Snow not melting ro wet down poor Pancho’s hair, means he has good coat protection, enough insulation that he was not losing body heat. Driving out in the country, I do NOT feel sorry for animals covered in snow. They are plenty warm under their hair, with sufficient coat that no body heat is being lost for melting snow. The wet looking, drippy sided animals, cattle and equines, out in the snow get my sympathy. Though they could (and usually are) actually are quite dry at the skin level. They just “appear wetter” than they really are.
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I missed this post the first time around…which is fascinating, because it’s in stark contrast to the advice I got from all three donkey breeders/experts I talked to when we picked up our rescue donk Churro last year (a year ago today, to be exact!) They all gave me variations of the following - “donkeys are hardy, as long as yours have access to a shed or equivalent windbreak, good hay and are in good health, they shouldn’t need a blanket. Many would find them more annoying than useful”
I find this article even more interesting because it’s referring to the UK - I live in Vermont, and our winters make the UK’s look like a holiday in Jamaica…last year, I had a blanket for Churro as he was significantly underweight when he got him and his haircoat was awful. But his buddy had a nice full coat and was in good condition and went the vast majority of the winter with no blanket (I think we put one on for a stretch of a few days when it never got above 0F). They have access to a nice big shed, plenty of hay, etc. Never saw them shivering or looking uncomfortable.
All of the donkeys I’ve ever known were always hiding in the barn from October-May. I assumed they didn’t do well in the cold or wet.
One of them like people so he would go out with his blanket. The others were half feral rescues that just minded their own business.
This bumped up thread makes me angry all over again at the idiot people next door to me who left two Mediterranean donkeys out with no protection at all for 4 years…heck, no care whatsoever (feet, health, worming, coats, flies)…those poor things were out in 75mph winds, freezing rain, snow, the relentless PNW rain…I’m still so freaking upset.
And animal control? Donkeys are livestock, like cows, and don’t need the protection that a horse requires by law!!! ARGH!
And yes, these two boys were finally rescued by a sanctuary this August and now have a much, much better life!!
This is exactly what ours do, although more like from November - April. Although on quiet, sunny winter days you will catch them sunbathing and they often venture outside to play for short spurts and then retreat to the shed again. But they never show any other signs of being “cold” or “uncomfortable” with the weather…to be honest, I retreat to the house for the about the same stretch of any given year :lol:
Found this older post in passing. Any donkey aficionados out there should check out the Donkey Welfare Symposium this October (I think) at UC Davis, California. Loads of knowledgable people! I went this last November and hope to go again. There really isn’t a lot of good reliable information out there on donkeys, sadly. And like someone mentioned, they are not just like horses.
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longlanefarm: a couple years ago it was at Cornell. The other years (I think it’s been happening about 4 years now) it’s been at UC Davis.
My understanding has always been that the long donkey coat protects from heat, not cold.
I have a 2 yo mule who really feels the heat - he’s black but turning grey - and grows a huge coat in winter. However, it is not waterproof like my horse’s coat. We are now coming in to winter, and I have already clipped him for the second time because he sweats just standing in the paddock. He is lightly covered at night at the moment, but will have a heavier cover when the cold weather sets in.
