Weight management and feeding requirements for geriatric donkeys

A diet based on fibrous forages and limited grazing is usually sufficient for most donkeys (Burden, 2011). However, some geriatric donkeys may require specialist feeding, especially if they also have dental disease. There is a lack of empirical evidence relating to weight management and nutritional requirements in geriatric donkeys, so these concepts will be discussed generally in this article, with reference made to geriatric donkeys where possible.

Healthy geriatric donkeys mostly require a basic diet of good quality barley, oat or wheat straw, and limited access to grass. Donkeyspecific vitamin and mineral requirements have not been established, but recommendations for horses can be extrapolated, and appear to provide adequate levels (Evans et al, 2021). Provision of adequate vitamins and minerals can be achieved by allowing access to fresh grazing and an equine-specific mineral lick, vitamin or mineral supplement, or balancer (Evans et al. 2021). Donkeys require a diet high in fibre and low in calories. Donkeys will eat the equivalent of 1.3–1.7 % of their bodyweight in dry matter each day, for an average 180 kg donkey this equates to 2.1–3kg of dry matter per day (Burden et al, 2013).