Donkey Welfare: The World's Most Overlooked Working Animal

Donkeys provide livelihoods for millions of families globally but suffer from overwork, poor nutrition, and inadequate veterinary care.

Key Facts

Approximately 40-50 million donkeys provide essential transport and agricultural labor in low-income countries
Donkey skin demand from China for ejiao (traditional medicine) has driven donkey theft, population decline, and welfare crises
Donkeys are stoic animals that mask pain and illness effectively, making welfare assessment challenging
Donkey skin harvesting operations in some countries involve inhumane slaughter methods
The Donkey Sanctuary and similar organizations provide welfare programs across Africa, Asia, and the Americas
Donkeys have fundamentally different physiology from horses and require species-specific veterinary care

Welfare Considerations

Donkeys are perhaps the most overlooked working animal in global welfare discussions. Their stoicism — which served them well evolutionarily — means that illness and pain are often invisible to owners and even veterinarians unfamiliar with donkey behavior. Overloading, collar sores from ill-fitting harness, untreated wounds, and chronic lameness from overgrown hooves are endemic in working donkey populations globally. The ejiao trade has added a new welfare crisis: organized theft and slaughter of donkeys in countries from Kenya to Tanzania. Organizations like The Donkey Sanctuary and SPANA are working at scale to improve working donkey welfare through community education, mobile veterinary services, and harness improvement programs.

What You Can Do

Donate to The Donkey Sanctuary, SPANA, or Brooke to support direct welfare interventions globally
Avoid ejiao products — their production is driving donkey population collapse in multiple countries
Advocate for import bans on ejiao and donkey skin products in your country
Support organizations training local donkey owners in basic husbandry and harness fitting