Hematological and Biochemical Responses of Donkeys (Equus asinus) to Packing and Trekking During the Hot-Dry Season.

The research is about the impact of burden-carrying activities like packing and trekking on donkeys’ physiological markers like blood parameters and electrolyte balance, considering a hot-dry environment.

Study Design

• The study involved ten donkeys aged between 2 to 3 years, all having a mean weight of around 93 kg.
• These donkeys were split into two equal groups. Group 1 underwent both packing and trekking, while group 2 only engaged in trekking.
• The trekking distance was kept consistent for all donkeys, measuring up to 20 kilometers, repeated three times with a day interval.
• Blood samples were collected at two points – before and after the physical activity (either packing or trekking). These samples were evaluated for hematological parameters and serum analysis.
• To understand conditions, temperature-humidity index evaluations were also conducted before and after packing.

Findings

• An increase in temperature-humidity index was observed after packing, suggesting changes in environmental conditions during the experiment.
• Group 1 (packing+trekking) donkeys showed a significant reduction in packed cell volume (a volume percentage of red blood cells in the blood): 30.93% before packing and 27.83% after packing.
• Hemoglobin concentration in Group 2 (only trekking) donkeys dropped significantly after trekking: 9.01 g/dL before trekking and 7.81 g/dL after trekking.
• A nontrivial increase was observed in the neutrophil count (a type of white blood cell crucial for fighting infections) in Group 1 donkeys after packing. The numbers rose from 8.63 x 10/L to 10.59 x 10/L after packing.
• The lymphocyte count (another type of white blood cell essential for immune responses) decreased significantly in Group 1 donkeys, dropping from 8.58 x 10/L to 5.23 x 10/L post-packing.
• The ratio of neutrophils to lymphocytes was found higher in the Group 1 donkeys post-packing. The ratio was 2.33 for Group 1, while it was lower for Group 2 at 1.31.
• Contrarily, no significant changes were recorded in electrolyte concentration or enzyme activities over the course of the experiments.

Conclusion

• The research concluded that combined packing and trekking exerted more significant physiological stress on the donkeys than only trekking, as suggested by increased neutrophil count, a greater neutrophil/lymphocyte ratio, and higher phosphate ion concentration in animals performing both activities.
• On the other hand, the lymphocyte count decreased, showing how the combined activity impacts the donkeys’ immune responses.
• It was suggested that without adequate stress management, the performance of pack donkeys could be adversely affected in hot-dry seasons.