| Literature DB >> 31013717 |
Syed Zahir Ali Shah1, Zahid Nawaz2, Sher Nawaz3, Gemma Carder4, Manuchahar Ali5, Naimatullah Soomro6, Polly C Compston7.
Abstract
Equine ownership is a common income-generating strategy in Pakistan. In Karachi, donkey carts are used to transport building materials, commercial produce and garbage. This study aimed to articulate the role and welfare of donkeys used in waste management. We conducted interviews with donkey owners (n = 200), households which use donkey carts for waste collection (n = 50) and key informants (n = 14). To assess the welfare of donkeys, the Standardised Equine-Based Welfare Assessment Tool (SEBWAT) was used (n = 204). Collection of waste was the primary source of income for 89% of owners interviewed. Of those directly involved in waste collection, 62% were found to be under 18 years of age. During interviews with donkey cart customers the majority reported that there would be a huge garbage build-up if donkey carts were not available. Welfare assessments demonstrated that 52.9% of donkeys had a body condition score of two. Muzzle mutilation was extremely high (78.4%) and 66.7% of donkeys had superficial knee lesions. This is the first study that has explored the role of donkey carts in waste management in Pakistan. The data demonstrate the sizable role that donkey-owning communities play in waste management and the important livelihood option this offers, as well as considerable animal welfare concerns.Entities:
Keywords: Karachi; Pakistan; animal welfare; cart donkey; waste management; working equid
Year: 2019 PMID: 31013717 PMCID: PMC6523980 DOI: 10.3390/ani9040159
Source DB: PubMed Journal: Animals (Basel) ISSN: 2076-2615 Impact factor: 2.752
Scoring criteria for body condition. If all criteria for a full score were not attained, a half score was awarded [19].
| Body Condition Score | Description | Scoring Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Very thin | Neck concave; pelvis hollow; shoulder point, spine, ribs, hooks, pins and tail-head are prominent. |
| 2 | Thin | Neck concave or straight; pelvis flat; shoulder point, spine, ribs, hooks, pins and tail-head are visible. |
| 3 | Medium | Neck straight; point of shoulder not clearly visible and joins the body smoothly; spine slightly visible at withers but smooth elsewhere; ribs not visible; pelvis well filled and slightly rounded; tail-head slightly visible, but well filled and joins the rump smoothly. |
| 4 | Fat | Neck slightly convex; some fat accumulation behind shoulder; slight ‘gutter’ along spine; some fat accumulation over ribs; pelvis well rounded or slightly ‘heart-shaped’; some fat accumulation over the tail-head. |
| 5 | Very fat | Neck distinctly convex; fat accumulation behind shoulder clearly visible; fat accumulation on either side of spine with a distinct ‘gutter’; fat accumulation clearly visible over ribs; pelvis distinctly rounded (clearly ‘heart-shaped’); fat accumulation clearly visible over the tail-head. |
Scoring criteria for lesions [19].
| Lesion Score | Description | Scoring Criteria |
|---|---|---|
| 0 | None | No lesion in the specified body area, or there are only severity Score 1 lesions of less than the minimum qualifying size of 4 cm2. |
| 1 | Superficial or healed lesion | Superficial or healed lesion, including hairless skin, which may be pale pink if partially broken, scabs or scar tissue, greater than 4 cm2. |
| 2 | Open lesion | Lesions where the skin and immediate subcutaneous layers are broken, including visible red tissue, dried or fresh blood, granulation tissue, lesions showing pus or lesions which appear moist due to fluids seeping from the skin. |
| 3 | Deep lesion | Lesions deep enough to show muscle, tendon, or bone. |
Figure 1A typical donkey cart waste management team.
Item-wise monthly sale per household of recyclable waste in kilograms.
| Recyclable Waste Sold per Month | Median (kg) | Range (kg) |
|---|---|---|
| Paper | 1200 | 0–2400 |
| Glass | 450 | 0–14,400 |
| Plastic | 450 | 0–15,000 |
| Plastic bottles | 300 | 0–18,000 |
| Bread | 150 | 0–3000 |
| Bone | 90 | 0–4000 |
| Hair | 0 | 0–150 |
| Wood | 0 | 0–6000 |
| Scrap metal | 0 | 0–2000 |
| Food residues | 0 | 0–1800 |
| Aluminium | 0 | 0–450 |
| Sold as such in bulk | 0 | 0–36,000 |
Figure 2Challenges reported by donkey cart owners during waste management work. Note some participants gave more than one response, 283 challenges were reported.
Figure 3Owner-reported health problems in donkeys over two years prior to questioning. Note that some participants gave more than one response.
Figure 4Reported prevalent and desirable waste management systems reported by questionnaire respondents who employ donkey cart owners to remove waste from their property.
Figure 5Body condition score for donkeys included in the assessment, scores of 4 (fat) and 5 (very fat) were not given.
Number of donkeys suffering from superficial and open lesions. Deep lesions were not reported.
| Lesion Location | Superficial or Healed Lesion | Open Lesion | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Number of Donkeys | Percentage | Number of Donkeys | Percentage | |
| Head/ear | 8 | 3.9 | 28 | 13.7 |
| Neck | 0 | 0 | 11 | 5.4 |
| Breast/shoulder | 21 | 10.3 | 67 | 32.8 |
| Fore leg | 6 | 2.9 | 10 | 4.9 |
| Knee | 136 | 66.7 | 6 | 2.9 |
| Wither/spine | 12 | 5.9 | 67 | 32.8 |
| Ribs/flank | 9 | 8.8 | 25 | 6.4 |
| Girth/belly | 27 | 13.2 | 26 | 12.8 |
| Hindquarter | 11 | 5.4 | 64 | 31.4 |
| Hind leg | 5 | 2.4 | 20 | 9.8 |
| Tail/tail base | 10 | 4.9 | 3 | 1.5 |