Donkeys have always played a very important role in the Mediterranean
A very unusual and lovable member of the horse family (Equus), which also includes zebras, is the donkey. Strictly speaking, it is descended from the African wild donkey, but was first introduced into the wild before 4,000 BC. Wild donkeys (Asinus) can still be found in Africa and Asia, where they like to live as herd animals in dry and mountainous landscapes.
The domesticated donkey was a great help to people, especially for riding and as a pack animal, and for pulling wagons. People could usually afford a sturdy donkey rather than a horse for a work animal and they can still be found working in rural villages around the Mediterranean.
Unfortunately, the donkey receives significantly less recognition to this day, although it has been shown that, in contrast to horses, it is more resilient and shows hardly any reactions to fear, stress or illness. Since they could carry large loads and were sure-footed even on rough terrain, they became a great support and remained loyal companions.
Donkeys are very stoic and are not easily disturbed, which is why it is often said that they are stubborn and stupid. On the contrary, they are highly intelligent beings capable of independent thinking and making their own decisions. They don’t put up with everything and don’t do anything that they think is unsafe.
When threatened, they don’t immediately run away like horses do, but rather stand still, take a moment to decide whether they should run away, stay put, or attack, and donkeys actually sometimes attack their enemies when it is necessary.
Interesting facts:
- The cross between a horse and a donkey is called a mule.
- A mule has a donkey stallion as its father and a horse as its mother. With a hinny it’s the other way around: the mother is a female donkey and the father is a horse stallion.
- As grass eaters donkeys eat shrubs and desert plants, they grab the plant with their lips, pull it into their mouth and grind it up with their flat teeth.
- Donkeys are increasingly being used as therapy animals, because they are very sociable, empathetic and peace-loving animals.
- Their natural life expectancy is around 35-40 years in the wild and around 20 years in stables.
- Unfortunately, wild donkeys are on the endangered species list.
This article was first published in Summer in the Med
