"We forgot about the donkeys!" An institutional analysis of the shift in animal welfare from direct implementation towards advocacy-based programming.

Shifts from direct implementation to advocacy-based programming have been documented across many non-governmental organisation (NGO) sectors, including animal welfare. Semi-structured interviews with 32 staff from different positions within animal welfare NGOs explored recent programming changes. Maintaining a balance between direct implementation and advocacy-based activities emerged as a strong theme. The findings suggest that risks are associated with both the direct implementation status quo and transitioning to an advocacy-based focus. Risks of the former include treating symptoms rather than root causes of welfare problems. Organisational change can be disruptive and necessitates realignment of core competences, in turn influencing NGO mission. Identified risks of transition include loss of individuals whose values fail to align with new programming directions, increased upwards accountability requirements for accessing institutional donors and difficulties when phasing out direct implementation approaches. Whilst having to be dynamic, NGOs need to evaluate the risks associated with programming decisions, considering their vision, mission and staff identity in order to ensure that welfare programming is as effective as possible.

Means of Livelihood, Clean Environment to Women Empowerment: The Multi-Faceted Role of Donkeys.

Despite the substantial contribution donkeys make to the livelihood of the world's poorest populations, the existence of donkeys has received little notice worldwide. This article reviews the value of donkeys in a variety of sectors, including agriculture, construction industry, and mining, as well as their role in empowering women and achieving sustainable development goals. However, donkeys and mules are not given enough credit or attention in terms of developing strategies regarding their role in reducing poverty. There is a dearth of information and statistics on their impact across industries, the factors contributing to the donkey population dropping, the socioeconomic status of the dependent communities, and related animal and human welfare issues.

Belief in Animal Sentience and Affective Owner Attitudes are linked to Positive Working Equid Welfare across Six Countries.

Belief in animal sentience and the quality of human-animal relationships play a significant role in animal welfare. However, the link between an individual animal's welfare and the beliefs and emotional connection of the owner to the animal is understudied and focussed on single cultures, limiting generalisability. In this study, we explored potential links between owner attitude, beliefs in animal sentience, and working equid welfare across four continents. This study used a welfare assessment protocol alongside a questionnaire exploring owner attitudes to assess 378 participants across six countries. Overall, the general health status and body condition of equids belonging to owners with an affective (versus instrumental) perspective and those owners who believed that their equids could feel emotions, were significantly better. Equids belonging to owners who believed that their animals could feel pain were also significantly less likely to be lame. Potential causal relationships between factors and theories explaining these beliefs are discussed. These results can inform future welfare initiatives by highlighting the importance of the human-equid relationship and the role that beliefs regarding animal sentience play in influencing equid welfare.

Bonded labour and donkey ownership in the brick kilns of India: A need for reform of policy and practice.

Slavery, in the form of 'debt-bondage', is rife in Indian brick kilns, where the enforcement of labour laws is poor. Working equids support brick-kiln workers by transporting raw bricks into the kilns, but the situation of equids and their owners within the brick kilns is relatively unknown. We describe the welfare of donkeys (Equus asinus) owned under conditions of debt-bondage, examine the links between owner and donkey behaviour, and outline the living conditions of both donkeys and humans working in the brick kilns of Gujarat, India. We then explore the unique experience of debt-bondage by donkey owners, compare migration trends to those of non-donkey-owning workers and assess impacts on their children's education. The physical and behavioural conditions of donkeys reflected that of their owners, creating negative feedback loops and potentially reducing productivity. All donkey owners experienced debt-bondage and were particularly vulnerable to unexpected financial loss. Donkey owners, unlike non-owners, migrated within their home state, enabling their children to attend school. Our work highlights the need for policy reform within the brick-kiln industry to acknowledge the pivotal role of working donkeys in supporting human livelihoods.

"What can we do to actually reach all these animals?" Evaluating approaches to improving working equid welfare.

NGOs utilise a range of programming to bring about desired changes. This study examines the advantages and limitations of the range of approaches used by one particular NGO sector: working equid welfare organisations, from the perspective of NGO staff. NGO staff hold a wealth of knowledge regarding the design and implementation of welfare improvement initiatives; however this knowledge is rarely systematically documented. Through 32 semi-structured interviews the experiences of staff across multiple organisations were explored. The nine most commonly utilised approaches within equid focussed NGO programming were discussed with participants. Many themes resulting from the interviews centred around the strengths and disadvantages of these individual approaches, implemented both historically and presently by different NGOs. The influences of the context in which initiatives took place and barriers to welfare improvement that existed across approaches were also examined. Striking a balance came through as a strong theme at many levels. Balancing top-down versus bottom-up approaches was a frequently voiced concern, as was balancing the utility of certain approaches against associated factors warranting caution. Combinations of approaches that were felt to be complementary provided a balance that drew on the strengths and mitigated for the weaknesses of different approaches. The need to tailor approaches to individual contexts was also raised and is especially relevant to INGOs working across multiple countries, cultures and political structures. The study provides an informed insight into potential factors to consider when designing future welfare initiatives. The collaborative pooling of experience across different NGOs could help make welfare initiatives more effective and provide a framework for NGOs in other fields to learn from each other's collective knowledge.

Resilience and the role of equids in humanitarian crises.

In times of crisis, working equids can play a pivotal role in supporting vulnerable people in lower middle income countries. However, their contributions are rarely acknowledged in academic research, media reporting, international policy, and development initiatives. This paper explores the involvement of working equids in humanitarian emergencies, notably those pertaining to conflict, drought, climate change, and natural hazards. It presents 'critical cases', informed by document analysis of policy papers, historical texts, and academic publications. In addition, it includes the findings of semi-structured interviews with key informants, primarily field staff working for frontline services in crisis zones, conducted in mid 2020. The paper develops evidence on the role of working equids in crisis situations-expanding the concept of 'resilience' to include working animals and contributing to recent academic discussions in the fields of disaster and development studies-highlighting their importance for global policy, resilience programming, and disaster risk reduction, including efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

'Don't Put the Cart before the Mule!' Challenging Assumptions Regarding Health-Related Treatment Practices of Working Equid Owners in Northern India.

This paper challenges assumptions that the health management of working equids among some of India's poorest communities is mainly dependent upon income, economic influence, or access to veterinary services. Using a mixed-methods approach, hierarchies of treatment practices are revealed through an examination of the 'lived experience' of equid owners in brick kilns and construction sites in northern India. Semi-structured interviews with 37 equid owners and corresponding livelihood surveys, combined with data from two focus groups with professional animal health practitioners and the welfare data of 63 working equids collected using the Equid Assessment, Research, and Scoping (EARS) tool, contributed to the findings of the study. Four principal influencing factors were found to affect the decision-making practices of equid owners. Infrastructural factors, community characteristics and experience, owners' characteristics and experience, and economic factors all impact the belief structures of equid owners. However, without verifying the validity of the treatment measures being employed, some animals are at risk from hazardous treatment behaviours. By understanding decision-making using the theory of planned behaviour, the findings of this study can provide a crucial contribution to informing future interventions involved in the health management and welfare of working equids.

Evaluation of long-term welfare initiatives on working equid welfare and social transmission of knowledge in Mexico.

Working equids play an essential role in supporting livelihoods, providing resilience and income security to people around the world, yet their welfare is often poor. Consequently, animal welfare focussed NGOs employ a range of initiatives aimed at improving standards of working equid welfare. However, there is debate surrounding the efficacy of welfare initiatives utilised and long term monitoring and evaluation of initiatives is rarely undertaken. This study compares equid welfare and the social transmission of welfare information across Mexican communities that had previously received differing intervention histories (veterinary treatment plus educational initiatives, veterinary treatment only and control communities) in order to assess their efficacy. Indicators of equid welfare were assessed using the Equid Assessment Research and Scoping tool and included body condition score, skin alterations, lameness, general health status and reaction to observer approach. Owners were interviewed about their involvement in previous welfare initiatives, beliefs regarding equid emotions and pain, and the social transmission of welfare knowledge, including whether they ask advice about their equid or discuss its health with others and whether there is a specific individual that they consider to be 'good with equids' in their community. In total 266 owners were interviewed from 25 communities across three states. Better welfare (specifically body condition and skin alteration scores) was seen in communities where a history of combined free veterinary treatment and educational initiatives had taken place compared to those that had only received veterinary treatment or control communities. The social transfer of welfare knowledge was also higher in these communities, suggesting that the discussion and transfer of equid welfare advice within communities can act as a mechanism to disseminate good welfare practices more widely. Our results suggest that using a combined approach may enhance the success of welfare initiatives, a finding that may impact future NGO programming.

Global donkey and mule populations: Figures and trends.

Knowing how many donkeys there are in specific countries where welfare is compromised is a key concern for targeting efforts to improve donkey welfare. Additionally, accurate population estimates are vital for providing evidence and addressing the impact of population threats. The FAO annually report the number of donkeys and mules in each country. The last paper to investigate global and region trends dates back to 2000 and used FAO data from 1961 to 1997. This paper is an update focusing on global, regional and country level donkey and mule populations to understand if there have been any changes in the trends reported by the previous study between 1997 and 2018. Results show that the general trend identified between 1961 and 1997 is continuing with the number of donkeys globally increasing at a rate of ~1% per annum whilst mule populations are in decline at a rate of ~2% per annum. Results also suggest that the trend identified in the original paper are still evident today with the largest increases in donkey population seen in the sub-Saharan African region and greatest reduction noted in Eastern Europe with these two regions having different socio-economic drivers influencing these changes. These results highlight the multifaceted socio-economic drivers influence changes in donkey and mule populations demonstrating the complexity of designing targeted one-welfare approaches. Whilst the FAO donkey and mule datasets are the best available for understanding spatial-temporal distributions in populations there needs to be greater effort to promote the communication of information from the country level to the FAO. This can be directly supported by NGO's by promoting the robustness of the FAO process for collating and disseminating this information. NGO's should also seek to highlight the importance of this information for understanding global regional and country level drivers for equid population changes and potential threats to welfare as well as using this information to facilitate projects that support one-welfare approaches.

Comparison of working equid welfare across three regions of Mexico.

BACKGROUND: Factors affecting working equid welfare are wide-ranging and reflect cultural, economic and climatic conditions, the type of work equids are used for, and individual differences in the practices of their handlers. In Mexico working equids are widely used for facilitating agricultural activities, however, welfare issues are common. OBJECTIVES: To assess working equids across three communities in Mexico, identify predominant welfare problems and document how these problems vary across locations, associated working roles and species type. STUDY DESIGN: Cross-sectional survey. METHODS: The study combined the administration of a wide-ranging questionnaire to equid handlers/owners and a welfare assessment of their animal. 120 equid owners were asked about their equid management practices, the working conditions and health status of their animal. The welfare of their equids (56 donkeys, 7 mules, 57 horses) was assessed by evaluating body condition, signs of illness or injury and behavioural indicators. RESULTS: Welfare varied by species, working role, sex and location. The poorest welfare was seen in one of the two arid regions (the third location having a tropical climate). Donkeys had poorer welfare than horses, and equids used for packing had poorer welfare than those used for riding and agroforestry. Overall poor body condition and wounds were the most common problems seen. MAIN LIMITATIONS: Work type, species type and location strongly co-varied, thus the impact of each factor could not be assessed in isolation. The sample size was relatively small. CONCLUSIONS: Results showed significant regional variations in welfare, suggesting that environmental and/or cultural variations are producing a major effect on welfare.

Donkeys in transition: changing use in a changing world / Jumentos em transição: alterações do seu uso num mundo em mudança

Donkeys have a long history in the development of human societies. Typically referred to as a beast of burden, traditional uses for donkeys have included the transportation of goods and people, use in agricultural and forestry activities, to access water, and provide citizens in low- and middle-income countries a means of making an income for communities. However, the rise of mechanization, the development of modern farming techniques, and the increasing availability of motorized vehicles have led to donkeys and mules becoming redundant from traditional roles in many parts of the world. We provide examples of where donkeys have successfully transitioned from traditional roles to new, non-traditional roles in Europe and North America, and demonstrate that, although the roles and use of donkeys and mules are changing in a rapidly developing world, we can learn lessons from the past and apply them to current challenges. As the need for working equids declines in transport and agriculture, they still hold great value for recreational, therapeutic, and environmentally friendly methods of animal traction.(AU)

Os jumentos têm uma longa história no desenvolvimento das sociedades humanas. Normalmente referidos como bestas de carga, seus usos tradicionais incluem o transporte de pessoas e bens, atividades agrícolas e florestais, acesso a água, assim como oferecer uma forma de rendimento para comunidades em países de rendimento baixo e médio. No entanto, o aumento da mecanização, o desenvolvimento de técnicas agrícolas modernas e maior disponibilidade de veículos motorizados fizeram com que os jumentos e os muares se tornassem desnecessários nos seus papéis tradicionais em muitas partes do mundo. Neste artigo os autores fornecem exemplos onde os jumentos fizeram a transição, com sucesso, dos papéis tradicionais para novos papéis não tradicionais, tanto na Europa como na América do Norte; e demonstramos que, embora o papel e o uso de jumentos e muares estejam mudando num mundo em rápido desenvolvimento, podemos aprender lições com o passado e aplicá-las aos desafios atuais. À medida que diminui a necessidade de equídeos de trabalho no transporte e na agricultura, eles ainda têm grande valor no que toca a fins recreativos, terapêuticos e ecológicos no uso de tração animal.(AU)

Donkey skin trade: is it sustainable to slaughter donkeys for their skin? / Comércio de pele de jumentos: é sustentável abater jumentos para o uso de sua pele?

Donkeys (Equus asinus) face a global crisis. The health, welfare, and even survival of donkeys are being compromised as the demand for their skins increases. It is driven by the production of ejiao, a traditional Chinese remedy believed by some to have medicinal properties. It is estimated that the ejiao industry currently requires approximately 4.8 million donkey skins per year. Since there is no productive chain for donkey skin production outside of China, the activity is extractive and has resulted in the decimation of donkeys. Gestation is 12 months in donkeys, increasing the risk of extinction if such practices are not controlled. In this scenario, the donkeys are collected (purchased for low prices, stolen, and collected from the side of the roads) and are then often transported for long distances, usually without water, food, or rest. The trade, in Brazil, poses significant biosecurity risks, particularly because examinations are rarely conducted and therefore infectious diseases, such as glanders and infectious anemia, remain undetected. Furthermore, in chronic stress situations, the immune system is suppressed, increasing the biosecurity risk, especially because donkeys are a silent carrier of diseases. Rarely there is traceability with animals from different origins being put together in "fake farms", before being delivered to slaughterhouses. The opportunistic strategy of collecting animals, or buying for low prices, keeping them without access to food and veterinary assistance, is what makes this trade profitable. Our experience in donkey welfare and the global skin trade suggest that it will be enormously challenging and cost-prohibitive to run a trade at the standards required to be considered humane, sustainable, and safe. Although donkeys are being blamed for the involvement in road accidents, it is not an ethical solution to maintain this trade as an alternative. Moreover, the ecological role of donkeys in native ecosystems has not been elucidated, and some studies indicate they could even have a positive effect. Regardless of the future the donkeys will have; we must guarantee a life with the least dignity to the animals under our responsibility.(AU)

Os jumentos (Equus asinus) estão enfrentando uma crise global. A saúde, o bem-estar e até a sobrevivência dos jumentos estão sendo comprometidos à medida que a demanda por suas peles aumenta. A atividade é impulsionada pela produção de ejiao, um remédio tradicional chinês que algumas pessoas acreditam possuir propriedades medicinais. Estima-se que a indústria de ejiao demande atualmente cerca de 4,8 milhões de peles de jumento por ano. Uma vez que não existe uma cadeia produtiva fora da China, a atividade é extrativista e resultou na drástica redução das populações. A gestação dos jumentos é de 12 meses, aumentando o risco de extinção se tais práticas não forem controladas. Neste cenário, os jumentos são recolhidos (comprados a preços baixos, roubados e recolhidos à beira das estradas) e são frequentemente transportados para longas distâncias, normalmente sem água, comida ou descanso. O comércio no Brasil apresenta riscos significativos de biossegurança, principalmente porque os exames raramente são realizados e, portanto, doenças infecciosas, como mormo e anemia infecciosa equina, permanecem sem detecção. Além disso, em situações de estresse crônico, o sistema imunológico é suprimido, aumentando o risco de biossegurança, principalmente porque os jumentos são portadores silenciosos de doenças. Raramente há rastreabilidade, e os animais de diferentes origens acabam sendo colocados em "fazendas fantasma", antes de serem entregues aos abatedouros. A estratégia oportunista de coletar animais, ou comprar por preços irrisórios, mantendo-os sem acesso a alimentação e assistência veterinária, é o que torna esse comércio lucrativo. Nossa experiência em bem-estar de jumentos e no comércio global de peles sugere que será extremamente desafiador e com custo proibitivo administrar um comércio dentro dos padrões exigidos para ser considerado humano, sustentável e seguro. Embora os jumentos sejam responsabilizados pelo envolvimento em acidentes rodoviários, não é uma solução ética manter este comércio como uma alternativa. Além disso, o papel ecológico dos jumentos nos ecossistemas nativos não foi elucidado, e alguns estudos indicam que eles podem até ter um efeito positivo. Independentemente do futuro que os jumentos terão, devemos garantir uma vida com o mínimo de dignidade aos animais sob nossa responsabilidade.(AU)

The human-animal relationship and its influence in our culture: the case of donkeys / A relação homem-animal e sua influência em nossa cultura: o caso dos jumentos

Donkeys (Equus asinus) face a global crisis. Their health, welfare, and even their local survival are compromised as the demand for their skins increases. Such demand for donkey skins aims to supply the ejiao industry. Ejiao is a traditional remedy made from the collagen of donkey skins. Some people believe it has medicinal properties. It is estimated that the ejiao industry currently requires approximately 4.8 million donkey skins per year. Although the future of the donkeys is still uncertain, we must guarantee a life free from suffering to the animals under our responsibility. The trade of donkey skins also undermines the cultural role of donkeys. Donkeys have developed an essential role in Brazil, especially in the Northeast region of the country, carrying on their backs construction materials, water, and food, and, as a consequence, helping people build cities in the deepest hinterland. The close relationship between people and donkeys affords donkeys a unique place in the local culture. This central importance has been recognized by Brazilian artists throughout history. We have many examples of songs, books, "cordeis" (typical Brazilian literature), poems, documentaries, movies, woodcuts, paintings, and sculptures, created to honor this important actor. Here we describe some examples of this human-donkey relationship, and its influence on our culture.(AU)

Os jumentos (Equus asinus) estão enfrentando uma crise global. A saúde, o bem-estar e, principalmente, a sobrevivência dos jumentos está sendo comprometida à medida que a demanda por suas peles aumenta. Essa demanda por peles de jumento visa abastecer a indústria de ejiao. Ejiao é um remédio tradicional feito de colágeno de pele de jumento. Alguns acreditam que possui propriedades medicinais. Estima-se que o setor exija aproximadamente 4,8 milhões de peles de jumento por ano. Independentemente do futuro que os jumentos terão, devemos garantir uma vida com o mínimo de dignidade aos animais sob nossa responsabilidade. A preocupação ética também inclui o papel cultural dos jumentos. Os jumentos desenvolveram um papel essencial no Brasil, especialmente na Região Nordeste do país, carregando nas costas todo o tipo de material de construção, água e comida e, como consequência, ajudando o ser humano a construir as cidades no sertão. Devido à estreita relação com os seres humanos, os jumentos também estão participando da cultura. Essa importância central foi reconhecida por vários artistas brasileiros ao longo da história. Temos muitos exemplos de músicas, livros, "cordéis" (literatura típica brasileira), poemas, documentários, filmes, xilogravuras e esculturas feitos em homenagem a esse importante ator. Aqui descrevemos alguns exemplos dessa relação humano-jumento e sua influência em nossa cultura.(AU)

Morphometric measurements of the feet of working donkeys Equus asinus in Egypt.

Working equids rely on sound, balanced hooves, but data describing the typical morphology of the legs and feet of working donkeys are currently lacking. To address this gap in knowledge, the front and hind feet of twenty healthy working donkeys were measured and compared. Hoof width, weight-bearing lengths, heel width, dorsal hoof wall length and lateral and medial heel length of the hoof wall were determined, as well as toe angle, heel angle, hoof pastern axis, coronary band angle and a measure of 'ground surface size'. Viewed from the ground surface of the foot, front feet were more rounded and significantly larger than hind feet. Measures of medial-lateral balance and toe-heel angle ratio were within the recommended healthy guidelines for horses. Hoof pastern axis was broken forward for the studied animals, which supports previous research suggesting that a broken forward hoof pastern axis is normal for donkeys, although further study would be required to confirm whether this conformation is natural. Significant correlations were found between estimated body mass and hoof width in both the front and hind feet. These measurements provide valuable insight into the relationship between hoof and body characteristics, which may aid the development of guidelines for the trimming and management of working donkey hooves. Further study is, however, advised to confirm natural hoof conformation.

A New Framework for Assessing Equid Welfare: A Case Study of Working Equids in Nepalese Brick Kilns.

Equids fulfil many different roles within communities. In low- to middle-income countries (LMICs), in addition to providing a source of income, equids also provide essential transport of food, water, and goods to resource-limited and/or isolated communities that might otherwise lack access. The aim of this investigation was to understand the welfare conditions that donkeys, mules, and horses are exposed to whilst working in Nepalese brick kilns. To understand the welfare conditions of equids in Nepalese brick kilns, the Welfare Aggregation and Guidance (WAG) tool in conjunction with the Equid Assessment, Research and Scoping (EARS) tool was used to understand the health, behaviour, nutrition, living and working conditions in brick kilns. Further analysis of individual EARS responses focused on key indicator questions relating to demographic information was used to investigate specific areas of welfare concern and attitudes of handlers towards their equids. Trained staff carried out welfare assessments between December 2018 and April 2019. The information gathered using the EARS tool was summarised using the WAG tool to pinpoint areas of welfare concern and suggest possible strategies to mitigate poor welfare conditions and suggest areas to improve the welfare of equids. Overall, the results indicate that to improve the welfare of equids working in Nepalese brick kilns, there should be better provision of clean water, both when working and stabled, equipment should be removed and shade provided during rest periods, with improvements made to housing to allow the equids to rest and recuperate when not working. Further work should also focus on collaborating with owners and equid handlers to improve their attitudes and practices towards their equids. Such improvements can be implemented via training of equid handlers and kiln owners whilst using the EARS and WAG tools to provide a sound basis on which to monitor the effectiveness and impact of education programs on equid welfare.

No Prescription, No Problem! A Mixed-Methods Study of Antimicrobial Stewardship Relating to Working Equines in Drug Retail Outlets of Northern India.

Multidrug resistance (MDR) is already occurring among some equids in India. Donkeys and mules are a mobile species moving between regions and international borders, often populating areas of India where private community pharmacies, or medical stores, are the primary healthcare provider for both humans and animals. This article highlights how the capacities of drug retail outlet workers might affect their antibiotic dispensing practices, particularly in relation to donkeys and mules, in order to consider how this might impact the development of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) on a wider scale. A mixed-methods approach was implemented using patient simulation method (n = 28), semi-structured interviews (SSIs) (n = 23), focus group discussions (FGDs) with veterinary practitioners and non-governmental organisation animal health workers (n = 2 FGDs), and participant observation. Fewer than 48 per cent of drug retail outlet workers admitted to having had any formal training in pharmaceuticals at all, while 78 per cent reported having no formal training in animal-related pharmaceuticals. Moreover, 35 per cent of all participants sold antibiotics without a prescription, unprompted and without specifically being asked for antibiotics. Of the antibiotics dispensed, only 21 per cent were correctly dispensed for the symptoms presented, and all dosages dispensed were incorrect (underdosed). Furthermore, 43 per cent of drug retail outlet workers interviewed believe that some antibiotics can be legally dispensed without a prescription. Equine owners in northern India are frequently being sold antibiotics without a prescription and, in most cases, with incorrect diagnoses, treatment choice, and dosage. A substantial gap in capacities exists amongst Drug Retail Outlet (DRO) workers, with few being sufficiently qualified or trained to dispense antibiotics to animal owners. The study highlights the need for further training of private DRO workers as well as knowledge extension and awareness training for both DRO workers and animal owners regarding antimicrobial resistance and its potential impact upon livelihoods. It also illustrates the need to identify a balance whereby greater enforcement of regulation at all levels is implemented, while at the same time maintaining sufficient access to medicine for rural populations.

Cultural "Blind Spots," Social Influence and the Welfare of Working Donkeys in Brick Kilns in Northern India.

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) work across the globe to improve the welfare of working equids. Despite decades of veterinary and other interventions, welfare issues persist with equids working in brick kilns. Engagement with all stakeholders is integral to creating abiding improvements to working equid welfare as interventions based purely on reactive measures fail to provide sustainable solutions. Equid owners, particularly those in low to middle-income countries (LMICs), may have issues such as opportunity, capacity, gender or socio-economic status, overriding their ability to care well for their own equids. These "blind spots" are frequently overlooked when organizations develop intervention programs to improve welfare. This study aims to highlight the lives of the poorest members of Indian society, and will focus on working donkeys specifically as they were the only species of working equids present in the kilns visited. We discuss culture, status, religion, and social influences, including insights into the complexities of cultural "blind spots" which complicate efforts by NGOs to improve working donkey welfare when the influence of different cultural and societal pressures are not recognized or acknowledged. Employing a mixed-methods approach, we used the Equid Assessment Research and Scoping (EARS) tool, a questionnaire based equid welfare assessment tool, to assess the welfare of working donkeys in brick kilns in Northern India. In addition, using livelihoods surveys and semi-structured interviews, we established owner demographics, socioeconomic status, ethnicity, religion and their personal accounts of their working lives and relationships to their donkeys. During transcript analysis six themes emerged: caste, ethnicity, inherited knowledge; social status, and impacts of ethnic group and caste; social status and gender; migration and shared suffering; shared suffering, compassion; religious belief, species hierarchy. The lives led by these, marginalized communities of low status are driven by poverty, exposing them to exploitation, lack of community cohesion, and community conflicts through migratory, transient employment. This vulnerability influences the care and welfare of their working donkeys, laying bare the inextricable link between human and animal welfare. Cultural and social perspectives, though sometimes overlooked, are crucial to programs to improve welfare, where community engagement and participation are integral to their success.

Documenting the Welfare and Role of Working Equids in Rural Communities of Portugal and Spain.

Recently, the need for a more holistic approach to welfare assessment has been highlighted. This is particularly pertinent in the case of working equids who provide vital support for human livelihoods, often in low- to middle-income countries, yet suffer from globally low standards of welfare. This study aimed to provide insight into the welfare status and traditional use of working equids in rural Western European communities using the new EARS welfare tool, designed to provide a broad view of the welfare of working equids and the context in which they are found. Other questions on the topics of equid management practices, social transmission of expertise, environmental stressors, and traditions, alongside physical and behavioural welfare assessments were also included to explore the impact of these wide-ranging factors on an understudied population of working equids. The protocol was trialled on 60 working equid owners from communities in Portugal and Spain where, despite the decline in traditional agricultural practices and livestock keeping, donkeys and mules remain working animals. Many owners stated that the help donkeys provided was invaluable, and donkeys were considered to be important for both farming and daily life. However, participants also recognised that the traditional agricultural way of life was dying out, providing insights into the traditional practices, community structure, and beliefs of equid owners. Questions investigating the social networks and social transfer of information within the villages were effective in finding local sources of equid knowledge. Overall, welfare was deemed fair, and the protocol enabled the identification of the most prevalent welfare problems within the communities studied, in this case obesity and the use of harmful practices. The findings suggest that the new protocol was feasible and detail how contextual factors may influence equid welfare. Increasing understanding of the cultural context, social structure, and attitudes within a community, alongside more traditional investigations of working practices and animal management, may, in the future, help to make equid welfare initiatives more effective.

The Welfare Aggregation and Guidance (WAG) Tool: A New Method to Summarize Global Welfare Assessment Data for Equids.

Animal welfare can be represented by an array of indicators. There is, however, increasing demand for concise welfare assessments that can be easily communicated and compared. Previous methods to aggregate welfare assessments have focused on livestock systems and produced a single welfare score, which may not represent all aspects of welfare. We propose an aggregation method for the recently developed Equid Assessment Research and Scoping (EARS) welfare assessment tool that results in grades for five welfare categories: housing conditions, working conditions, health, nutrition, and behavior. We overcome the problems associated with existing approaches by using a single aggregation method (decision trees) that incorporates the most important welfare indicators in a single step. The process aims to identify equids with the poorest welfare and aid decision-making when allocating resources. We demonstrate its application using a case study of over 6000 equids across Europe and Asia, where equids in India and Pakistan had the poorest welfare status in terms of health (respiratory disease and open wounds) and behavior (signs of fear and distress, and limb tethering practices). We recommend identification of the specific causes of these issues, using either existing detailed welfare data or through issue-specific assessments by an appropriate professional, to guide the development of appropriate interventions and, ultimately, improve equid welfare.

Equid Assessment, Research and Scoping (EARS): The Development and Implementation of a New Equid Welfare Assessment and Monitoring Tool.

The assessment of animal welfare poses numerous challenges, yet an emerging approach is the consolidation of existing knowledge into new frameworks which can offer standardised approaches to welfare assessment across a variety of contexts. Multiple tools exist for measuring the welfare of equids, but such tools have typically been developed for specific contexts. There is no 'one size fits all' which means that resulting datasets are generally non-comparable, creating a barrier to knowledge-sharing and collaboration between the many organisations working to improve equid welfare around the globe. To address this, we developed the Equid Assessment, Research and Scoping (EARS) tool, which incorporates pre-existing validated welfare assessment methods alongside new welfare indicators to deliver a larger and more comprehensive series of welfare indicators than currently exists, creating a single resource that can be used to assess equid welfare in any context. We field-trialled three welfare assessment protocols within the EARS tool, and applied these to welfare assessment of equids in a variety of contexts across nineteen countries. The EARS tool proved a useful, versatile and rapid method for collecting welfare assessment data and we collected 7464 welfare assessments in a period of fifteen months. We evaluate the EARS tool and provide ideas for future development.