Breeds of Donkeys - A

Abyssinian donkeys roam the rugged landscapes of Ethiopia, particularly favoring the dry and mountainous regions. Standing between 8.4 and 10 hands tall, they carry a weight ranging from 190 to 450 pounds. Their gestation period spans from 11 to 13 months, while their resilient nature grants them a lifespan averaging between 30 to 40 years.

These hardy creatures predominantly exhibit a slate-gray hue, though some donkeys may display a ...

African wild asses or African wild donkey (Equus africanus) are a wild member of the horse family, Equidae. African wild asses are the ancestor of the domestic donkey.

They live in the deserts and other arid areas of the Horn of Africa, in Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia. They formerly had a wider range north and west into Sudan, Egypt, and Libya. Their diet consists of grasses, bark, and leaves. Despite being primarily adapted for livin ...

Locally Albanian Donkeys are referred to as "gomari". They are kept as pack animals or for farm work.

Donkeys have a long history in Albania, especially in coastal and hilly regions, and are believed to have migrated into the country originally from the Adriatic coast centuries ago with the development of trade connections between Persia, Egypt, and Greece.

They evolved locally more by natural selection than focused breeding, a ...

The Algerian Donkey, also known as the Algerian Ardi or the African Donkey, is a breed of donkey that is native to Algeria. They are a hardy breed that is well adapted to the harsh desert climate of North Africa. They are medium-sized animals, with males reaching an average height of around 12 hands (48 inches) at the shoulder and females reaching an average height of around 11 hands (44 inches). They have a short, thick coat that can be a variet ...

American Mammoth Jack Donkeys, or Asno Americana, are descended from multiple breeds of donkeys imported to the United States including Maltese, Poitou, Andalusian, Majorcan, and Catalonian donkeys.

The males are typically 14 hands tall and the females are about 13 hands. Mammoth Jacks have a draft horse-like build. They are a tall, sturdy, and reliable animal, and compared frequently to work horses.


Mammoth Jacks can ...

Amiatina donkies, or Asino dell'Amiata in atalian, are from donkeys from Tuscany in central Italy. They are particularly associated with Monte Amiata in the provinces of Siena and Grosseto, but they are distributed throughout Tuscany. There are also popular in Liguria and in Campania. They are one of the eight autochthonous donkey breeds of limited distribution recognized by the Ministero delle Politiche Agricole Alimentari e Forestali, the It ...

Anatolia Donkeys are also known as Brown Donkeys and are mainly found throughout Turkey. They are usually black and gray.

Anatolia Donkeys date back beyond the Ottoman Empire; they were used alongside mules and horses to transport goods along rivers, steep slopes, and rocky terrain. Most often they were used by peasants to transport goods before the roads and bridges were built. Today they are still extensively used in the East ...

The Andalusian, or Andaluz, donkey was used by the Spanish Military for stud and kept their bloodlines relatively pure over the years. Since the end of Franco’s reign, the need for a quality donkey has declined and their numbers followed. This species is endangered and threatened with extinction.

Asinara Donkeys are from the isle of Asinara, Italy, where a colony of around a hundred still live in the wild. They are small donkeys with a white coat, probably because of an incomplete albinism.

The Asinara donkey’s  ancestors may have been imported originally from Egypt by the Duke of Asinara in 1800. Evedently by the end of the 19th century some white-coated donkeys lived on the island, probably they were abandoned by the i ...

Asino Viterbese is a breed of donkey from Lazio in central Italy. It is particularly associated with the town and province of Viterbo from which it takes its name, and with the Monti della Tolfa and the town of Allumiere in the province of Rome. In 2007 it was reported by the FAO as extinct. In 2012 it was added to the list of autochthonous donkey breeds of limited distribution recognised by the Ministero delle Politiche Agricole Alimentari e Fo ...

Australian ‘Teamster’ Donkeys were mainly introduced into Australia in the nineteenth century, especially for use in the hot, dry, harsh interior of the continent. Donkeys in Australia had a mixture of blood from British as well as Nubian and Arabian strains, all of which were imported into the country in the early period of European settlement.

With the increasing use of mechanized transport, donkeys largely outlived their usefulness, ...