How is a donkey’s hoof different from a horse’s?

It is 5–10° more upright and boxier

Why does a donkey sometimes refuse to move?

It is checking that something is safe

What marking do most donkeys have on their back?

A cross made of a back stripe and a shoulder stripe

Donkey

Equus asinus × Equus caballus

The donkey (Equus asinus, also written Equus africanus asinus) is a small, sure-footed cousin of the horse with very long ears and a famously loud bray. People tamed donkeys from the African wild ass in eastern Africa about 7,000 years ago, and today there are about 54 million of them, carrying water, firewood and people in many of the world’s driest places. Donkeys come from hot, rocky semi-desert, and much of their body is built for it: ears that help shed heat, hooves for hard ground, and a body that can lose a lot of water and still recover.

Also known as Burro, Pack Animal

Donkey abilities

up to 3 km a bray can carry
The bray is the donkey’s loudest call. It can be heard up to 3 km away, which helps donkeys keep in touch when they are spread out over wide, dry land.
- The ‘hee’ is made while breathing in and the ‘haw’ while breathing out. Each haw lets out more air than the hee took in, so after a few rounds the donkey runs out of breath and stops.
- A bray usually lasts about 20 seconds.
- Donkeys make six different sounds: bray, growl, grunt, squeal, whuffle and snort. Each donkey’s bray is its own.
- Some donkeys go ‘haw-hee’ instead, starting with the breath out.
Sources [1, 2, 6, 7]
Thin ears packed with tiny blood vesselsStill debated
Donkey ears are long and thin and full of tiny blood vessels. Warm blood flowing through them lets heat escape into the air, a bit like a car’s radiator.
- Donkeys come from the African wild ass, which lives in hot, dry semi-desert and mountains.
- Its wild ancestor, the African wild ass, also has large ears that are thought to help with both hearing and cooling.
- Scientists describe this as how the ears ‘may help’: the amount of heat a donkey’s ears give off has not been pinned down.
- Big ears are not enough on their own: donkeys can still overheat, so they need shade.
Sources [2, 3, 7, 8, 9]
32 km² average home range of wild-living assesStill debated
In dry country, donkeys spread out to find enough to eat. Their long ears may help them hear far-off herd mates calling.
- Wild-living asses roam over big areas: one account gives an average home range of 32 km², and up to 97 km².
- Calls carry well over open ground, and a bray can be heard up to 3 km away.
- Some donkey charities say donkeys can hear each other from very far away, but we found no study that measured how far.
- Ears that stop moving and point backwards or sideways can be a sign that a donkey is unwell.
Sources [1, 2, 7, 12]
5–10° more upright than a horse’s hoof
A donkey’s small, upright hooves are built for dry, hard, stony ground. They are tough and wear down slowly, but they do not cope well with wet mud.
- Compared with a horse’s hoof, the donkey’s is steeper, narrower at the heels, and has a thicker, U-shaped sole.
- The hoof wall holds more water, so it bends more. On dry rocks that helps; in wet, muddy fields the hoof gets soft and infections such as abscesses, thrush and white line disease are common.
- Because the hooves wear down slowly, pet donkeys need a hoof trim every 6–10 weeks.
- Working donkeys sometimes wear shoes. Donkey shoes are smaller than horseshoes.
Sources [2, 8, 11]
20–30% of body weight lost as water, and survived
Donkeys can lose a lot of water and still recover. When they find water, they can drink a huge amount very fast.
- A donkey can lose 20–30% of its body weight as water. Even at 20%, the liquid part of its blood stays at a steady volume.
- Given water again, a donkey can drink 24–30 litres in two to five minutes without harm.
- Donkeys make less urine than horses and keep fluid stored in the hindgut.
- A limit: these tests used only a few heat-adapted donkeys. Pet donkeys still need clean, fresh water all day.
Sources [12, 13]
Up to 2 m deep wells dug to groundwater
In the Sonoran Desert of North America, wild-living donkeys and horses dig wells down to water under the ground. Other animals and plants use the wells too.
- A 2021 study by Erick Lundgren and colleagues found equid wells up to 2 m deep along dry desert streams.
- At times, these wells were the only water around.
- More kinds of wild animals visited the wells than nearby dry spots.
- Old wells became nurseries where young trees could start to grow.
Sources [7, 14, 15]
≈1.5% of its weight eaten a day (dry food)
Donkeys both graze and browse, so they can live on rougher plants than horses usually eat. They need less food than a horse of the same size.
- A donkey eats about 1.5% of its body weight in dry food a day. A horse eats about 2–2.5%.
- A donkey needs only about 50–75% of the energy a similar-sized horse needs, so it is easy to overfeed.
- Donkeys like to nibble for more than half the day: small amounts of food over a long time suit them best.
- Because they get so much out of their food, donkeys easily get too fat.
Sources [2, 8, 12]
14.2% of US livestock guard animals (2019)
People call donkeys stubborn, but a donkey that will not move is usually being careful. Instead of running away like a horse, a frightened donkey often freezes or stands its ground.
- Donkeys have a strong sense of self-preservation. They weigh up a situation before they act, and they are hard to force into something they think is dangerous.
- A donkey uses its ‘fight’ response more easily than a horse, and may face up to a threat.
- That bravery makes donkeys useful guards: in 2019 they were 14.2% of the guard animals protecting livestock in the USA.
- Donkeys often bond with one companion for life and can become ill if they are separated.
Sources [2, 7, 8, 21]

Tap a pin on the model or a part below.

- A donkey is best known for its huge ears, much longer than a horse’s.
- The ears are full of tiny blood vessels. Warm blood flowing close to the skin lets body heat escape, which helps in hot places.
- Big ears may also help donkeys hear each other calling across wide, open land.
- The ears have dark tips and edges, and their wild ancestor, the African wild ass, has large, black-edged ears too.
Sources [2, 3, 7, 8]
340° seen without turning the head
- A donkey can see about 340° around itself without turning its head.
- Its blind spot is right in front of its nose.
- Because of where its eyes sit, a donkey can see all four of its hooves at once.
Sources [7]
- Most donkeys have ‘light points’: a pale muzzle, pale rings round the eyes, and a pale belly and inner legs.
- Some donkeys have no light points. These ‘dark-pointed’ donkeys carry a hidden (recessive) gene version.
- The mouth makes the bray: ‘hee’ on the breath in, ‘haw’ on the breath out.
Sources [6, 20]
- Most donkeys have a dark stripe along the spine and another stripe across the shoulders. Together they make a cross.
- The Nubian wild ass, one form of the donkey’s wild ancestor, also has a shoulder stripe.
- The Somali wild ass has no shoulder stripe, but it has zebra-like dark bands on its legs.
Sources [2, 3]
- The African wild ass, the donkey’s wild ancestor, has a stiff, upright mane with black-tipped hairs.
- Many donkeys have the same short, stand-up mane. Look at the donkeys from Niger in the photos below.
- The shaggy Poitou donkey of France is different: if its coat is never groomed, it grows into long, hanging locks.
Sources [3, 17]
- A donkey’s coat is not waterproof like a horse’s. It is thought to have less oil in it.
- In a UK study of 18 donkeys, 16 horses and ponies and 8 mules, the donkeys’ hair did not thicken for winter and was lighter and shorter than horse hair.
- That is why donkeys in rainy, cold places need a dry shelter they can walk into whenever they like.
Sources [9, 10]
- Like a horse, a donkey has one small stomach and a big hindgut where microbes break down tough plants.
- In a donkey the hindgut also holds on to fluid, working like a water store.
- Donkeys digest fibre very well and pass food through slowly, so they get a lot out of poor food and can easily get fat.
Sources [12]
5–10° steeper than a horse’s hoof
- A donkey’s hoof stands 5–10° more upright than a horse’s, with a U-shaped sole and narrow heels, so it looks small and boxy.
- The sole is thicker than a horse’s, and the hooves wear down slowly on rough ground.
- The hoof wall holds more water than a horse’s, which makes it softer. On wet, muddy ground donkeys often get foot infections.
Sources [2, 8, 11]
- A donkey’s tail is thinner than a pony’s, with long hair mostly near the end. It works mainly as a fly swatter.
- The African wild ass has the same kind of tail, ending in a black brush.
Sources [3, 9]

Real donkeys

Photos from Wikimedia Commons. Some of them can repaint the 3D model.

A working donkey in Tanzania carrying water containers. Note the pale muzzle, the dark stripe over the shoulder and the small, upright hoovesPhoto: Nevit Dilmen, CC BY-SA 3.0
Donkeys at a weekly market in Boubon, Niger: upright manes, pale muzzles, and the dark shoulder stripe that forms the crossPhoto: Vincent van Zeijst, CC BY-SA 4.0
Feral burros at Red Rock Canyon, Nevada: long ears and tough hooves on dry, stony desert groundPhoto: Ecirphr, Public domain
Dark brownA dark brown coat that still has the pale ‘light points’ on the muzzle and belly.Shows that light points and the cross can appear on many coat colours.A donkey grazing in Clovelly, England. The pale belly and muzzle are its ‘light points’. Photo: Adrian Pingstone, Public domain
Donkeys caught in a monsoon downpour in Senegal. A donkey’s coat is not waterproofPhoto: NoahElhardt, CC BY-SA 4.0
Jenny and foalA fluffy, long-legged foal standing beside its mother, a jenny.Foals stay close to their mothers for the first month and drink milk for about a year.A jenny with her four-week-old foal at a wildlife park in Germany. Photo: 4028mdk09, CC BY-SA 3.0
A three-week-old foal in Poland. Foals are born with all their hairs, so they look extra fluffyPhoto: Lilly M, CC BY-SA 3.0
Poitou donkeyA big, dark brown donkey with a long, shaggy coat that can hang in locks, and a silvery-grey muzzle.Bred only to father mules. In 1977 just 44 were left in the whole world.A Poitou donkey: shaggy dark coat, curly long ears and a silvery muzzle. Photo: Eponimm, CC BY-SA 3.0
A Somali wild ass, a form of the donkey’s wild ancestor, at a wildlife park in France. Note the zebra-like bands on its legsPhoto: H. Zell, CC BY-SA 3.0

Donkey by the numbers

Measured by scientists, vets and donkey experts, with comparisons you can picture.

Shoulder height: 1.1–1.4 m; a standard donkey; from under 0.9 m (miniature) to about 1.5 m across breeds⁠[1, 2, 19]
Weight: ≈250 kg; an average adult; five adult females in one study weighed about 320 kg; About as heavy as three or four grown-up people⁠[1]
Bray heard: ≤ 3 km; a bray usually lasts about 20 seconds⁠[1, 2]
Water loss survived: 20–30%; of body weight, then made up again by drinking⁠[12, 13]
Big drink: 24–30 L; in two to five minutes, after going without⁠[13]; Donkey drink30 LBig bottle2 L
Daily food: ≈1.5%; of body weight in dry food; a horse needs about 2–2.5%⁠[2]; Donkey1.5 % of weightHorse2.5 % of weight
Pregnancy: ≈12 months; usually 11–14 months; nearly always one foal⁠[2, 1]
Lifespan: 30–50 years; well cared for; working donkeys in the poorest countries often live only 12–15 years⁠[2, 7]
Donkeys in the world: ≈54 million; in 2024; Ethiopia alone has about 10.8 million⁠[2]
Chromosomes: 62; a horse has 64⁠[16, 22]; Donkey62 chromosomesHorse64 chromosomes

Donkey myths and facts

Tap Myth or Fact for each claim, then check the answer.

0 of 8 answered

“Donkeys are stubborn.”
“A donkey is just a small horse.”
“The ‘hee’ and the ‘haw’ of a bray are made in different directions of breathing.”
“Donkeys have waterproof coats, so they are fine out in the rain all day.”
“Wild-living donkeys can dig wells to find water.”
“A donkey’s big ears are only for hearing.”
“Donkeys were first tamed in Africa.”
“Donkeys can doze standing up.”

The life of a donkey

From a fluffy foal to a donkey that may live for decades.

Before birth
A long wait
A jenny (mother donkey) is pregnant for about 12 months, sometimes 11 to 14. Twins are rare.⁠[2]
Birth
One fluffy foal
A foal weighs 20–34 kg at birth. It is born with as many hairs as it will have as an adult, so it looks extra fluffy.⁠[1, 21]
First month
Close to mum
The foal stays right beside its mother. Over the first year it starts to wander up to about 10 m away.⁠[1]
12–14 months
Weaned
The young donkey stops drinking its mother’s milk.⁠[1]
1.5–2 years
Grown up
Females can breed at about 1.5–2 years; some males are ready as early as 9 months.⁠[1]
30–50 years
A long life
Well-cared-for donkeys often live into their 30s, and some reach their 40s or 50s.⁠[7, 2]

Donkeys and people

How a wild ass of the African desert became a helper all over the world.

About 7,000 years ago
Tamed in eastern Africa
Genomes of 207 modern and 31 ancient donkeys point to a single taming, in eastern Africa around 5000 BCE.⁠[4, 5]
Over 5,000 years ago
Donkeys in Egypt
Donkey remains from the fourth millennium BCE have been found at Ma’adi, in Lower Egypt.⁠[2]
From about 2500 BCE
Into Europe and Asia
Donkeys spread from Africa into Europe and Asia.⁠[4, 5]
Roman times
Bred for mules
At a Roman site in France, scientists found closely related donkeys. The Romans may have bred special donkeys to father mules for their army and trade.⁠[5]
From 1785
Big donkeys for America
Large donkeys were brought to the USA to father strong work mules. George Washington offered his jacks for breeding by 1788.⁠[18]
1929
Miniature donkeys
Seven small Sardinian donkeys were shipped to New York. Donkeys like them became known as Miniature Mediterranean donkeys.⁠[19]
Today
About 54 million donkeys
Donkeys still carry water, goods and people. The countries with the most donkeys are Ethiopia, Sudan and Pakistan.⁠[2]

Donkey vs horse vs wild ass

Three close cousins in the horse family. Here is how to tell them apart.

Donkey vs horse vs African wild ass
	Donkey	Horse	African wild ass
Scientific name⁠[2, 22, 3]	Equus asinus	Equus caballus	Equus africanus
Shoulder height⁠[1, 22, 3]	Usually 1.1–1.4 m	1.42–1.63 m (light riding horses)	About 1.2 m
Weight⁠[1, 22, 3]	About 250 kg	380–550 kg (light riding horses)	About 250 kg
Ears⁠[8, 3]	Very long, dark-tipped	Much shorter	Large, with black edges
Pregnancy⁠[2, 22, 1]	About 12 months	About 340 days	About 370 days
Status⁠[2, 3]	Domestic: about 54 million	Domestic	Critically Endangered: about 570 in the wild

A mule is the foal of a donkey father (a jack) and a horse mother (a mare); a hinny has a horse father and a donkey mother. With 63 chromosomes, mules and hinnies can almost never have foals of their own. Mules often get long ears and sure feet from their donkey parent.

What do you call a donkey?

Donkeys have their own words for males, females and young.

Jack
An adult male donkey (also called a jackass).⁠[2]
Jenny
An adult female donkey, also called a jennet.⁠[2]
Foal
A young donkey, the same word as for a young horse.⁠[2]
Ass and burro
Two other names for the very same animal.⁠[2]

Are donkeys endangered?

Domestic donkeys are not: there are tens of millions. But some old breeds are rare, and the donkey’s wild ancestor is one of the most endangered animals in the horse family.

IUCN Red List

Not Evaluated (NE)

About 54 million donkeys lived around the world in 2024.⁠[2]

Not evaluated by the IUCN Red List: a domestic animal

Threats

Falling numbers in some countries
China had about 11 million donkeys in 2006, but only about 3 million by 2017.⁠[2]
Rare breeds
Only 44 Poitou donkeys were left in 1977. By 2011 there were still fewer than 400 registered purebreds, and the FAO lists the breed as endangered.⁠[17]
Hard working lives
In the poorest countries, many working donkeys live only 12–15 years, far less than donkeys that are well looked after.⁠[2]

What’s helping

Donkey charities
The Donkey Sanctuary, founded in 1969, supports donkey welfare projects in 35 countries.⁠[21]
Breed records
Livestock charities track rare breeds: the Poitou donkey is rated ‘critical’ by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy, and the American Mammoth Jackstock is a conservation priority breed of the Livestock Conservancy.⁠[17, 18]

Wild relative

African wild ass (Equus africanus)Critically Endangered
The donkey’s wild ancestor. Only about 570 live in the wild, in the Horn of Africa.⁠[3, 1]

Donkey quiz

12 questions. Every answer is somewhere on this page.

Question 1 of 12Score 0

When does a donkey make the ‘hee’ part of its bray?

Donkey field notes

Diet, food web, safety and badges from the Snappit field guide.

Diet & Feeding

Mules are plant-eaters that graze on grass, hay, and other fibrous plants to get their energy.

Primary Foods

Grass
Hay
Oats
Barley
Alfalfa
Various forages
Foraging Method: Grazing

Ecological connections

Kentucky BluegrassEats
Mules graze on this common pasture grass for food.
OrchardgrassEats
This nutritious grass is a staple in a mule's diet.
HumanDepends on
Mules rely on humans for their breeding, care, and food.
Gray WolfEaten by
In some regions, feral mules can be prey for wolves.

Safety

Danger 1/5 · Very low

Mules are gentle but can be big, so it's important to be calm and respectful around them.

Traits

Collections

Mammals

Classification

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Mammalia
Order: Perissodactyla
Family: Equidae
Genus: Equus

Sources for these donkey facts

22 studies and references · checked Oct 28, 2026

Frequently Asked Questions

How to identify Donkey?

Compare ears, muzzle, tail, feet and coat markings. Size is hard to judge without something nearby for scale, and young mammals may not have adult coloring yet. Mammal Identifier: upload a photo and compare the visible details.

How long is Donkey?

200-240 cm

How much does Donkey weigh?

250-600 kg

How long does Donkey live?

30-40 years

How fast can Donkey move?

40 km/h

What does Donkey eat?

Mules are plant-eaters that graze on grass, hay, and other fibrous plants to get their energy.

How does Donkey hunt?

Grazing

How many babies does Donkey usually have?

Why do donkeys bray?

The bray is a donkey’s loudest call and can carry up to 3 km, which helps donkeys keep in touch across wide, open land. Each donkey’s bray is its own.

Why does a donkey say ‘hee-haw’?

The ‘hee’ is made while breathing in and the ‘haw’ while breathing out. Each haw uses more air than the hee took in, so the donkey soon runs out of breath and stops.

Why do donkeys have such big ears?

Donkeys come from hot, dry places. Their ears are full of blood vessels that are thought to help them lose heat, and they may also help donkeys hear each other from far away.

Are donkeys really stubborn?

No. A donkey that stops is usually checking whether something is safe. Donkeys are more likely than horses to freeze or stand their ground instead of running away.

Where do donkeys come from?

Donkeys were tamed from the African wild ass in eastern Africa about 7,000 years ago. From about 2500 BCE they spread into Europe and Asia, and today they live all over the world.

Do donkeys need shelter?

Yes. A donkey’s coat is not waterproof and does not grow much thicker in winter, so in wet or cold places donkeys need a dry shelter they can use whenever they want, and shade in hot weather.

How long do donkeys live?

Well-cared-for donkeys often live into their 30s, and some reach 40 or 50. Hard-working donkeys in the poorest countries often live only 12–15 years.

Take the discovery with you

Found Donkey?

Snap it with Snappit to identify it, learn what makes it special, and add the discovery to your collection.

Identify with Snappit · App Store Identify with Snappit · Google Play

1Spot it
2Snap it
3Keep the discovery

More Mammals

Eastern Fox Squirrel

Eastern Cottontail

Eastern Chipmunk

California Ground Squirrel

Browse all Mammals ›

Donkey abilities

Hee-Haw!

Radiator Ears

Long-Distance Ears

Desert Hooves

Water Saver

Well Digger

Thrifty Eater

Stop and Think

Donkey long ears

Donkey wide-set eyes

Donkey pale muzzle

Donkey cross on the back

Donkey short, upright mane

Donkey thin, dry coat

Donkey water-saving gut

Donkey upright hooves

Donkey tufted tail

“Donkeys are stubborn.”

“A donkey is just a small horse.”

“The ‘hee’ and the ‘haw’ of a bray are made in different directions of breathing.”

“Donkeys have waterproof coats, so they are fine out in the rain all day.”

“Wild-living donkeys can dig wells to find water.”

“A donkey’s big ears are only for hearing.”

“Donkeys were first tamed in Africa.”

“Donkeys can doze standing up.”

A long wait

One fluffy foal

Close to mum

Weaned

Grown up

A long life

Tamed in eastern Africa

Donkeys in Egypt

Into Europe and Asia

Bred for mules

Big donkeys for America

Miniature donkeys

About 54 million donkeys

Jack

Jenny

Foal

Ass and burro

Threats

What’s helping

Wild relative

When does a donkey make the ‘hee’ part of its bray?

About how far away can a donkey’s bray be heard?

Besides hearing, what are a donkey’s big ears thought to help with?

How is a donkey’s hoof different from a horse’s?

What kind of ground causes donkeys the most hoof trouble?

How much of its body weight can a donkey lose as water and still recover?

What did feral donkeys in the Sonoran Desert do that helped other animals?

Where were donkeys first tamed?