Do Donkeys Need Blankets?

Heres what you should know about blanketing your long ears, or blanketing your long ears this winter, and why.

There’s been an age old debate about whether or not equine owners as a whole should blanket their equine family members. We wanted to share our two cents on the topic to help our donkey friends out, and to hopefully share some insight to donkey owners who may be going back and forth on whether or not to blanket their long-ears. After all, donkeys are not little horses with big ears.

The short answer to a complicated, age old question is, it depends. Depending on where you live and your climate. No not all donkeys need blankets. There are a lot of factors to consider here. How cold it gets, how wet it is, the age of your donkey, if they have Cushing's disease or any other types of health problems or acute illnesses, etc.

Common Phrases We Hear include;

“But my donkey gets as fluffy as a yak, why would he/ she need a blanket? ”

"But he/ she is on the chunky side, shouldn't that be enough insulation?"

"Donkeys are heartier than horses though right?"

"I've never blanketed them before, why would I start now?"

Lets dig in...

A Donkeys Fur

A donkeys fluffy fur does not have the density or insulating properties that a horse's natural coat provides. Not only that but donkeys lack the oil that their cousin the horse has in their coat, that acts as a natural water repellent. This oil is called sebum, which acts as a water repellant and in turn keeps their skin dry. This is also why horses have that sweet horse smell that we all know and love, and donkeys do not. (Sorry donkeys.)

Donkeys are a desert species, who use dust and sand as a way to bathe themselves. We may not think it's very impressive after our perfectly groomed long ear takes a nice sand or dirt bath, but this is actually good hygiene on the donkeys part. Dust keeps away mites and other skin issues naturally. Since it doesn’t rain often in the desert, donkeys have not evolved to have oil in their coats to protect them from our freezing rain, wind, sleet and snow that our northern winters bring. Mixing a lack of a waterproofed coat, extra winter fur without insulating properties and wet weather and you have a cocktail for one miserable donkey. This can unfortunately even become a death sentence for an immune compromised/ older donkey.

Health Factors

Many people think that because their donkey is slightly overweight it will help to insulate them better in the cold. But that is not true. An overweight donkey is considered health compromised. Their extra fat acts as the opposite of insulation to them, and can make them immune compromised, in turn making them more susceptible to the cold in addition to many other issues that cause them discomfort. But that is another blog post for another day. The same can go for a donkey that is underweight as well, but it's more natural for a donkey to be on the thinner side than chunkier side of the spectrum in general.

Donkeys who are older, sick, injured, have weight issues, have cushings disease or thyroid issues are more vulnerable than a younger, healthier donkey and may just need an extra layer or two to give them a hoof up this winter to keep them cozy, healthy, and comfortable.

How To Know If Your Donkey Actually Cold?

“But my donkey never acts cold!” Donkeys have evolved to first freeze (no pun intended) before having a flight or fight response like most other mammals we know. Donkeys stop and think through problems or how to respond to a stressful situations before acting upon it. Which is why they’ve unfortunately gotten the notorious title of being “stubborn.” When in reality they're just being smart and conserving their energy. It’s their instincts way of protecting them from being eaten by predators. Pretty fascinating, but not so great for their caretakers who love them and want to know when they’re not well. It can make it very hard to notice if your donkey is actually cold. Which is where knowing your donkey, using common sense and discernment come into play here big time.

Signs Your Donkey Is cold:

1. Their tail is tucked under them and they're standing with their ears back and look rigid.

2. They are acting hungrier than usual.

3. They are shivering, or appearing to have muscle tremors.

4.They are cold colicing regularly or have in the past during cold snaps.

5. They don't want to move around as much as they do normally.

6. They are acting grouchy or 'hangrier' than usual.

My Donkey Does Not Allow Me To Blanket Them, Now What?

Don't Panic! Just because you've never put a blanket on your long ear, does not make you a bad donkey parent. We would love to chat with you about how to prepare your donkey for getting a blanket on for the first time, if this is something you are struggling with. It can be very frustrating and we understand, we've all been there. Please don't hesitate to reach out to us if this is something you're dealing with.

The bare minimum a donkey should have (with or without a blanket) is access to a 3 sided shelter with a roof to protect them from the elements. If the opening or door is south facing thats even better! Bedding the shelter deeply with pine shavings, and cleaning it daily so they have a warm dry space can go a very long way too.

If your donkey won't allow you to put a blanket on them in an emergency, you can also put a heat lamp in your donkeys stall in an emergency. Disclaimer: Please do your own research on heat lamps and be aware of any fire hazards that come with heat lamps. In general make sure that your heat lamp is high up enough to be away from their back and head so they are not able to touch the lamp itself. I usually keep them a few feet above where their head sits naturally.

Can/ Should I Feed My Donkey Something Warm?

Yes! Digestion is a great way for an equine to warm up from the inside out.

Assuming your equine already has access to some kind of long stem forrage, you can not go wrong providing them with warm water, and warm mashes at least once a day during cold snaps. (Mashes should not have too much of anything 'extra' that your donkey is not already used to eating. If you do need to give something extra, we recommend timothy pellets or cubes. Warm water added to what they eat daily is totally acceptable.) I can not count the amount of times I've lugged buckets of warm water from my sink out to each donkey, for almost every single donkey to suck the buckets dry. Despite having access to clean, fresh, unfrozen water. Water tank heaters typically do not "heat" the water tanks, but keep them just above freezing. Donkeys LOVE warm water, especially in the winter time. This can help to prevent illness or impaction colics, and gives them warm pick me up before a cold snap. At the very least you are giving them a little bit of extra preventative hydration. If you want to get extra fancy, make your donkey a little cocktail and add some flavored electrolytes to encourage fluid intake. We have done experiments in the past with electrolyte and flavored water buffets to see which ones were favorites. If you live in an area that has high iron in the water or hay/ ground, it is a good idea to find an electrolyte supplement that does not contain any iron, especially if you have an animal with metabolic issues.

Slow and steady intake of hay is also great for keeping equines warm. We do this by using slow feeder Hay Chix nets. This has helped to prevent many colics and keeps donkeys busy. If your donkey is underweight free choice hay is a good choice.

Other Blanketing Tips

1. Blankets should be checked daily to make sure there are no rips, tears or dampness under them.

2. Clips should always be clip side facing IN toward the donkeys body to prevent getting caught on anything.

3. Donkeys should be groomed a few times a week when wearing blankets and at minimum once a week with a slicker brush or a long toothed brush to ensure their skin is still getting some air and that dead, shedding skin is being removed.

4. Blankets need to be washed and re-waterproofed every year. You can find waterproofing spray online or at any tack shop that sells horse blankets. (We like scotch guard.)

5. When putting on a blanket start fastening buckles and clips from the front (chest area) to the back. This way if they get startled the blanket is not caught on their back legs and falling off the rest of their body.

6. Have spare blankets on hand in case one gets damaged or wet.

7. Do not blanket your donkey if their coat is wet. Blanketing any equine when they are wet is a recipe for disaster and is asking for pneumonia.

8. On warm, sunny days remove your donkeys blanket so their skin can breathe, and so they can get some sunshine and air on their skin. There is no exact temperature we can say to take a blanket off, one needs to use their discernment here.

9. Have a few different blankets on hand. A rain sheet, and a few different water proof coats ranging from 200g- 800g insulation to protect them from the elements are very helpful to have on hand when you're in a pickle or your donkey is ill. Speaking from experience, you do not want to br scrambling to fit your donkey for a blanket when they are already not feeling well.

Please don’t take what we’ve said here today and use it as a blanket statement. But we hope you read this with an open mind. Use your discernment and go based on what you know of your long ears, the weather and your donkey's individual, ever changing needs. The bottom line is, just because they've survived the winters for years without being blanketed, doesn’t mean they are thriving and comfortable.

Below is a photo showing how the chest clips on a blanket should be faced in for safety.

Blankets Made Just For Donkeys

Have trouble fitting your donkeys for blankets? It can be very tricky to find a horse blanket that fits a donkey correctly. Bray Hollow Farm in NY makes blankets specifically for ponies and donkeys. If you’d like to check them out you can click the link below to check out their website!

www.Brayhollowfarm.com

What About Mules?

For mules it's very important to use your judgement. Some mules inherit more donkey genetics than horses and some have coats more like horses. In the photo below these are two mule coats. taken on the same day, the same time of year, they are the same age, and were getting the same diet. But you can see one has a much thicker coat than the other. The mule on the right never needed a blanket, but the mule on the left who is actually my mule, Slick needs to be heavily blanketed in the winter months or he will get ulcers and become ill.