Las montañas del Alto Atlas tienen mucho que ofrecer y, con la ayuda de mulas y arrieros, su viaje o el ascenso puede ser mucho más fácil! Those who don’t want to carry heavy loads for their extended adventures need look no further than a sure-footed mule (también conocido como el bereber 4×4) and a competent muleteer.
Choosing a mule and muleteer is not entirely straightforward, sin embargo. Todos los excursionistas y visitantes de estas partes tienen el deber de cuidar y potenciar a sí mismos para hacer bien informada, responsible choices. The following pages will help you do that and will ensure that you do not unwittingly contribute to the exploitation of muleteers and are not responsible for animal neglect, el abuso y la crueldad.
Las principales causas de los problemas y sufrimiento de los animales que se deben tener en cuenta son:
- los bits tradicionales
- La sobrecarga
- tethering
- alimentación inadecuada
- heridas
- Pobre herraje y cuidado de los pies
- Trabajando mulas no aptos (mulas que son cojos, enfermos o lesionados)
The following publication Promoting Pack Mule Welfare on Expedition (featured in The Professional Mountaineer) resume estas cuestiones de bienestar en forma pictórica y puede ayudarle a reconocer lo que debe evitar. Debe leerse en conjunción con la publicación de Donkey Sanctuary “Directrices de bienestar en Imágenes”, que está diseñado para ayudar a los visitantes y lugareños por igual reconocen los problemas de bienestar con el fin de evitar que a continuación. Los siguientes vídeos ilustran qué tan serio estos problemas son:
Traditional Bit Video
Overloading Video
tethering vídeo
Durante los últimos ocho años The Donkey Sanctuary ha estado trabajando en la región para ayudar a la industria del turismo en el Alto Atlas al día con buena arreo y el paquete de prácticas de bienestar animal. There has been some change and good progress, but things still have a long way to go!
GUIDELINES FOR GOOD PRACTICE AND A FAIR WAGE
1) Make sure that the muleteers are not utilizando los bits tradicionales que lesionan la mula y causan dolor agudo y sufrimiento de los animales. It is your responsibility to refuse to employ or travel with anyone working their mule in a traditional bit so make sure you can recognise these. If the owner tells you the mule is difficult / inmanejable sin un poco tales, esto es un signo seguro de la mula se ha abusado y tiene miedo de los humanos / su dueño.
El siguiente equipo es aceptable:
Collares de cabeza y / o brida bitless (best practice)
Humano / modern bits which are made of stainless steel and look like this (acceptable practice).
NO BIT INTEGRIDAD & NOT ACCEPTABLE (Bit tradicional)
2) Make sure mules are not loaded with more than 80kgs! This recommended maximum load is to ensure the health, comfort of the mule as well as a sustainable working life. Mules are a serious investment for muleteers as they need to be cared for come work or no work!
3) See that muleteers are using humane tethers for their mules! Please see above articles, blogs and pdfs for further information!
4) Make sure a minimum wage of 130dh per day is being paid directly to the muleteer and if you are going to tip them please do that directly as well! Be aware that if you hire a mule in the village of Imlil, 10 dirhams or more is paid to the head muleteer. You should check that no one is taking a commission.
Empresas como The Mountain People Ltd y ganso salvaje aventura SARL se han comprometido a un régimen de pago escalonado que paga un mínimo de 150dh por día para los arrieros con una broca humana (they won’t employ muleteers who use traditional bits) and up to 175dhs per day for those that are using a bit-less bridle and have had training in collaboration with the Donkey Sanctuary and their standards and training.
WAYS TO GET INVOLVED
- Check that the company you choose for your trip follows the above guidelines! Ask for details of their policies and how they are implemented.
- Donate money to help The Donkey Sanctuary’s initiatives for training owners and handlers in good animal care, handling and treatment: https://www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk/donate
- For further details about the welfare of trekking mules of the High Atlas, get in touch with Glen Cousquer at: [email protected]
- Raise awareness of mule welfare on Facebook! Like: https://www.facebook.com/atlasmules & https://www.facebook.com/TheDonkeySanctuary
- Donate your old ropes to be used in making humane head collars and tethers! Get in touch with Glen Cousquer at: [email protected] or James at The Mountain People.
RECOMMENDED MULETEERS
How do you choose a provider that has good animal welfare practices and pays the muleteer a fair wage? Bueno, hay una serie de empresas que han hecho un compromiso claro para proteger el bienestar de mula y nuevas de esto en sus sitios web. There are also a number of able and competent muleteers who The Donkey Sanctuary can recommend for your trip (recuerde añadir +212 a los números de abajo cuando se utiliza un número de teléfono móvil extranjera) :
Para obtener más información sobre el trabajo que se ha hecho por favor, eche un vistazo a los siguientes enlaces y descargas pdf:
- https://www.tourismconcern.org.uk/pack-mule-welfare-abuses-in-mountain-tourism
- https://www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk/blogs/glen-cousquer
Developing Solutions for Tethering Injuries – Veterinary Times
This article give clear insight into the issues surrounding bad tethering practices (securing a mule) and shares what solutions are being developed by Glen Cousquer of the Donkey Sanctuary.
Update on the work and initiatives for humane tethering practices – Veterinary Times
This article tracks the progress being made in seeing humane tethering practices implemented in the High Atlas mountains.