Donkeys in the VIDEO News!

Look at this great video news story by Dave Corrigan of Big Island Video News. Thoughtful interviews with Keith Dane, HSUS Equine Director, and Dr. Brady Bergin of Waimea about hope for our donkeys. Big Island Video News covers many Kohala topics and is found at http://www.bigislandvideonews.com and also has regular showings on Na Leo o Hawaii public access television. Bookmark it!

VIDEO: Waikoloa donkeys discussed at Hawaii Horse Expo

Today's North Hawaii News has an excellent article on last Saturday's community meeting with Waikoloa Village Association, United States Humane Society, and Dr. Brady Bergin. On news stands now. Check out the donkey dos and donkey don'ts.

Donkeys are Healthy!

Great News: a Malama Waikoloa Nightingales member has seen the donkeys captured by the WVA in their new home and they look great! They like it there, too. Right now their water worries are over.

100 Donkeys

Yesterday, March 21, 2010, one of the donkey herds, about 100 donkeys, was grazing within fencing, near Waikoloa Road from just above the stables to the just above the top of the S curve. They looked to be in good shape. Some Jennies were pregnant. There was evidence of donkey presence along the edge of the road, but only in one place.

The land above this between about the 10 and 11 mile marker is currently being used for cattle grazing. That property was fenced about a year ago.

Have New Sightings?

We've heard from the WVA staff that there may be more than two or three dozen donkeys now surrounding (and within) Waikoloa itself. These donkeys do have access to Waikoloa Road. If you have reports of donkey sightings of donkeys OUTSIDE fenced areas, please report the number of donkeys, time, date, and location to Malama Waikoloa Nightingales.

ORCall Anika Glass (808)937-2309

For Your Own Safety, Please Don't Harrass the Donkeys

While donkeys are not particularly aggressive, they will respond if they feel threatened. Jennies (female donkeys) are especially protective of their young. Donkeys may warn you with hissing, baring of teeth and stomping when they want you to back off. Donkeys have a very powerful kick that could definitely cause serious injury, so don't provoke them.

Remember, animals respond to perceived threats, which may not be actual threats. Keep your pets and children within fenced areas of your yard.

Donkey Myth: Our Donkeys are Kona Nightingales

Here is a video from Big Island Vieo News of Kona Nightingales in the Hilo zoo; you can observe they are smaller and fuzzier than the donkeys that call Waikoloa home. The Kona donkeys would be called a "burro" in many parts of the world.

Lots of people tell me that the donkeys on the road are a living heritage and must be preserved because they are Kona Nightingales.

Well, these Waikoloa donkeys are living, do have heritage, and are worthy of our care and concern. They just aren't "Kona Nightingales."

Kona Nightingales have a historical connection to Kona coffee farms. Many families owned one or more. Once there were roads and people had some money for cars or trucks, donkeys were released to fend for themselves, freeing their owners from the responsibility of providing food and water.

Donkey Myth: Donkeys Are Indigenous Hawaiian Animals.

Donkeys were introduced to the Island of Hawaii by immigrants to the Islands who found them useful as beasts of burden, especially for farming and ranching work.

Donkeys were introduced to the Waikoloa area starting with 30 in 1975. There is lore about who moved donkeys, when and where, but it mostly conflicts and isn't going to turn up a likely party to help correct the situation.

There are now about 250 donkeys on the 20,000 acres between Waikoloa and Kamuela because they thrive in exactly the environment they have on this slope of Mauna Kea. They have adequate food and water, from nature, and their hooves need the lava rocks for grooming.

Donkey Myth: They Need More Water

Many people think the fenced donkeys above the village are provided water. They are not. And that's okay.

There is water for donkeys all the way from here up to the Mamalahoa Highway. There are streams and oases.

Donkeys get most of their water from the grasses they eat, even the dried ones. Their digestive systems are especially good at extracting nutrition and water from what looks to us like poor feed.

More water would be good, though, as those streams and oases are pretty dried up. When water is available they will drink gallons and gallons at a time. Remember their native habitat is desert.

But providing water for them at the outskirts of your property will simply lead them to make a nice donkey path to your property and from there, your neighborhood. Let's not do that.

Why Did the Donkeys Cross the Road

To get to the other side.

I do get questions on donkey behavior (yes, including this one). I think it is safe to say that donkeys just go where their little donkey brains send them.

Browsing is a donkey characteristic: they are not always eating. (They have slow metabolisms.) They do remember where they found what they liked, and will return to it. They do follow their own trails. But they also just mosey around. Going downhill is easier than going uphill, 'eh?

Why do they just stop and stand in the middle of the road? Well a donkey spends a large part of each day standing and it has to do it somewhere. 

What a donkey does, when posed with an unknown and possible threat, is stand and assess. They can do this for a long time. They will look you head-on in the road, in your driveway, in your back yard, anywhere. They are just going to stare you down.

Let them. The choice you are asking the donkey to make is, "Do I mosey on, or do I charge and kick." The donkey will make this decision, not you.  Why press your luck?

Donkey Myth: There is Great Demand for Donkeys

I've had many suggestions to have the donkeys adopted, and that the resorts are eager to protected as a tourist attraction.

I explored both. I couldn't find anyone to adopt a donkey, except for human consumption. There may be a couple people out there who would adopt one, but there are at least 200 donkeys up for adoption.

**update August 2009 - now that we know most donkeys are currently fenced in, we are dealing some who could be claimed for adoption by worthy individuals with a way to get them, transport them, and care for them. **

Maintaining pasture land for a donkey is costly. A donkey will completely eat a small pasture and then need to be fed. Captive donkeys also need vet care. They need their hooves trimmed; roaming around on lava, nature provides that service. Individuals with those resources might more likely spend it to raise a calf or lamb. Or a pig or goat.

The resorts may realize these are not Kona Nightingales, hence they don't have a storied history. The only time, so far, a resort has participated in donkey relocation efforts was when the donkeys were feeding on golf courses and pooping in the yards of very expensive homes.

Frankly, I don't believe that the one time a resort arranged to have donkeys "moved" or "adopted", that that is what happened with most of them. There is supposed to be a donkey preserve somewhere, with a fence, pasture, water, feed, and a caretaker. This was supposed to be a way for tourists to see them. And that was for a very small number of donkeys. Do you know of such a place open to the public on Hawai'i? Me neither.

Waikoloa Donkeys in the News

Donkeys on Waikoloa Road have been a problem on and off for years, but incidents increased markedly starting in October of 2008. Check out this
West Hawaii Today article.