The Downward Donkey is a crucial stretch, particularly down the stretch, as we age, and is practiced under the watchful eye of the esteemed Professor Donkey-Hote a la Sancha.
I first ran into the Professor during one of our gritty, completely "on the fly" neighborhood encounters. Our conversations inevitably lead to interesting ideas, chuckles and occasional experiments, and this morning was no different. The Professor excitedly shared some research from his close relatives and colleagues at UC Davis suggesting potential mental health benefits from human interaction with mini-donkeys and small horses. He was particularly interested in the importance of humans being present, paying attention and responding to the animal's own cues and well-being.
Naturally, this connected directly with my work around caregiving, human connection and well-being at GenSando, so the Professor and I decided to conduct our own highly informal field study. My preliminary findings were encouraging. I woke up with a little morning anxiousness and felt dramatically better after spending some time walking, connecting and hanging out with the Professor. His preliminary findings were equally positive, although he remains scientifically skeptical and would like to see more research, preferably accompanied by free water, apples and carrots.
This brings us to the Downward Donkey, a pose inspired by our ongoing research into the relationship between humans, animals, movement and general silliness. It involves getting down on all fours, stretching out the spine and raising the hindquarters in a manner that looks remarkably like a donkey and surprisingly like something your body may actually appreciate. Whether it improves flexibility, mental health or simply gives you something ridiculous to laugh about remains the subject of further research.
But one thing is certain: the Professor and I are having a hell of a lot of fun figuring it out.
Further research is clearly warranted. Preferably with carrots.
#MiniDonkey #AnimalAssistedTherapy #MentalHealth #Walks #UCDavis #GenSando #DownwardDonkey #AnimalYoga