Donkeys

• Donkeys are slower and less powerful than horses but they are extremely intelligent animals. They have a strong sense of survival and if they deem something as dangerous they simply won’t do it, hence they would not make steeplechasers or three-day eventers! They are particularly patient and persistent animals and as a result make excellent pack animals.
• Horses and ponies are native to lush grassland regions. Donkeys however, are adapted to marginal desert lands and therefore their food needs are much less than that of a horse. In fact many domestic donkeys tend to be overfed and as a result suffer from a disease called ‘Laminitis’.
• Donkeys do not have natural ‘waterproof’ coats like horses and so must have access to shelter.
• Donkeys require just as much care and attention as horses. For example, their feet must be trimmed around every 8 weeks, they must be wormed regularly, have yearly tetanus and flu vaccinations and regular grooming.
• Horses are flight animals, i.e. in times of panic or danger they will run away, donkeys, however, will simply freeze when frightened. Donkeys evolved in rugged desert terrain and fleeing in times of danger simply wasn’t possible.
• Donkeys do not have a flowing tail like a horse but a tufted tail more like that of a cow.

Why do people keep donkeys?

A donkey can have many uses; here are just a few:

Protect sheep/cattle & goats
Once a donkey has bonded with a herd it will protect them against canine predators (foxes, dogs, coyote) as it would one of its own. It beds down with the animals at night and on hearing any strange noises will voice a warning to the herd and chase, often trampling, the predator.

Foal or stable companion
The donkey seems to have a calming effect on horses. It can be introduced to a mare and foal and on separation from its mother the foal looks to the donkey for support. In a similar way a donkey can be an excellent field or stable companion to a nervous horse.

Handicapped riding programmes
The donkey is widely used in riding for the disabled due to its affectionate and kind, patient nature.

Working donkeys
There are very few working donkeys in Britain today, however, in many developing countries a donkey is a person’s most prized possession being used to pull loads and carts and to work mills and wells.

• A male donkey is called a jack.
• A female donkey is called a jennet or jenny.
• When a female horse and a male donkey mate, the resulting offspring is called a ‘mule’.
• When a male horse and a female donkey mate, the offspring is called a ‘hinny’.
• When a male zebra and a female donkey mate the offspring is called a ‘zedonk’ or ‘zebrass’.
• All of these resulting offspring are sterile, i.e. they cannot produce offspring themselves.
• Donkey’s milk was once valued as a medicine and was given to premature babies and sick children and to people suffering from tuberculosis. Donkey’s milk contains more sugar and protein than cow’s milk and less fat.
• In Southern Spain there is a ‘giant’ pure breed of donkey called the ‘Andalucian-Cordobesan’, which can reach up to 16 hands high, that’s as big as a racehorse! Unfortunately this donkey species is in danger of extinction; a survey in 2000 by the University of Cordobain estimated that there are probably as few as 150 Andalucians left.
• Donkeys were first domesticated around 4500 years ago and, at one time were a status symbol of their owners’ wealth, rather like a Rolls Royce is today.
• The donkey’s characteristic ‘Eee awe’ sound is made by an intake of breadth followed instantly by exhalation.