# Determining Pregnancy in Donkeys and what to expect??



## ThirteenAcres (Apr 27, 2012)

Hi! First time in this part of the forum. =D Well a couple of months ago I "adopted" a Jenny from a family who could no longer keep her due to her attacking their baby goats. She was said to be a family pet and very friendly. They brought her withou a halter and set her loose in my pasture. Admittedly, l don't know a lot about donkeys. 

Well in the past couple of months, I have dabbled in resocializing her. She was not a pet at all. She wouldn't come near humans and was generally just terrified. She's come a long way and now will eat out of your hand and will let you pet her as far as her shoulder then darts away. It's been very interesting and frustrating. Because of her fear it has been a battle to give her basic care, but we've managed. 

Recently I have noticed exactly how round she is and have begun to suspect she may be pregnant. I read that you cannot palpate a small donkey, so would I proceed with an ultrasound to determine pregnancy?

If she is pregnant, I wouldn't even know how many months along. I'm familiar with birthing foals and just wondered if it's similar in the risks and what to look for as far as signs of trouble?

I have managed to pen her in a smaller area and am hand feeding her now to try and at least get her able to be handled more freely in case she is in fact pregnant. I'll also try and get some better pics of her sides to show how far they have begun to stick out. A friend who has donkeys told me she thinks without a doubt she is pregnant. 

I'm so nervous! I plan to get the vet to look at her as soon as I have her handling a bit better. I just wish I could get her over her intense fear and distrust. Any tips on that would also be awesome. 

I posted this outside of the breeding forum because I figured more people here would have experience with the long ears. =)


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## littrella (Aug 28, 2010)

Donkeys get fat easily on pasture. Are you sure it's not just a grass belly?


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