About the Mammoth Donkey | 台北市立動物園資訊網

By Jane Meggitt

First in war, first in peace and first to bring mammoth jacks to this country. That might not be exactly what you learned about George Washington in school, but its true. Washington, along with other contemporary far-seeing planters and farmers, imported mammoth donkeys from Europe to cross with mares for mule production. Hardier and requiring less feed than horses, mules worked the fields for farmers and pulled freight for the army.

According to the North American Saddle Mule Association, five main breeds of donkey developed todays mammoth breed. The Andalusian, from Spain, is a draft-type donkey usually grey or roan in color, ranging in height from 14.2 to 15 hands. The finer-boned Catalonian donkey, also of Spanish origin and now quite rare, is always black. The Majorcan, another Spanish import and also black, was the largest of all donkeys but no longer exists. From Malta came the Maltese, which were small, black and very...