Donkeys Flashcards
What is the HR, RR and temp of donkeys?
Heart Rate - 36 - 52
Respiratory Rate - 12 - 28
Temperature - 36.5 – 37.8
What are donekys vaccinated fro?
when should they go to the dentist and the farriery?
What are the basic needs of a donkey?
- Vaccinations - Tetanus, Equine Influenza
- Regular dentals (min. 12 monthly)
- Farriery (every 6-10 weeks)
- Parasites - same as horses
- Need companionship - keep bonded pair with them at all times
- Need shelter - coat is not waterproof
- Passport and microchip legally required
What is the differneces in haematology of donkeys?
Fewer RBCs, increased volume MCV – always ensure comparing bloods to donkey blood parameters!
What are the four anatomical differences in donkeys to horses?
- Ears – thermoregulation, increased hearing, good for arterial lines!
- Cutaneous coli muscle – obscures middle 1/3 jugular vein
- Pectoral muscles – underdeveloped, never inject donkeys here!
- tear duct is on the dorsal surface of the nares
What is the weight of a minature, standard, and poitou donkey?
Miniature ~90-120kg
Standard ~160-200kg
Poitou/Mammoth ~400-500kg
Where do donkeys distribute their fat?
Donkeys distribute their fat slightly differently to horses, and tend to distribute fat more over their necks, top of the ribs, and over their rump.
- Hand over neck
- light pressure over ribs and hips to feel
Often not well muscled – can make interpretation harder!
What is the DM requirement of donkeys?
What is a good forage to provide them?
- 1.3-1.7% DM/bodyweight daily
- Donkeys need less than pony of similar size
- Still need to graze/browse for most of the day
- Barley straw fits this profile very well
- Rest of diet made up by grass and/or hay
- If dental diseaseis present, chopped straw products are available
- Add** vitamin mineral balancer** if only feeding straw
What is the difference in foot anatomy of donkeys?
What are the differneces when shoeing?
- Extensor process of P3 is 1-1.3cm distal to the coronary band
- Metallic marker very useful to assess founder distance
- Thick sole - 1cm+
- Less sensitive to hoof testers
- Frog does not extend as far forward
- Frog support and heart bar shoes exacerbate rotational forces - not advisable
- Pads +/- glue shoes better
What is sham eating?
when the donkey pretends to eat - to trick predators
What is an emergency in donkeys?
A dull donkey is a clinical emergency
- not eating and subdue
What pain scales are used in donkeys?
facial pain scale and composite pain scale
What are oestrus signs in femal donkeys?
When can the donkeys breed/cycle?
how long is the gestation?
oestrus behaviour:
* Mounting
* Herding
* Chasing other females
* Mouth clapping
* Winking (repeated clitoral exposure)
* Raising tail
* Urinating posture
* Standing to be mounted
can breed all year round
11-14 months gestation
What is the differences with donkeys and:
Phenylbutazone,
Carprofen
What NSAID is not recommended?
Waht are the effects of IM sedation?
Phenylbutazone, - Metabolized faster in donkeys
Carprofen - Metabolized slower in donkeys
Meloxicam - Not advised for use in donkeys due to very short half-life
IM sedation (e.g. detomidine and butorphanol) onset much quicker in donkeys than horses ~ 15 minutes
What are the risk factors of hyperlipaemia in donkeys?
What are the signs?
RF:
* Obesity
* Weight loss
* Pregnancy/lactation
* Or just being female
* Increasing age
* Underlying primary disease
* Stress
Signs:
* Dullness, lethargy, inappetence
* Tachycardia/Tachypnoea/Pyrexia
* Ileus/ abdominal discomfort
* Congested membrane mucous, delayed CRT
* Dry mucous coveredfaeces/dryfaecalballs
* Cloudy to milky serum/plasma
* Ataxia or neuro signs
* Hepatic encephalopathy
Equine liver efficient at producing VLDL and triglycerides vs cats and ruminants that produce ketones.
What is the treatment for hyperlipaemia in donkeys?
Via pony or foal sized nasogastric tube
- 2-3L warm water (1L/75kg bw)
- Rehydration salts (e.g. Effalyte)
- 120g glucose powder
- 250-500g Ready brek - oats
Any other oral meds can be added in
Narrow nasal meatus despite big head – warn O RE bleed and consider chemical restraint if stressful – can worsen!
Can be better to tube and tx preventatively if safe and possible to do so
What is the presentation of colic in donkeys?
What is the most common cause?
What othe rdx should you consider?
- Present very differently to horses
- Quiet/dull
- No interest in food
- Concern if behaving like a horse!
- Pelvic flexure impaction most common cause of colic
- Pedunculated lipomas very rare in donkeys
- Do not starve, unless hospitalized on IVFT – hyperlipaemia risk
- Always consider pain + hyperlipaemia as DDx – analgesia
- You can rectal a donkey!
- Although maybe not a very small miniature or foal – ultrasound!
What is the presentation of colitis in donekys?
What sign do they not have?
what are the causes?
What is the treatment?
- Commonly seen in donkeys
- Present as dull, can display colic signs, pyrexia, hypoproteinaemia
- Rarely have diarrhoea (unlike horses)
- Multiple possible causes
- Stress, diet change, gut dysbiosis, toxin ingestion, endoparasitism
- Can survive with intensive care
- Analgesia is key in recovery
- IM omeprazole 4mg/kg q5-7 days
- Prognosis often guarded – quick diagnosis and treatment needed
What is the diagnostics of laminits in donkeys?
what is the management?
Can present standing still, weight shifting or lying down
Diagnostics
Radiographs – lateromedials with markers
ACTH - test for PPID (wait untilacute pain has reduced)
Insulin - Asinine Metabolic Syndrome - delay
Manage similar to laminitic pony – low sugar diet, restrictive grazing (never starve), foot support pads, deep bedding, analgesia, ice feet
Why do donkeys get white line abcesses commonly?
what can this puss go on to cause?
What is the treatment?
What is the prevention?
- Soft, permeable hooves absorb moisture
- Pus more likely to track upwards or back into pedal bone – pedal osteitis
- T - Can resect more foot than in horse, stop when get to blood but often have to dig scarily deep!
- Donkey friendly farrier, resect seedy toe and may need restorative farriery
Prevention
* Predisposed by poor hoof care, poor hoof quality, malnutrition and vitamin restricted diets
* Trim regularly - spray with iodine
Can sarcoids spread?
Where are sarcoids found on donkeys?
what are the treatment options?
- Very common in donkeys
- Risk of spread to companion - associated with flies
- Often associated with genital region, ventral abdomen, face/lips, eyes
- Treatment options as horses
- Laser surgery, BCG injections, sarcoid cream, cryotherapy
- Can be aggressive, grow rapidly and become infected
How do you place a IV catheter in donkeys?
- Thicker skin than horses
- Cutaneous coli muscle
- Ensure good restraint
- Clip and clean
- Lidocaine “bleb” or EMLA cream
- Carefully cutdown skin with scalpel + muscle
- Stitch in place
- cover with bandage so companion does not pull out
When should donkeys be castrated?
What are the differences in donkey castration to horeses?
what method of castration should you do depending on donkey age?
What is the aftercare?
Ideally castrate colts at 6-18 months
- Always castrate closed due to larger reproductive organs and blood vessels – inject **local into the cord **
- Pre-op check- heart, lungs, vaccination status, triglycerides? TAT?
- Check testicles both there!
-
General anaesthesia – field or theatre
- **Colts < 2 years old – scrotal approach **
- **Stallions > 2 years old – inguinal approach (in theatre) **
- Blood vessels must be ligated!
- Crush for 3 minutes
- 5-metric vicryl
- Aftercare - rest, exercise, bedding, feed, pain relief, cold hosing, fly prevention?
What anaesthesis is used for premendication and induction in donkeys?
premed:
* ACP IM/slow IV (may not need)
* Detomidine iv
* Butorphanol iv
Induction:
* Ketamine iv
* Diazepam
Castration: 5-10mls local anaesthetic to cord and testicle
What is the trip drip combo for donkeys? what is this useful?
What is the difference to horses?
Useful if doing a group or if unable to intubate
150mls 15% myolaxin (guaphenesin)
300mls saline
225mg xylazine
900mg ketamine
Donkeys metabolise alpha agonist and ketamine faster, and guaphenesin slower than horse - care not to overdose
Not more than 150mg/kg 1ml/kg GGE
What names are given for offspring of different donkey and horse parent combinations?
What condition do the foals often suffer from?
Mule offspring of a male donkey and a female horse (hinny opposite)
Foals have an increased risk of neonatal isoerythrolysis
