Diabetic Donkey

Hi all,

I hope this question finds the right part of the forums. I have a miniature donkey who suffers from Hypothyroidism, and has diabetes as a result. We soak his hay and have to be careful about which supplements and grains he is fed. I want to provide more nutrition in the form of "whole foods" for him, and I have a fair amount of comfrey I've planted over the last few years. This year I should have enough to be harvesting regularly and definitely by next year. I was thinking it could be a part of his diet as it's high in protein and many important micronutrients. However, I'm not sure about it's sugar levels or if there's a way to process it (dry and grind into meal vs using fresh) that would best suit my needs. Anyone have any insight into this situation or recommendations for a diabetic donkey?

TIA

I'm not a donkey expert but I have a few things in my head.
A vet told me that donkeys can live on air.  Obviously not quite, but a lean diet is best.
Donkeys and horses evolved to survive on the food the bigger herbivores left behind. Coarse grasses and stuff mostly poor quality.
My donkey was great at picking up every bit of food dropped my the goats and became very fat.
This was horrible as I didn't know that they develop metabolic syndrome just like humans.
In the past few years I found this out and realized this is why he foundered 18 years ago.
He's always had good care but the obesity caused this horrible damage. Now he is lean and cruises the pasture with his girl donkey friend.
So keep your donkey lean and few treats.

There's a group I follow about minis, I'll try to find for you.

Mini ha ha horse haven new zealand is a great minature horse/donkey resource.