# Fattening up a thin donkey



## longhorngal

I bought-and I have no earthly idea why-a very thin, 16 y/o mammoth jenny donkey yesterday. Well, I do know why I bought her-after driving 6 miles down a twisty gravel road I was afraid the woman (who I had to follow in to her house) wouldn't tell me how to get back out to the main road! 
But seriously. She is a total sweetheart-leads so well-you can pick up her feet. Supposedly she rides and drives. I don't know but her face really got to me. She's a lovely red roan color too.
So,I've never had the problem of fattening up a thin donkey. Usually it's the other way around. I will take a fecal to the vet today to see how she is on worm load. Her previous owner said she'd dewormed her but I'm wondering if she needs a power pack like people do for very wormy horses sometimes.
She was in a dry lot. They said they fed her beet pulp and rice bran. There was certainly no hay or any food in site though all of their other horses and donkeys looked healthy and well fed.
I got her home yesterday afternoon and turned her out in my yard which has plenty of grass. I put her in the barn over night with a little hay.
Now she's in the yard again. She is certainly hungry and I'm thinking they just weren't feeding her enough.
Any suggestions? I gave her a bit of whole oats too and they didn't spill out of her mouth-seems to chew fine but I should probably take her in to the vet too be sure.
Cara
I wish you could just post a pic here w/o uploading somewhere else first.


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## Irish Pixie

Sounds like you've got it all under control.  Having her teeth checked and a fecal done (I'm not a trusting soul and take "I wormed her" with a grain of salt) is perfect to start with and all the grass hay she can eat, but be careful with how long you let her eat in the yard at least at first. If she's really thin be careful with the oats as well. 

You done good bringing her home with you.


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## goodhors

First off, I would seriously limit how much lawn grazing she gets now. Lawn grasses are REAL high in sugars, and she doesn't sound like she had much grazing before.

So with lawn grazing, new kind of sugar grass, LOTS of grass, Mule is having a HUGE change in diet. Her body may not be able to handle it well, not the food she is used to digesting, so you could EASILY get some Laminitus/Founder going in her. That happens with sudden feed changes, like uncontrolled turnout on spring grasses coming up, after a winter of hay only. Plenty of animals get lamanitic on that spring grass.

So cutting WAY BACK on her grazing time, but do give her the hay to chew on for filling her up. After doing the fecals, you will want to have her teeth done by the Vet or a horse dentist. Her teen years seem to be a time when many equines start having tooth issues, worn or lost teeth need attention, so mouth has good grinding surfaces for better chewing ability. Better chewing means she gets more calories from that food going thru her, back to being an efficient eater.

I would also be doing photos weekly, to show her progress in weight gain. You want her gaining SLOWLY, over time. And if you can, you SHOULD use her to make gains into muscle, not fat. Ride or driver her if she can handle the work. Gives her a better outlook on life with a job. 

And with the photos, HANDS ON to feel her ribs thru winter hair, you prevent her getting that obese look from over feeding. You have to touch them, poke fingers to find the ribs in thick hair, and KNOW if she is truly thin anymore or has fluffy hair. If you can't even find a rib, she needs her food cut back!

If you are not working her, she probably doesn't need grain or feed mixes. A handful of whole oats is flavorful, but not big on calories that she doesn't need. So small amounts are a good treat. AND plain oats do NOT contain molasses sugars, which are an unneeded food additive for equines. Lot of sugars (found in many Senior horse feeds) going to older animals is bad for them. Sugars overload their body systems, puts too much weight on them, adding to problems with Cushings Disease, lamanitic problems.


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## longhorngal

Thanks. I really didn't think about exercising her a little bit. She's too thin to ride but some walks would probably benefit us both. I took the fecal in and he said she had a heavy worm load. Not really surprised there. He didn't recommend anything other than Ivermectin. Said anything else would be overkill. 
I was trying to get some nutritional advice from him but it was really like pulling teeth.
You would think a rural vet could name 5 or 6 things off the top of his head to do with a too thin donkey but maybe not.
My grass in my yard is green but it hasn't rained in 26 days and its not really growing. I'll limit her on it to be on the safe side. 
I have some Standlee alfalfa/orchard grass cubes. They're smallish-wonder if those would be too rich.
I'm trying to figure out her age-they said 16-I went and looked at one of my horses who I KNOW is 16 but their teeth look really different. She hasn't been just real cooperative about it though. She's probably a lot older with my luck. Oh well, she's still in a better situation.


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## wr

There is no secret to restoring condition. Feed good quality hay in liberal doses but I would strongly recommend having your hay tested and adjust minerals accordingly.


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## Farmerjonathan

Also handle this jenny daily. Any horse, donkey or mule when emaciated or really thin and full of worms won't have the energy to fight. If left to get fat and then you try to pick up her feet, might be a whole different story! Keep handling her. My buddy that has a team of mules says sweet feed is like cocaine to mules. Gives them all kinds of endurance and muscle but without a lot of work/exercise, they even though they are broke, become very hard to handle.


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## alsarve

Glad to hear u brought that Jenny home! I got my 1st donkey a yr and a half ago from some people who wanted him and his brother toguard their meat goats. They were feeding him goat feed and moldy hay, he had patches of hair missing and they said he was 4. Never looked at his teeth til this summer and he's 2 1/2! Lol scary. Now he's shiny and at least fully haired and halter broke. He got lots of grass hay when I first got him, no grain. Worked out well for him along w pasture of not very good quality. Him and my horse gelding are now easy keepers. Good luck and keep us posted!


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## Maura

You are certainly on the right track. With a starved animal, you have to feed them more than they were getting, but not as much as you think. A donkey is very thrifty and will put on weight faster than a horse. I would give her plain hay in the morning, then let her out for a twenty minutes on the lawn. Use a handful of oats to teach her to come to you, then make sure she has water, but not food as she is likely to overeat. Repeat with hay and grass. As goodhors wrote, she could easily founder. Better to slowly put on weight while working with her. Treat her as though she has no training, petting her all over, brushing her, picking up feet, putting tack on her, taking her for walks. She will probably also like carrots, raisons, apples. Use these as treats for coming to you, allowing the halter on and off, waiting at the gate, etc. Everything she does right you reward. Back off the treats quickly, replacing with a neck rub and kind word.


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## Wolf mom

*Slowly with low protein foods*. They have a tendency to put on weight quickly that will lead to other health issues. And not too much grass to begin with. Easy for them to get diarrhea. 

Donkeys are desert creatures - that needs to be taken into consideration when feeding. 

Do your research - talk to other donk owners, not just your local feed store. 

Absolutely love donks. They have such personalities. You have to keep a sense of humor around them as they can be quite mischievious.


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## GrannyCarol

I haven't much to add, except congrats on the new donkey! I love the red roan color myself. 

When I got my horse, she was a couple hundred pounds underweight. I used a weight tape to keep track of her gain and put her on quality hay with a mineral supplement. She plumped right up and I suspect your donkey will too, as soon as she is wormed. 

Take some good pictures for a "before" and "after" as she gains!


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## MDKatie

Where are pics?!!!


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