Brick Kilns: Heavy Loads. Horrific Heat. Little Hope.

A donkey carries bricks next to walls of bricks in one of India's many brick kilns.

Working animals in brick kilns are at risk of injury and disease.

Every day is a living hell for animals working in brick kilns. Will you help stop their pain and suffering?

Working animals are in dire need of your help in one of the world’s most brutal workplaces: the brick kilns of India.

Here, hundreds of exhausted donkeys and mules struggle to carry huge loads of bricks strapped to their backs. In temperatures often exceeding 40°C, they haul load after load of bricks to and from the kilns to supply builders.

Relentlessly carrying gruelling loads leads to terrible suffering. Many animals slip on the rocky ground, causing crippling lameness. The oppressive heat puts them at constant risk of dehydration. And their heavy loads often cause their harnesses to dig into their skin, leaving terrible open wounds and exposure to deadly diseases.

With little access to health care, every day is a living hell for animals working in brick kilns.

But there is hope.

A SPANA mobile clinic started regularly visiting a brick kiln in Gujarat, India to provide much needed care to animals working there.

By donating today, you can help save animals working in brick kilns. Your gift can:

Help us expand our support to more brick kilns.
Provide vaccinations and urgent treatment to sick and injured animals.
Train owners on safe harnessing to protect their animals from pain and injuries.

Will you please donate today to help save working animals in brick kilns from pain, disease and despair? Thank you so much.

A donkey working at a brick kiln receives treatment from a SPANA vet.

Lal receives care from a SPANA vet. Without treatment, Lal would be forced to work in pain and be at risk of disease.

Lal’s story

Lal the donkey, pictured here, works in one of the many brick kilns in Gujarat, India, helping his owner, Lalabhai, survive.

Hour after hour, they haul bricks from the kiln to be stacked in huge walls ready for buyers.

This relentless and exhausting work eventually took its toll on little Lal.

One day, Lalabhai noticed his faithful donkey was struggling to carry his load more than usual. He seemed lethargic. Removing Lal’s harness, Lalabhai was shocked to see a small wound on his donkey’s back had become swollen. It looked inflamed and irritated and was attracting flies.

Lalabhai was worried, as he had seen many brick kiln donkeys with infected wounds succumb to disease – a sad reality for animals working there.

However, Lalabhai had hope, as he knew about the SPANA mobile clinic that had started regularly visiting the brick kiln.

So, Lalabhai brought Lal to the clinic for help.

How SPANA treated Lal

The SPANA team cleaned the gentle donkey’s painful wound and applied a soothing ointment to help it heal.

Lal was also treated with anti-inflammatories to reduce his pain and swelling.

Crucially, Lal was given a vaccination as he risked developing tetanus – a potentially deadly disease caused by bacteria entering the bloodstream through a wound. The vaccination could prevent Lal suffering a slow and painful death.

The team advised Lalabhai to rest Lal for a week and showed him how to keep the donkey’s wound clean to avoid infection.

After providing treatment, the vets explained that Lal’s suffering was caused by his poorly made harness, which wasn’t balancing his load or protecting his spine. Without changing his harness, Lal’s wound wouldn’t heal and he’d risk more injuries. The SPANA team invited Lalabhai to a training session to show him how to fit a padded back protector and harness made of softer material with smaller brick pouches. This would reduce the risk of overloading and prevent Lal suffering future wounds.

By fitting a safer harness and reducing his dangerous load, Lal’s quality of life drastically improved.

Working in India’s brick kilns is a living hell for animals like Lal. Will you please donate today to spare many more from agonising pain and disease? Thank you.