " water donkeys" end up their life with irreparable hoof decay and wide variety of hoof ailments.

Illegal attempts to transport donkeys across the borders of Maharashtra and Karnataka to be killed for meat are still reported. As evidenced by the above, donkeys are among the most abused animals on Earth.

When I was working for PETA as Program Manager and Chief Vet Surgeon for the Animal Rahat , the largest working animal welfare program, as a team we learned a lot treating  wide ailments in donkeys. Understanding the socio economic structure of a donkey owners life is the first step in understanding the physical condition of donkeys. In majority of  brick klins of our country , It is a common scene to watch 3 year old kids grossly  malnourished leading a 2 year old donkey colt over loaded with bricks. If you go to his hut you can see his ailing carrying mother with five more hungry kids playing around in a filthy, totally unhygienic environment. What is the role of animal welfare in the place where human welfare is grossly compromised ?

Tetanus and Rabies are the most dangerous disease conditions in donkeys apart from plastic colics , gross worm infestations and wide range of wounds and hoof affections. The sight of the donkey with rabies is really horrific to watch and much challenging even to approach for  euthanasia. An average donkey needs regular deworming with broad-spectrum dewormers – Fenbendazole and praziquantel combinations , regular hoof cleaning and body grooming apart from  nutritious diet of plenty of green grass, chaffs , wheat bran and protein sources . But in real field scenario donkeys graze on road side eating plastics invariably leading to plastic colics.

Colic  in donkeys requires special attention as the only pain signs in donkey with colic will be anb increase in heart beat and respiration rate. The tolerance of this species is too high that many clinical signs get concealed.

Where ever we see donkey owners ,it is a mandate to advice them for tetanus toxoid injection and anti rabies injection annually.

A WAY FOREWARD

I strongly believe that Animal Welfare is the extension of Human welfare and this is more pronounced with donkey welfare. As the donkey owners are the poorest of all animal handlers who live with gross poverty , difficult and struggling to earn their  routine bread . It is a very common fact that  literacy rate is almost nil with donkey owners. Poverty breeds callous attitude and we can see animal welfare being compromised grossly in brick klins in the country. If we really want to make some difference to this condition of donkeys we need to work a lot at the community level and a great deal of society upliftment is the only way to bring welfare for this poor creatures. In a country were crores of money being pumped in the name of CSR, I believe it is the duty of every corporate, every building built on brick to address this sufferings of this beast of burden. In other way I would like to put as “ for every brick produced in a brick kiln we owe its share to the mighty donkeys who worked in the brick klins”.
A veterinarian role in community development  is much pronounced in practice of  donkey medicine.

I thank the wonderful team of Donkey Sanctuary India and UK, Animal Rahat PETA , Brookes India who laid foundation for this great initiatives for struggling donkeys in our country. The community development programmes by these organisations had literally made paradigm shift in the approach towards the donkeys . 

I salute all my fellow veterinarians and animal welfare staff in these organizations and in field who works hard to address the suffering of the donkeys. I am equally proud and honored to be one amongst you who care a lot for this wonderful creation of god .

Thanks for Visiting my blog.