Zambezi Working Donkey Project - February 2022 report

Following is the February 2022 report from the Zambezi Working Donkey Project:

January and February are the wettest months of the year in Zambia – this is excellent news for the animals as there is fresh grass and drinking water in abundance. Yet it is not so great for our mobile clinic as the water and mud make many of the rural roads to villages unpassable. Therefore during the green season we are focussing our efforts on reaching the donkeys as they come to visit markets in town, or if they are able to drop in to our workshop at Maramba Farm. During the months of January and February our team saw 134 working donkeys with 53 different owners. All donkeys are being dipped regularly as this is the worst time of year for ticks and tick born diseases. We also treated a lot of wounds caused by wooden yokes, rubbing harnesses, unnecessary beating and from slipping on wet roads. Hoof maintenance is also very important at this time of year.

Since the new year we have rescued 2 donkeys…

In early January we were called to a farm near Chisamba where a stray donkey had arrived with a very deformed foot. The kind farmer looked after the donkey until the road was dry enough for us to collect him in a trailer. The donkey’s foot seemed to have been broken when he was much younger, and left untreated has healed with the hoof growing out at a right angle to the joint. This must have been extremely painful but the donkey has somehow adapted to walking on it and is otherwise in good spirits and health. We had the long hoof trimmed right back and ‘Wonky’ the donkey, who is senior in age, will be looked after by us for the rest of his days.

On 21st February during an outreach at Libuyu Clinic our team came across a very badly injured donkey with awful wounds on his neck. The owner had been given humane harnesses in the past but had reverted to using an ox-yoke, because the harnesses had broken due to excessive use. This is an issue we come across often when harnesses break and the owners do not fix them or come to us for replacements. The donkey, whose name is Zebra, was released to us for treatment and the owner has since been to learn how to repair his harnesses. Zebra will be released when he is fully recovered and we will monitor his welfare.

During this period AAA funds were used to procure materials for 40 sets of harness – of which 15 sets have been given out so far – as well as funding our mobile clinic, feed for our 14 current rescue donkeys, and veterinary materials.

Thank you so much to the donors of Animal Aid Abroad – your support is making a big impact on the lives of working donkeys here in Zambia.