Winter enrichment at our sanctuary

Equine Behaviourist Martha Payne explains: “Providing a festive treat and spending time with them each day helps to enrich their lives and improve their mental wellbeing when they will be spending more time sheltered indoors.

“As winter approaches, a lack of enrichment could heighten their anxiety and lead to unwanted behaviours during regular grooming sessions or visits from the vet.

“If donkeys are not kept busy, their pent-up energy can make routine procedures, such as dental check-ups and hoof trims, particularly difficult to conduct.” 

Our ‘grannies’ (elderly) group require more frequent trims and check-ups, so they benefit greatly from discovering suitable treats like herbal teas and blackcurrant-flavoured warm water.  

The warm water not only encourages them to drink and stay hydrated but giving them something new and different stimulates their natural curiosity.  

To enhance our grannies group enrichment further, Martha and our farm grooms sprinkled herbs and spices into a bucket of warm water to tempt their taste buds. 

This treats both the donkeys’ taste and smell and is a very cost-effective way to enrich their lives during the festive season.  

To everyone’s surprise, Chester, who is usually quite nervous, confidently approached the bucket, which sparked curiosity among the rest of the group. As they all began to venture towards the bucket, they discovered they quite liked what they had found.

Martha adds: “However, food and drink isn’t always suitable to provide as enrichment as some donkeys may be on a strict diet.

“Placing mirrors in their space is another great way to help build confidence. It’s important to closely supervise the group when using mirrors to ensure their safety.  

“These simple but effective enrichment activities are easy to introduce and help to keep donkeys alert during the indoor months.” 

Find out more information on environment enrichment.