11/7/2023 0 Comments Donkey grazing muzzleabscesses, white line, founder, etc.) in this neck of the woods because of the abundance of pasture.īut I have to say, donkeys are some of the coolest equines in the world. I have raised donkeys for a long time in the Northwest (and bred spotted donkeys for awhile.) Because donkeys were originally desert animals, I believe they are prone to foot problems (i.e. If Josie doesn't get used to the muzzle as it is, I may try loosening it or padding it to make it more comfortable. I will ask my vet about the possibility of Cushings.Īnd I received a private email (which I appreciate) suggesting fit of the muzzle. In fact, Josie did founder during the summer, when our grass was stressed from an unusually long, hot season, but (after the fact) I suspect she might have been harboring mild laminitis for some time, with barely any symptoms, and (because donkeys are such stoic creatures) I was unaware of it. Yes, there is so much conflicting information out there on when the grass is okay to eat and when not. Sydney - thank you for a wonderful article. I will try that trick to help Josie figure out she can eat through the hole in the muzzle. ![]() Thanks in advance for your comments and/or advice on this grazing muzzle dilemma! So my question for you, dear readers, is this: have any of you used a grazing muzzle successfully? (Or unsuccessfully?) How long did it take before your animal figured it out? I am trying so hard to do the right thing for this animal that I love, but I’m not sure if this method is working.Īlso, a reminder - there is still time to enter two different contests for horse books over at my other blog Look for the posts dated Feb. Maybe she will just have to stay in the corral by herself after all, unless I take her out for a walk. I have been attempting this routine for about a week, leaving this contraption on for gradually longer and longer periods of up to almost two hours, and it doesn’t appear as if we are making any headway. She ends up just standing in one place looking miserable, until after awhile I go and bring her back into her corral, where I can take the grazing muzzle off. She puts her head down a little as if to graze, but can’t seem to figure out what to do. I ignore Josie’s complaints and shoo her into the pasture. As if, why (since I love her) would I subject her to this weird form of bondage/torture device? Then she begins breathing heavily – a sound somewhere between Darth Vader and a dying rhinoceros. She looks at me like I have rocks in my head. She just stands there and stares at me with those big soulful eyes. Supposedly, she will learn to eat small amounts with it, grabbed through the small hole in the rubber bottom.īut here’s what happens when I fasten the grazing muzzle on Josie. The instructions for the grazing muzzle say it should have one to two fingers of clearance all around the muzzle area, and be adjusted so there is a ½ to 1 inch space at the bottom. Sounds like an ideal arrangement to me (but of course not to Josie.) And I bought her a grazing muzzle, (which should only allow her to eat tiny amounts of grass) so that she can be turned out in the pasture from time to time, for exercise and access to her favorite rolling spots and a little social time with her buddy, my horse. Here she will live (eating only grass hay) until the pasture becomes less lush and dangerous for the year, maybe around the end of June or possibly July. At the beginning of March, (about a month earlier than predicted due to an early spring here in the Northwest) we fenced Josie off the pasture and built her a nice size corral, still with access to the barn. But since lush pasture is the most common cause of founder/laminitis, I’m determined not to ever let it happen again, if there is anything I can possibly do about it. Josie has always been on a grass hay and pasture diet, but I am assuming the laminitis was caused from years of having free access to pasture (which never seemed to give her any problems before.) The timing of the laminitis issue was puzzling, though, because her symptoms appeared at the end of a long hot summer, when all of our grass was dried up. She was even playfully galloping around the pasture the other day. But after several months of treatment, she very gradually got better, and is now (hallelujah) moving soundly. ![]() Her pain and lameness were so severe, and continued for so long, that we even considered putting her down. Last year, Josie suffered an unexpected bout of laminitis. She is the sweetest donkey in the entire world, pushing twenty years old, and I’ve owned her for nine years. I recently bought one for my donkey, Josie. Have any of you ever used a grazing muzzle on your horse, donkey, or pony?
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