Horses
Rules for feeding donkeys - Rose Pendennis says ‘don’t treat a donkey like a small horse’
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| Donkey grazing may need to be restricted with visible electric tape |
DONKEYS have evolved to survive in some of the harshest environments, adapting to the marginal desert lands and living on a diet devoid of lush vegetation, filled with highly fibrous and low quality roughage.
Donkeys have much lower energy and nutritional needs compared to horses and ponies, and although normal healthy donkeys generally do perfectly well on forage alone, supplementary feeding does come into play with cases such as working donkeys, lactating Jennies, older donkeys and those animals that are difficult to keep condition on.
Problems can occur when donkeys are fed diets formulated for horses and ponies, which for the majority of donkeys can lead to a high intake of energy and protein leading to weight gain, obesity and in more severe cases, even laminitis.
Launched at the end of 2007, Saracen Horse Feeds is the first specific feed for donkeys - Donkey Diet. They combined their expertise with the UK's leading care provider for donkeys to formulate this diet intended for donkeys who require supplementary feeding.
Created to meet donkey's nutritional needs this low-energy, high-fibre feed is packed with vitamins, minerals and trace elements to give your donkey everything he needs in a palatable feed.
Source of safe' calories
Saracen's say that their Donkey Diet is based on digestible fibre sources, which provide a source of "safe" calories as well as containing quality protein sources for optimum cell, tissue and muscle repair. With its high fibre and low energy formulation, they believe that Donkey Diet is ideal for donkeys prone to laminitis or metabolic syndrome.
Donkey Diet can also be soaked into a palatable mash, which can help maintain fibre intake for the older donkey with poor teeth to ensure healthy digestive function. However, it is not designed to completely replace the donkey's forage requirement and short chopped forage sources should be fed in conjunction with Donkey Diet.
Attention to grazing is also important. Nearly all donkeys will become seriously fat on unrestricted grazing so you need to evaluate your grass and if it is of good quality, then use electric fencing to restrict the daily intake. Alternatively, you could graze it down with sheep first. Many people still believe that donkeys are carriers of lungworm but this has not been true for many years since the advent of effective wormers. As with any animal, a donkey needs a regular and up to date worming programme.
Finally, remember the basic rules of feeding.
Feed little and often
Make any changes in feeding gradually
Always look at your donkey and adjust your feed according to his or her age, weight and temperament and also according to the quality of your grazing
Never feed dusty or mouldy feeds
Always have clean water available
Have a mineral lick but not placed next to the water source
If your donkey is overweight and you want to reduce the weight then do this very gradually, donkeys cannot tolerate "crash diets". Consider some light exercise such as walking in hand.
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