# Keeping donkeys with horses



## Toffee44 (23 October 2010)

Can you keep donkeys with horses??? 

Some people say you can some say you cant. Somehting to do with worms?


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## Orangehorse (23 October 2010)

Donkeys often carry lungworms.  I would have thought that if they are correctly wormed keeping them with horses would be OK.  Ask your vet?


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## jinglejoys (23 October 2010)

And some people ought to keep up with the facts if you don't worm your equines they will get worms if you do they won't ask The Donkey Sanctuary for the facts
http://www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk/
Donkeys were kept with racehorses occasionally as compagnions


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## Kokopelli (23 October 2010)

You can but some donkeys carry lung worm which can be passed onto horses, correct me if I'm wrong but I think a normal worming routine won't prevent lung worm you add something to it at certain times of the year. 

But this seems to be the only problem with them, if well looked after its not a problem at all really and I heard donkeys make great companions


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## 3Beasties (23 October 2010)

Mine are kept with a donkey and we've had no problems! Some horses are scared of them though so you need to be careful when introducing them


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## Toffee44 (23 October 2010)

3Beasties said:



			Mine are kept with a donkey and we've had no problems! Some horses are scared of them though so you need to be careful when introducing them 

Click to expand...

We ride past six all the time and the first time we did it was errrrrrrr interesting. Theres a really noisy one and my horse at the time just planted didnt know what to make of it. Toffee is ok with them until one rolled and then she poo'd her self. 

Not getting one just a passing thought, I drove a pair of donks a while ago, thought this could be a interesting project one day.


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## Donkeymad (23 October 2010)

Kokopelli said:



			You can but some donkeys carry lung worm which can be passed onto horses, correct me if I'm wrong but I think a normal worming routine won't prevent lung worm you add something to it at certain times of the year. 

But this seems to be the only problem with them, if well looked after its not a problem at all really and I heard donkeys make great companions 

Click to expand...

You are wrong. Many routine horse wormers kill lungworm.
Remember, donkeys need sparse grazing and MUST have shelter at all times.


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## Trinity Fox (23 October 2010)

Of course you can they do however require quite different things to thrive nothing major at all just some small things as above poster suggested contact donkey sanctuary, i only read up about them after one was basically abandoned in my horses field i always thought them a bit miserable and not as expressive as horses but this is not the case once you get to know them and they are very sweet.
They do not have such waterproof coats as horses and need a slightly different diet but are very rewarding very misjudged i think.


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## Millyard Rejects (24 October 2010)

Kept a young female donkey with a broodmare as the other horses were young and daft and the donkey was a very calming influence on the mare! 

Worming them is just as easy as worming horses and if you already worm your horses its common sense to worm the donkey.
Only had problems when another donkey arrived-then the original donkey didnt want to know the mare and the 2 donks were off  together at one end of field and the pony at the other ! but I also have a jack out with some young colts and he keeps them all in line!


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