Clinical abnormalities in working donkeys and their associations with behaviour

A retrospective comparison of postoperative outcomes in ovariectomised jennies (Equus asinus) treated with phenylbutazone or flunixin meglumine

BACKGROUND

Clinically, flunixin meglumine (FM) and phenylbutazone (PBZ) are preferentially selected for the treatment of visceral and musculoskeletal pain, respectively, in horses. In donkeys, there is no information to support or refute this conventional conjecture.

OBJECTIVES

To compare postoperative outcomes in a group of jennies treated with intravenous FM or oral PBZ.

ANIMALS

Fourteen jennies unilaterally ovariectomised by standing left flank laparotomy.

STUDY DESIGN

Retrospective cohort study.

METHODS

Data from medical records of ovariectomised jennies (case details, weight, non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug [NSAID] protocol, surgery duration, operative sequence, anaesthesia protocol, physical examination findings and outcomes) were collected. From collated data, postoperative adverse events were defined as fever, tachycardia, tachypnea, inappetence, altered mentation, abnormal oral mucous membranes, bruxism, colic, incisional complications (i.e., drainage, oedema, peri-incisional emphysema and pain) and non-survival, then further divided into occurrence during the early (≤24 h) or late (>24 h) postoperative period for data analysis using R software. Chi-squared test was used to compare individual adverse events between groups (PBZ vs. FM) and moments (early vs. late). Significance was set at p ≤ 0.05.

RESULTS

PBZ treatment (8/14) was associated with (odds ratio, 95% confidence interval) more total (2.93, 1.97-4.36), early (3.01, 1.87-4.84) and late (2.69, 1.28-5.63) adverse events than FM treatment (6/14). Tachycardia (37.83, 2.21-646.66), tachypnoea (0.29, 0.13-0.66), altered mentation (2.78, 1.01-7.67), altered mucous membranes (18.38, 1.04-325.23), incisional oedema (44.33, 2.60-754.5) and incisional pain (47.78, 2.81-811.61) were significantly different between groups. Early adverse events significantly different between groups included tachycardia (50.2, 2.9-877.0), altered mentation (3.33, 1.08-10.29) and incisional pain (21.0, 1.2-374.5), with late adverse events being tachypnea (0.07, 0.01-0.62), incisional oedema (32.92, 1.85-584.28) and incisional pain (28.92, 1.62-515.68). Colic (2/8) and non-survival (1/8) were rare events that only occurred in the PBZ cohort and could not be further evaluated for differences.

MAIN LIMITATIONS

Small sample size; retrospective study; treatment bias; varied administration routes.

CONCLUSIONS

Oral PBZ may be inappropriate to use following abdominal surgery in donkeys.

CLINICAL RELEVANCE

More prospective and case-controlled studies are needed to evaluate the clinical efficacy of these two NSAIDs in donkeys.

Prevalence and Factors Associated with Working Equid Lameness in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Lameness is an important concern in working equids of low- and middle-income communities (LMICs) with significant One Welfare implications. This study aims to determine the prevalence and influencing factors of lameness in working equids of LMICs. A systematic review and meta-analysis were performed to investigate pooled outcome prevalence using a random intercept regression model. Subgroup and sensitivity analysis were performed through meta-regression. A meta-analysis of study factors for lameness prevalence was performed. Sixty-four studies were included in the review. The pooled prevalence of lameness was 29.9% (n = 42, 95% CI 17-47%), while the pooled prevalence of gait abnormality was 62.9% (n = 12; 95% CI 31-87%). When considering both outcomes together, the pooled prevalence was 38.4% (n = 46; 95% CI 23-57%) with a significant (p = 0.02) difference between lameness (29.5%; 95% CI 16-48%) and gait abnormality (78.8%; 95% CI 40-95%). Species, country income level, gait assessed, and risk of bias did not significantly affect the pooled prevalence. Lower body condition scores, unresponsive attitudes, and old age were the most frequently reported factors positively associated with lameness-related outcomes. Working 7 days per week was positively associated with lameness. The standardization of outcome terminology, grading systems, and study factor categorization is recommended to enable more accurate interpretation and comparison between studies.

Validation of the Donkey Pain Scale (DOPS) for Assessing Postoperative Pain in Donkeys

This study aimed to validate a scale for assessing acute pain in donkeys. Forty-four adult donkeys underwent castration after sedation with intravenous (IV) xylazine, induction with guaifenesin and thiopental IV, local anesthetic block, and maintenance with isoflurane. The scale was constructed from a pilot study with four animals combined with algetic behaviors described for equines. After content validation, the scale was evaluated in 40 other donkeys by three blinded and one reference evaluator, by means of edited videos referring to the preoperative and postoperative periods: before anesthesia, 3-4 h after recovery from anesthesia, 5-6 h after recovery from anesthesia (2 h after analgesia with flunixin-1.1 mg/kg, dipyrone-10 mg/kg, and morphine-0.2 mg/kg) IV, and 24 h after recovery. Content validity, sensitivity, specificity, and responsiveness of behaviors were investigated to refine the scale. Intra- and inter-evaluator reliabilities were investigated by the weighted kappa coefficient, criterion validity by comparing the scale with the visual analog scale (VAS), internal consistency by Cronbach's α coefficient, item-total correlation by the Spearman coefficient, and intervention point for rescue analgesic by the receiver operating characteristics curve and Youden index. The scale showed very good intra-evaluator reliability (0.88-0.96), good to moderate (0.56-0.66) inter-evaluator reliability, responsiveness for all items, good criterion validity vs. VAS (0.75), acceptable internal consistency (0.64), adequate item-total correlation, except for head position and direction, and according to the principal component analysis, good association among items. The accuracy of the point for rescue analgesic was excellent (area under the curve = 0.91). The rescue analgesic score was ≥ 4 of 11 points. The scale can diagnose and quantify acute pain in donkeys submitted to castration, as the instrument is reliable and valid, with a defined intervention analgesic score.

Post-operative pain behaviour associated with surgical castration in donkeys (Equus asinus)

Background

Recognising pain in donkeys is challenging because they are stoic.

Objectives

To identify the responses of donkeys before and after surgical pain.

Study design

Prospective, short‐term longitudinal pre‐ and post‐intervention observations.

Methods

Forty adult donkeys underwent surgical castration after sedation with intravenous (IV) xylazine, induction with guaiphenesin/thiopental IV and maintenance of anaesthesia with isoflurane and local anaesthetic blockade. Four hours after recovery from anaesthesia, flunixin meglumine 1.1 mg/kg, dipyrone 10 mg/kg and morphine 0.2 mg/kg IV were administered. Behavioural responses exhibited by the animals housed in individual stalls were recorded in four 30‐min videos: before castration (M0), and 3.5‐4.0 hours (M1), 5.5‐6.0 hours (M2) and 23.5‐24.0 hours after recovery from anaesthesia (M3). To exclude the influence of insects, the behaviour of six apparently pain‐free donkeys was compared with and without the presence of faeces and urine in the stall.

Results

When compared with presurgical baseline behaviours (M0), after surgery (M1) donkeys raised their pelvic limbs more (P = .003). When compared with M1, after analgesia (M2), the median frequencies of ear movements (44 vs 16; P < .001), head shaking (7 vs 1; P < .001), head turning (5 vs 0; P < .001) and lifting of the both limbs (7 vs 0; P = .008) decreased; feeding (0 vs 29; P < .001) and water intake (0 vs 0, range 0‐1 vs 0‐7; P = .05) increased. The dirty stall increased tail (53 vs 80; P = .03), head (16 vs 30; P = .03) and ear movements (50 vs 78; P = .04).

Main limitations

The dirty stall and presence of insects possibly contributed to the expression of behaviours unrelated to pain.

Conclusion

Lifting the pelvic limbs was the only specific pain behaviour after castration in donkeys. Analgesia restored appetite and water intake and reduced the frequency of head shaking and turning, ear movement and lifting the limbs. Tail, head and ear movements are unspecific responses related both to pain and a dirty stall, and are confounding factors when pain is assessed in donkeys in the presence of insects.

Comprehensive Report of the Caseload of Donkeys and Mules Presented to a Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital over a Ten-Year Period

Simple Summary

We sought to provide a comprehensive report of the caseload of donkeys and mules at the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital at the University of California, Davis for a ten-year period. The caseload of donkeys and mules was 1.06% of the total equid caseload and was comprised of animals that received a good standard of veterinary care, including both routine wellness and medical care. Most animals tended to be older, around 10 years of age, and possessed high body condition scores. Obesity was reported, especially in donkeys. Most mules were used for riding, packing or driving, and most donkeys were in sanctuary and rescue farms. We report in detail the preventative health and veterinary medical care of these donkeys and mules. Our findings provide a greater understanding of the health and welfare of donkeys and mules residing in the western United States.

Abstract

Comprehensive reports of the caseload of donkeys and mules in veterinary hospitals in the United States are lacking. We compiled the information of the caseload of donkeys and mules at the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital at the University of California, Davis for a ten-year period, from 2008 to 2017. The overall equid caseload was 94,147, of which 996 (1.06%) were donkeys and mules. Most of the neonates seen were mules. Most miniature donkeys were between 2 and 10 years of age, and standard donkeys and mules were 10 to 20 years old. The body condition scores were predominantly high, especially in donkeys. Most miniature and standard donkeys resided in sanctuary and rescue farms and their use was not stated. Most mules were used for riding, packing or driving. Medical complaints represented 62% of the total visits and wellness visits represented 38% of total visits. The donkeys and mules in the case population described here received a good standard of veterinary care with regular vaccinations, deworming, routine dental care, and treatment of ailments. Our study is the first report of the life expectancy, use, body condition, preventative health and veterinary medical care of a population of donkeys and mules in the western United States.

Welfare Conditions of Donkeys in Europe: Initial Outcomes from On-Farm Assessment

Simple Summary

This paper aims to present the first outcomes of data collected using the AWIN welfare assessment protocol for donkeys in 20 EU donkey facilities. Three assessors evaluated 278 donkeys. The authors found recurrent issues: tendency to obesity, lack of hoof care and irregular positive interactions with humans. The protocol proved to be applicable in different management conditions and for donkeys of different attitude.

Abstract

This paper is a baseline study to present the initial outcomes of data collected in a sample of EU donkey farms using the AWIN welfare assessment protocol for donkeys, comprehensive of 22 valid, reliable and feasible animal-based indicators. A total of 20 donkey facilities (N = 12 in Italy and N = 8 in United Kingdom) were visited and 278 donkeys of different breed, aged 2–45 years, were assessed. Three assessors underwent a common training period to learn how to perform and score all the indicators included in the protocol. Data was collected using digitalized systems and downloaded to a database. A descriptive statistic for each welfare indicator was calculated. The authors found recurrent issues: 25% of donkeys were moderately over weight; although most of the assessed animals had good quality hoof care, 15.16% of them presented some signs of neglect, such as overgrowth and/or incorrect trimming; 18.05% of donkeys showed an avoidance reaction to an approaching human in the avoidance distance test. The protocol has proven to be applicable in different management conditions and for donkeys of different attitude.