Donkeys are the most numerous working animals globally, supporting livelihoods in developing countries — their welfare needs differ significantly from horses and are frequently unmet.
Donkey welfare occupies a welfare gap between working animal and livestock categories that leaves them underserved by both frameworks. Working donkeys in developing countries often support family livelihoods so directly that their welfare and their owners' economic wellbeing are inseparable — providing veterinary care for working donkeys is simultaneously an animal welfare and a poverty alleviation intervention. Their stoic nature means owners may not recognize pain and illness that would be obvious in more expressive species. The ejiao demand crisis has killed millions of donkeys across Africa and Asia in ways that cause significant welfare harm through slaughter conditions that are entirely unregulated. Addressing donkey welfare requires both veterinary intervention in working animal populations and policy responses to the ejiao trade threatening the species globally.