The Professional Handbook of the Donkey

by Elisabeth D. Svendsen, E.J.L. Soulsby (Foreword)

For over twenty years The Professional Handbook has been the definitive text for veterinary surgeons and others with a serious interest in donkey medicine and surgery. Much of the knowledge in this book comes from the meticulous records kept on every donkey at The Donkey Sanctuary in Devon, England. The skill of the Sanctuary's veterinary surgeons, non-intrusive research and observations by the staff who care daily for the donkeys have contributed greatly. In this 4th edition, the contents have been completely revised and expanded and new chapters and a formulary have been added. Chapters include: nutrition, colic, hyperlipaemia, dental problems, parasites, respiratory problems, skin disorders, wound management, the foot, conditions of the eye, clinical pharmacology, care of the geriatric donkey, exotic infections, anaesthesia and sedation, surgery, reproduction, nursing care, community animal health workers, and performing a post-mortem. With appendices on: physiological, haematological and biochemical parameters; formulary; hearth girth nomogram; nutrient content of common foods fed to donkeys in the UK; care of orphaned and rejected foals; ophthalmic exam sheets, dental exam sheets (Triadan chart) and post-mortem form; rig test; fertility of mules; and useful information. This book is indispensable to veterinarians working with donkeys and mules anywhere in the world. Profusely illustrated in color.

448 pages, Paperback

First published December 1, 1997

About the author

Elisabeth Doreen Svendsen MBE was a British animal welfare advocate and former hotelier. Svendsen founded The Donkey Sanctuary, an animal sanctuary headquartered in Sidmouth, England, in 1969 to help abused or homeless donkeys. She also founded a related charity, the Elisabeth Svendsen Trust for Children and Donkeys, located in Ivybridge, during the 1970s.

The Donkey Sanctuary has cared for more than 14,500 donkeys as of 2011. The sanctuary, which now has a veterinary hospital and overnight accommodations, employs approximately 500 people worldwide, including sixty in the United Kingdom who investigate reports of abused donkeys. Svendsen expanded the sanctuary to Latin America, Asia, and Africa. She founded a donkey hospital with emergency room in Ethiopia, where the lifespan of a donkey is just nine years. Mobile donkey clinics have also been dispatched in Mexico, Kenya, and India.

Svendsen's sister charity to the Donkey Sanctuary, the Elisabeth Svendsen Trust for Children and Donkeys, provides riding therapy between donkeys and children with special needs.

During her career, Svendsen authored more than twelve books, including two autobiographies, Down Among the Donkeys in 1981 and For the Love of Donkeys in 1993, as well as a series of children's books.

Svendsen became a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1980. In 2001, the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals awarded her with the Lord Erskine Award. Elisabeth Svendsen died at her home on 11 May 2011, after suffering a stroke at the age of 81. Her son, Paul Svendsen, is the head of The Donkey Sanctuary's European operations.