Donkeys are often overlooked in welfare discourse despite facing significant challenges as working animals, companion animals, and in production systems.
Donkeys are too often treated as small, low-maintenance horses - an approach that misunderstands their specific physiological and behavioral needs. Their stoicism means welfare problems including dental disease, laminitis, and parasites go undetected until severe. As a species primarily associated with poverty-context working animal use, donkeys receive less welfare research attention and advocacy than horses. Improving donkey welfare requires species-specific knowledge and targeted intervention programs.