hay, depending on what was available. The main considerations were that it had to help the
donkeys, and that the materials and the tools to make it, as well as the expertise to put it
together, were realistically available to the actual donkey owners who we wanted to adopt
it. The basic model is now being retailed at about £1.30 by some of the market groups that
we have since trained up once the initial trials proved successful. This includes all the
materials and their profit. After an initial period of receiving some support from us they are
now totally independent; without that important separation, no solution to any problem
can ever become sustainable. The vets working in areas where we have introduced the
saddles have reported a significant drop in back sores on the donkeys over the last few
years.
The saddle was adapted in many ways by the donkey owners and us until we found
mutually acceptable patterns that suit each area’s particular needs, climate or terrain. The
only part that has to remain consistent is the gullet space, and the bars that lie each side of
the donkey’s spine and distribute the weight of the cargo evenly over as wide a space as
possible; that and the fact that any material actually in contact with the donkey must be a
natural material, since synthetic materials don’t breathe, are hot, and will often cause a
wound no matter how soft or smooth they may appear.
Saddle Fitting
Whatever the equine, and whatever the saddle type, it
should rest on the area of muscle (longissimus dorsii)
that lies along the animal’s back either side of the
spine, and should cover only the area supported by the
animal’s rib cage.
Equines have a floating shoulder blade which moves
backwards and forwards during movement. Horses
should have a minimum of a two finger width space
between the shoulder blade and the saddle, donkeys need
a little more. Whilst this should be taken into account, our
saddle is pretty giving and since it is principally there to
protect the donkey from the cargo sometimes we do go
closer to the shoulder blades.
4