Table 2.
Responses from questionnaires to cart-drivers in a cross-sectional study of 368 working equids and their drivers across three Ethiopian locations - Bishoftu, Fiche and Shashamene in 2022. Results presented are stratified by horse and donkey drivers. Overall responses also include mule drivers (n = 3)
| Questionnaire Responses | Horse drivers | Donkey drivers | Overall respondents | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Frequency | % | Frequency | % | Frequency | % | |
| Source of training as a driver | ||||||
| Other Drivers | 97/243 | 39.9% | 83/122 | 68% | 180/368 | 48.9% |
| Family | 95/243 | 39.1% | 39/122 | 32% | 135/368 | 36.7% |
| No formal training | 51/243 | 21% | 0/122 | 0% | 53/368 | 14.4% |
| Source of training about harness assembly and hitching | ||||||
| Observation and intuition | 184/243 | 75.7% | 68/122 | 55.7% | 255/368 | 69.3% |
| Other drivers | 41/243 | 16.9% | 48/122 | 39.3% | 89/368 | 24.2% |
| Harness maker | 18/243 | 7.4% | 6/122 | 4.9% | 24/368 | 6.5% |
| Equipment source | ||||||
| Purchased | 199/242 | 82.2% | 110/121 | 90.9% | 310/366 | 84.7% |
| Partly Purchased & Home-made | 28/242 | 11.6% | 1/121 | 0.8% | 31/366 | 8.5% |
| Donated | 5/242 | 2.1% | 8/121 | 6.6% | 13/366 | 3.5% |
| Inherited | 10/242 | 4.1% | 2/121 | 1.7% | 12/366 | 3.3% |
| Priority factor influencing decision when choosing work equipment | ||||||
| Cost | 179/243 | 73.7% | 67/122 | 54.9% | 248/368 | 67.4% |
| Design | 56/243 | 23% | 48/122 | 39.3% | 105/368 | 28.5% |
| Ease of Use | 5/243 | 2.1% | 4/122 | 3.3% | 9/368 | 2.4% |
| Materials | 1/243 | 0.4% | 2/122 | 1.6% | 3/368 | 0.8% |
| Popularity | 0/243 | 0% | 1/122 | 0.8% | 1/368 | 0.3% |
| Maker | 1/243 | 0.4% | 0/122 | 0% | 1/368 | 0.3% |
| Availability | 1/243 | 0.4% | 0/122 | 0% | 1/368 | 0.3% |
| Equipment receives routine maintenance | 204/243 | 84% | 101/122 | 82.8% | 308/368 | 83.7% |
| Driver is responsible for the choice of cart and harness | 225/243 | 92.6% | 106/122 | 86.9% | 334/368 | 90.8% |
| Person responsible for the equipment maintenance | ||||||
| Driver | 125/203 | 61.6% | 75/99 | 75.8% | 202/305 | 66.2% |
| Designated maintenance person | 74/203 | 36.4% | 24/99 | 24.2% | 99/305 | 32.5% |
| Family member | 3/203 | 1.5% | 0/99 | 0% | 3/305 | 1% |
| Harness maker | 1/203 | 0.5% | 0/99 | 0% | 1/305 | 0.3% |
| Frequency of harness maintenance | ||||||
| Daily | 86/243 | 35.4% | 30/122 | 24.6% | 117/368 | 31.8% |
| Weekly | 55/243 | 22.6% | 55/122 | 45.1% | 110/368 | 29.9% |
| Monthly | 49/243 | 20.2% | 13/122 | 10.6% | 63/368 | 17.1% |
| Yearly | 13/243 | 5.3% | 3/122 | 2.5% | 16/368 | 4.3% |
| Other (as needed) | 40/243 | 16.5% | 21/122 | 17.2% | 62/368 | 16.8% |
| Frequency of cart maintenance | ||||||
| Daily | 83/243 | 34.2% | 12/122 | 9.8% | 96/368 | 26.1% |
| Weekly | 55/243 | 22.6% | 34/122 | 27.9% | 89/368 | 24.2% |
| Monthly | 52/243 | 21.4% | 51/122 | 41.8% | 104/368 | 28.3% |
| Yearly | 13/243 | 5.3% | 4/122 | 3.3% | 17/368 | 4.6% |
| Other (as needed) | 40/243 | 16.5% | 21/122 | 17.2% | 62/368 | 16.8% |
| Driver is responsible for assembling and hitching the equipment | 234/243 | 96.3% | 120/122 | 98.4% | 357/368 | 97% |
| Driver removes the harness during breaks | 214/243 | 88.1% | 122/122 | 100% | 339/368 | 92.1% |
| Driver feels current equipment is comfortable for the animal | 220/243 | 90.5% | 119/122 | 97.5% | 342/368 | 92.9% |
| Driver believes the harness influences animal’s ability to work | 88/243 | 36.2% | 62/122 | 50.8% | 152/368 | 41.3% |
| Driver believes the cart influences animal’s ability to work | 87/243 | 35.8% | 60/122 | 49.2% | 147/368 | 39.9% |
| Driver would like to change something about their equipment | 110/243 | 45.3% | 61/122 | 50% | 171/368 | 46.5% |
| Driver believes the equipment is assembled and hitched correctly | 223/243 | 91.8% | 117/122 | 95.9% | 343/368 | 93.2% |
| Driver feels current equipment is efficient | 226/243 | 93% | 118/122 | 96.7% | 347/368 | 94.3% |
| Driver considers load distribution when loading the cart | 214/243 | 88.1% | 117/122 | 95.9% | 334/368 | 90.8% |