Hundreds of millions of animals work alongside humans every day — from police horses to cart donkeys. Their welfare matters deeply and is often poorly protected.
An estimated 40–50 million donkeys provide transport, agricultural power, and income for some of the world's poorest families across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Donkeys are often severely overloaded, poorly fed, and worked until they collapse. Skin diseases (usually from ill-fitting harnesses), lameness, wounds, and exhaustion are common.
Organizations like The Donkey Sanctuary operate globally to improve donkey welfare through veterinary treatment, owner education, and harness improvement programs.
Horses are used for transport, agriculture, sports, tourism, law enforcement, and therapeutic purposes. Welfare concerns vary enormously by context: racing and jumping horses face significant injury risks; carriage horses in tourist settings are often worked in extreme heat; horses used in small-scale agriculture in developing countries face similar issues to donkeys.
Elephants used in tourism, logging, and religious ceremonies across South and Southeast Asia face severe welfare challenges. Traditional "phajaan" breaking — using pain to break elephants' spirits for human handling — is still practiced. Chains, bullhooks, and inadequate feeding are common. The shift to "elephant-friendly" sanctuary tourism is important but slow.
Dogs serve as police and military animals, guide dogs, search and rescue dogs, herding dogs, and assistance animals. Police and military dogs can face injuries, PTSD-like stress responses, and inadequate post-service care. Working dogs in lower-income contexts (village guard dogs, hunting dogs) often receive minimal care. Guide and assistance dog welfare is generally high in regulated contexts.
An estimated 30 million camels work in North Africa, the Middle East, and Central Asia. Used for transport, racing, milk, and tourism. Racing camels — particularly in Gulf countries — face welfare concerns including extreme training pressure, use of child jockeys (historically), and now robot jockeys. Transport camels are often worked in extreme heat with minimal rest.
Cattle used for plowing and cart-pulling remain important in South and Southeast Asia, sub-Saharan Africa, and Latin America. Draft cattle face lameness (often untreated), overloading, inadequate feeding, and rough treatment. As mechanization spreads, some draft animals are abandoned or sold for slaughter when they can no longer work.
Working animal welfare programs are among the most cost-effective animal welfare interventions available:
One of the more complex issues in working animal welfare is the question of what obligations humans have to working animals at the end of their working lives. Military dogs, police horses, racing greyhounds, and working elephants are often at serious welfare risk when they are "retired" — abandoned, sold to slaughter, or inadequately cared for. Animal welfare advocates argue that humans who benefit from working animals have lasting welfare obligations to those animals, including adequate retirement care. This principle is increasingly recognized for military and assistance animals in high-income countries, but rarely for working animals in lower-income contexts.
The world's leading working animal welfare organization, with field programs across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. Combines veterinary treatment, harness improvement, owner education, and policy advocacy.
Brooke works with working horses, donkeys, and mules in South Asia, Africa, and Latin America — reaching over 2 million animals per year through community-based programs.
Works on elephant tourism welfare across Asia, including the "Wildlife Not Entertainers" campaign promoting elephant-friendly tourism standards.
Rescues and rehomes military working dogs returning from service abroad — a model for post-service care for working animals.
Working animal welfare intersects deeply with development. When a family's donkey is too sick to work, that family may lose its livelihood. When a working horse goes lame, it may go to slaughter while the family falls into poverty. Improving working animal welfare therefore improves human welfare too — making this an area where animal and human interests align rather than conflict. The most effective working animal welfare programs explicitly address this dual benefit, working through agricultural extension services and veterinary networks rather than animal welfare organizations alone.
Working animals serve humanity and deserve our care in return. Your support makes a real difference.
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