"Not All Who Wander Are Lost": The Life Transitions and Associated Welfare of Pack Mules Walking the Trails in the Mountainous Gorkha Region, Nepal.
Authors: Watson Tamlin, Kubasiewicz Laura M, Nye Caroline, Thapa Sajana, Norris Stuart L, Chamberlain Natasha, Burden Faith A
Journal: Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
Summary
# Editorial Summary Working mules in Nepal's mountainous Gorkha region experience multiple abrupt ownership changes and transitions between vastly different working roles throughout their lives, creating significant welfare challenges that have received little scrutiny until now. Researchers conducted semi-structured interviews with 27 key informants (handlers, owners and traders) and performed standardised welfare assessments using the Equid Assessment Research and Scoping (EARS) tool to document the reality of these animals' experiences from acquisition through to end of life. The findings revealed a pattern of extreme adaptation demands: mules were transported long distances in overloaded vehicles across international borders without biosecurity checks, subjected to aversive training methods by handlers lacking behavioural knowledge, and forced to work at high altitude without proper acclimatisation whilst negotiating steep terrain in harsh monsoon conditions. These conditions repeatedly pushed the animals toward their physiological limits, yet the research also identified that understanding mule-specific needs and behaviour—their "telos"—could inform meaningful welfare improvements. For equine professionals working with or advising on pack animals in resource-limited settings, this study underscores the critical importance of pre-purchase health assessment, gradual task introduction, altitude acclimatisation protocols, and education of handlers in positive reinforcement-based training methods as practical interventions that could substantially reduce preventable suffering.
Read the full abstract on PubMed
Practical Takeaways
- •Working equine professionals should advocate for welfare standards during animal transport and ownership transitions, particularly in regions where regulatory oversight is limited
- •Training handlers and owners on equine behaviour, learning principles, and humane handling techniques is essential for improving mule welfare outcomes
- •Gradual acclimatisation protocols and load management strategies are critical when working equids are deployed to high-altitude or challenging environmental conditions
Key Findings
- •Pack mules in Nepal experience frequent abrupt ownership changes and rapid adaptation demands to diverse working conditions with limited support
- •Welfare assessment using EARS tool revealed mules endured long-distance overloaded transportation, difficult terrain, monsoon weather, and high-altitude work without proper acclimatisation
- •Inhumane training methods using inappropriate techniques administered by owners with limited understanding of mule behaviour and learning were commonly employed
- •Mules faced biosecurity and welfare risks during cross-border transportation with no regulatory checks or monitoring