Donkeys and their relationship with people are often overlooked in social studies including anthropology. Yet they are vital to the survival of thousands of people across southern Africa. International trade in donkey skins have sparked intense concern among many social activists. In response to what various groups have called a ‘crisis’, several campaigns have been launched to try to protect donkeys and their well-being. This report is an ethnography of a farm sanctuary that rescues donkeys. It attempts to answer questions that revolve around my research participants’ relationships with donkeys and the beliefs that underlie their approach to animal well-being. I collected data by way of participant observation, interviews, and analysis of textual sources. I argue that the sanctuary can be understood as an attempt by the directors and manager to create a model of what they consider the ideal order of humans’ relationships with animals. Central to this argument are discussions around participants’ beliefs about veganism, animal rights, their focus on animals as individuals, and the historical context of donkeys in South Africa. / Dissertation (MSocSci (Anthropology))--University of Pretoria, 202. / Anthropology and Archaeology / MSocSci (Anthropology) / Unrestricted

Donkeys (Equus assinus) are active agents in human development and wellbeing. They provide an affordable and accessible means of draught power, food, and transport for many Batswana, in particular for smallholder farmers. Yet despite these contributions to people’s livelihoods, donkeys remain marginalized within Batswana ideological, political, economic, and societal structures, as well as within policy-making and planning mechanisms. This research argues in favour of the intrinsic value of donkeys and examines their welfare and position in relation to their material and symbolic roles in shaping human lives in Batswana society. Through a mixed social and animal welfare science methodology, the research explored the ways human use, care for, and value donkeys and how human positioning potentially impacts the donkeys’ welfare. Donkey welfare assessments were performed to measure their physical and emotional welfare to assess if donkey welfare is a function of human positioning in Batswana society. We cannot understand human affairs, wellbeing, and relations without recognizing the ways in which animals are entangled in and affected by social and cultural practices. This research draws on animal geography theory and the idea of positionality to understand how people’s co-habitation with donkeys affects the donkeys’ welfare. This research contributes scholarly insights on animal-human relations, animal welfare studies, and will inform relevant government livestock programming and planning in Botswana. / Social Science and Humanities Research Council of Canada;Guelph Graduate Studies;Arthur D. Latronell

No description available.

Eighty normal cheek teeth and 26 normal incisors extracted from 14 donkeys (median age 19 years) at post mortem were anatomically examined including grossly and by computerised axial tomography (CAT) imaging. Decalcified histology was performed on 54 sections from 18 teeth (8 donkeys), undeclacified histology on 16 sections from 7 donkeys and scanning electron microscopy on 10 sections from 10 teeth (3 donkeys). The dental formulae and tooth number was found to be the same as in horses with a higher prevalence (17 %) of canine teeth in female donkeys. A decrease in tooth length, pulp horn length and pulp horn width with age was illustrated, as was an increase in occlusal secondary dentine depth with age, although not all these age changes were statistically significant. Normal histological and ultrastructural features of donkey teeth were identified and found to be similar to equine findings. Enamel was found to be thicker buccally in both maxillary and mandibular cheek teeth. Quantitative measurements of transverse dentine thickness around pulp cavities, dentinal tubule diameters and densities, and enamel prism diameters were made. Left lower incisors (301) were extracted from 7 donkeys and 6 horses for micro-hardness determination of enamel, primary and secondary dentine using a Knoop Hardness indenter. No significant difference between donkey and horse incisor microhardness was demonstrated. Examination of 19 donkey skulls at post mortem examination showed donkeys to have a higher degree of anisognathia (27%) compared to horses (23%). Post mortem dental examination of 349 donkeys (median age 31) demonstrated a high prevalence of dental disease (93%) and in particular cheek teeth diastemata (85%). Furthermore, age was associated with increasing prevalence of dental disease and diastemata. Diastemata were also associated with the presence of other dental disorders and with colic-related death in affected donkeys. Quantitative measurements of 45 diastemata from 16 donkeys showed no difference in the medial and lateral width of diastemata but periodontal pockets were deeper laterally. The definition of valve and open diastemata were confirmed. Pulp exposure, dental caries and periodontal disease were examined in detail (54 skulls) at post mortem. A total of 19 teeth were extracted for further detailed examination as performed in normal anatomy. Clinical dental examinations were performed on 357 donkeys in the U.K. that were selected for age distribution, and the prevalence of dental disease in different age groups was found to increase from 28% in the youngest group (age 0-10 years) to 98% in the oldest group (age > 35 years). An increased prevalence of most dental disorders with age was demonstrated as was an association between dental disease and weight loss, poor body condition score, supplemental feeding and previous episodes of colic. Clinical dental examination of 203 working donkeys in Mexico showed similar types of dental disorders as found in the U.K. study, with dental disease present in 62%, of which 18% required urgent dental treatment. There was a significant association between age groups and dental disease, and age groups and body condition score, but there was no association between dental disease and body condition score. However, body condition score was not associated with supplemental feeding or faecal egg counts either.

The purpose of this study was to compile practical feeding guidelines for donkeys in the UK. Current guidelines are to feed 0.75 of horse feeding recommendations on a body weight basis. However, the superior digestive efficiency of donkeys, compared to horses, may render the use of horse recommendations inappropriate. The formulation of guidelines specific to donkeys would enable owners to calculate their donkey‟s requirements with greater accuracy and prevent overfeeding. A postal survey, used to gain information on the body condition score of donkeys in the UK, and the husbandry and feeding practices used to manage them, indicated that approximately 24% of donkeys in the UK are overweight. Feeding practices indicated that although owners were aware of their donkey‟s requirement for fibrous forages, the practice of feeding unnecessary concentrates, chaffs and high energy forages, in addition to grazing, was the likely cause of donkeys becoming overweight. The finding that the majority (85 – 90%) of donkeys were kept as non-working companion animals also reduced the need for owners to feed higher energy foods to their donkeys. Results also suggested that owners were unsure of how to adjust their donkey‟s diet to account for seasonal changes in requirements and pasture availability, as most owners‟ adjusted grazing access, and not the feeding of supplementary feeds. From a study of dry matter (DM) and digestible energy (DE) intakes by 20 mature donkeys maintaining weight during each UK season, the maintenance DE requirements of donkeys were calculated. Results showed no effect of sex on DM or DE intake. Season significantly (P<0.001) affected DM and DE intakes, implying increased requirements in winter compared to spring, summer and autumn. Dry matter intakes (DMI) increased from 51g/kg BW0.75 in spring, summer and autumn to 66g/kg BW0.75 in winter. Digestible energy requirements increased from 0.32MJ/kg BW0.75 in spring, summer and autumn to 0.43MJ/kg BW0.75 in winter. Comparison of results with horse recommendations showed considerably reduced requirements by donkeys. Horse recommendations overestimated DE requirements in summer and winter by 82 and 30%, respectively, making horse recommendations unsuitable for calculating donkey energy requirements. Husbandry practices commonly used by owners to manage their donkeys grazing access (grazing time, grazing area, strip grazing), were assessed for their effect on DMI by grazing donkeys in summer and autumn, using n-alkanes. The effect of grazing time was assessed by restricting donkeys to 8, 12 or 23 hours grazing per day. Season significantly affected food intake with donkeys in the 8 and 23 hour grazing groups eating more during summer when pasture availability was greater. Donkeys responded to the poorer quality summer pasture by grazing more intensively but less selectively, increasing the rate at which food was consumed. Grazing time was only influential over grass intake in summer, when pasture was more abundant. Restricting donkeys to 12 hours or less grazing per day significantly (P<0.001) reduced their grass intake compared to that of donkeys with 23 hours access. When grazing sparse pastures (autumn), grazing time did not influence grass intake, indicating an effect of herbage mass on grazing behaviour. Herbage mass was the most influential factor over diet composition (percentage of grass and straw consumed) in a second grazing study assessing the affect of strip grazing and set stocking systems on intake by grazing donkeys during summer and autumn. Herbage mass per donkey was higher in the set stocking system during both seasons, resulting in higher grass intakes. Determining if either grazing system was more effective at regulating grass intake was prevented due to differences in pasture availability between study sites. It is concluded that donkeys have lower DMI and maintenance DE requirements than horses, requiring donkey feeding guidelines to be formulated. Excess body weight in donkeys is caused in part, by the feeding of energy dense feeds in addition to low energy forages. Most owners place little nutritional importance on pasture, despite its potential to provide a large percentage of daily DM, DE and nutrient intake. Therefore nutritional guidelines must include advice on how to manage access to grazing, and how to feed donkeys with access to pasture. Restricting grazing time to 8 hours a day did reduce grass intake by donkeys, but was only effective when grazing abundant pastures. Providing ad libitum straw to grazing donkeys allows them to satisfy their DM and dietary fibre requirements without consuming excess energy.

Com o objetivo de avaliar sorológica e molecularmente a ocorrência de infecção por Rickettsia spp em equídeos e carrapatos da região Centro-Norte do estado do Piauí, foram realizadas coletas de sangue e de carrapatos que parasitavam equídeos em 10 localidades distribuídas nas microrregiões de: Campo Maior, Teresina e Valença, nos meses de agosto dos anos de 2010 e 2011. Soros de 129 equinos e 110 asininos foram analisados pela Reação de Imunofluorescência Indireta para detecção de anticorpos anti-Rickettsia spp (R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali e R. bellii) e 105 Dermacentor nitens, oito Amblyomma cajennense e três Amblyomma parvum foram submetidos a reação de polimerase em cadeia utilizando os primers dos genes gltA, ompA e ompB específicos para o gênero Rickettsia e rickettsias do grupo da febre maculosa (GFM). Do total de animais examinados 52,3% foram positivos para pelo menos uma das rickettsias testadas. Somente em dois carrapatos dos 116 analisados, ambos A. parvum, foram positivos para Rickettsia do GFM, apresentando esta cepa 100% de similaridade com \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\", obtida no Peru. Pelos achados sorológicos concluiu-se que \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" cepa Piauí e ou R. amblyommii, seriam juntamente com R. bellii, os prováveis agentes circulantes na região centro-norte do estado do Piauí. D. nitens, A. cajennense e A. parvum são espécies de carrapatos que infestam equídeos na mesorregião Centro-Norte do Piauí. \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" cepa Piauí teve seu primeiro relato no Brasil. Animais com acesso à mata ou mantidos em piquetes apresentaram associação com a ocorrência de anticorpos anti-Rickettsia spp (p<0.01). / In order to evaluate serological and molecular occurrence of infection with Rickettsia spp in horses and ticks in the central-northern region of the state of Piauí, blood samples were taken and ticks infesting horses are collected in ten locations distributed in the regions of: Campo Maior, Teresina and Valença, in August of 2010 and 2011. Sera from 129 horses and 110 donkeys were analyzed by immunofluorescent antibody test for detection of antibodies to Rickettsia spp (R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali and R. bellii) and 105 Dermacentor nitens, eight Amblyomma cajennense and three Amblyomma parvum were subjected to PCR analysis using primers of the genes gltA, ompA and ompB specific to the genus Rickettsia and spotted fever group (SFG). From all of the examined animals, 52.3% were positive for at least one of Rickettsia tested. Only two of the 116 ticks analyzed, both A. parvum, were positive for Rickettsia of the SFG, and the strain showing 100% similarity with \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" obtained in Peru. By the serological finds it was concluded that \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" strain Piauí and or R. amblyommii, together with R. bellii, are probably the agents circulating in the central-northern region of Piauí state. D. nitens, A. cajennense and A. parvum are species of ticks that infest horses in the region. \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" strain Piauí was firstly described in ticks in Brazil. Horses with access to forest or kept in paddocks were associated with the occurrence of anti-Rickettsia spp antibodies (p<0.01).

Com o objetivo de avaliar sorológica e molecularmente a ocorrência de infecção por Rickettsia spp em equídeos e carrapatos da região Centro-Norte do estado do Piauí, foram realizadas coletas de sangue e de carrapatos que parasitavam equídeos em 10 localidades distribuídas nas microrregiões de: Campo Maior, Teresina e Valença, nos meses de agosto dos anos de 2010 e 2011. Soros de 129 equinos e 110 asininos foram analisados pela Reação de Imunofluorescência Indireta para detecção de anticorpos anti-Rickettsia spp (R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali e R. bellii) e 105 Dermacentor nitens, oito Amblyomma cajennense e três Amblyomma parvum foram submetidos a reação de polimerase em cadeia utilizando os primers dos genes gltA, ompA e ompB específicos para o gênero Rickettsia e rickettsias do grupo da febre maculosa (GFM). Do total de animais examinados 52,3% foram positivos para pelo menos uma das rickettsias testadas. Somente em dois carrapatos dos 116 analisados, ambos A. parvum, foram positivos para Rickettsia do GFM, apresentando esta cepa 100% de similaridade com \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\", obtida no Peru. Pelos achados sorológicos concluiu-se que \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" cepa Piauí e ou R. amblyommii, seriam juntamente com R. bellii, os prováveis agentes circulantes na região centro-norte do estado do Piauí. D. nitens, A. cajennense e A. parvum são espécies de carrapatos que infestam equídeos na mesorregião Centro-Norte do Piauí. \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" cepa Piauí teve seu primeiro relato no Brasil. Animais com acesso à mata ou mantidos em piquetes apresentaram associação com a ocorrência de anticorpos anti-Rickettsia spp (p<0.01). / In order to evaluate serological and molecular occurrence of infection with Rickettsia spp in horses and ticks in the central-northern region of the state of Piauí, blood samples were taken and ticks infesting horses are collected in ten locations distributed in the regions of: Campo Maior, Teresina and Valença, in August of 2010 and 2011. Sera from 129 horses and 110 donkeys were analyzed by immunofluorescent antibody test for detection of antibodies to Rickettsia spp (R. rickettsii, R. parkeri, R. amblyommii, R. rhipicephali and R. bellii) and 105 Dermacentor nitens, eight Amblyomma cajennense and three Amblyomma parvum were subjected to PCR analysis using primers of the genes gltA, ompA and ompB specific to the genus Rickettsia and spotted fever group (SFG). From all of the examined animals, 52.3% were positive for at least one of Rickettsia tested. Only two of the 116 ticks analyzed, both A. parvum, were positive for Rickettsia of the SFG, and the strain showing 100% similarity with \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" obtained in Peru. By the serological finds it was concluded that \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" strain Piauí and or R. amblyommii, together with R. bellii, are probably the agents circulating in the central-northern region of Piauí state. D. nitens, A. cajennense and A. parvum are species of ticks that infest horses in the region. \"Candidatus Rickettsia andeanae\" strain Piauí was firstly described in ticks in Brazil. Horses with access to forest or kept in paddocks were associated with the occurrence of anti-Rickettsia spp antibodies (p<0.01).

Pulmonary fibrosis is a chronic and debilitating condition that proposes several challenges to both veterinary and medical clinicians. Despite considerable research, many fibrotic lung diseases remain elusive in terms of aetiology, pathogenesis and treatment. Furthermore, progress is hindered by the lack of a translatable animal model with durable and persistent fibrosis. Asinine Pulmonary Fibrosis (APF) is a spontaneous syndrome of aged donkeys with high prevalence (35%). No previous detailed characterisation of APF has been performed and disease diagnosis remains a challenge. APF was studied with regard to clinical, pathological and molecular features and the suitability of this condition as a model for a rare fibrotic lung disease in humans known as pleuroparenchymal fibroelastosis (PPFE) was assessed. In addition, target activatable optical imaging reagents for the real time detection of two key molecular markers of fibrosis: matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) and lysyl oxidases (LOXF) were evaluated in spontaneous ex vivo models of fibrosis. Such reagents may be used alongside fibred confocal fluorescence microscopy (FCFM), a relatively noninvasive and cutting edge diagnostic tool, to detect and monitor fibroproliferation in animals and man. Whole lungs were collected from 32 aged donkeys at routine necropsy. Gross examination revealed pulmonary fibrosis in 19 donkeys (APF cases), while 13 (controls) had grossly normal lungs. HRCT images and histology sections were reviewed independently and blindly for each of the lungs. Ten of 19 APF lungs were categorised as being ‘consistent with’ PPFE according to previously defined histological and imaging criteria. All 10 PPFE-like lungs had marked pleural and subpleural fibrosis, predominantly within the upper lung zone, with accompanying intra-alveolar fibrosis and elastosis. An activatable Smartprobe for the detection of LOXF, TWB-219, was synthesised by The Bradley Group, Department of Chemistry (UoEDC). The probe was based on a tandem amine oxidation and β-elimination mechanism, resulting in signal amplification detected at the 488nm wavelength. The probe showed increased fluorescence in the presence of diamine oxidase as well as on incubation with aged human lung tissue cell-free homogenate as determined by a fluorescent plate reader. This signal amplification could be inhibited by β-aminopropionitrile, a recognised LOX inhibitor as well as by an in-house inhibitor specific to LOX. An evolutionary family of MMP probes with varying cleavage sequences and structures, synthesised by the UoEDC, was evaluated at each stage of progression with regard to signal to noise ratio, sensitivity and specificity. Probes were tested against recombinant enzymes from the MMP family as well as neutrophil elastase and plasmin. Signal amplification was also assessed on incubation with human and ovine ex vivo lung tissue. The final ‘lead’ MMP probe, SVC-186, was cleaved by MMP-2, -9 and -13. Signal amplification was also seen following incubation with both human and ovine tissue with significant inhibition in the presence of the pan- MMP inhibitor, marimastat. In conclusion, APF is an emerging condition of aged donkeys that shares key pathological and imaging features with human PPFE. Diagnosis of APF and other fibrotic lung conditions across species remains a challenge to veterinary and medical professionals. As such, optical imaging tools may provide dynamic, real time information on the presence and progression of fibroproliferation in the lung. TWB- 219 and SVC-186 produce a detectable increase in fluorescent signal at the 488nm wavelength when activated by LOXF and MMPs respectively. These probes have been shown to function in human ex vivo tissue as assessed by FCFM.

Critical look at the characteristics of Donkey Fever: signs, symptoms, causes, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention.

I denna uppsats studeras realismens framställning i filmskapandet, dels genom visuella tekniker men även genom handling- och ämnesmässiga val. Studien fokuserar på tre filmer som alla är regisserade och skrivna av filmskaparen Harmony Korine, dessa filmer är: Gummo (1997), Julien Donkey-Boy (1999) och Trash Humpers (2009). För att studera filmernas framställning av realism utifrån syftet med studien diskuteras och appliceras teorier angående ämnet från bland annat John Orr, Robert Stam och Geoff King. Eftersom syftet med studien är att studera realismen utifrån de specifika val som Korine har gjort i filmskapandet diskuteras även idén om en auteur. Både teorierna ifrån Orr och King är grundade i auteurteorin. King har även en utgångspunkt i den amerikanska independentfilmen som Harmony Korine är en aktiv filmskapare inom. I analysen diskuteras sedan Gummo, Julien Donkey-Boy och Trash Humpers separat och med hjälp av de framlagda teorierna om realism argumenterar analyserna olika sätt som filmerna framställer realism genom de visuella samt de handling- och ämnesmässiga valen.