Horses, donkeys and mules and their utility

The Horse

The horse (Equus caballus) is a large odd-toed ungulate mammal, one of ten modern species of the family Equidae.

Horses have long been among the most economically important domesticated animals; however their importance has declined with the introduction of mechanization. The horse is a prominent figure in the ideals of religion, mythology, and art, as well as playing an important role in transportation, agriculture, and warfare.

Most horses perform work such as carrying humans on their backs or are harnessed to pull objects such as carts or plows. However, hundreds of distinct horse breeds were developed, allowing horses to be specialized for certain tasks; lighter horses for racing or riding, heavier horses for farming and other tasks requiring pulling power. Some horses, such as the miniature horse, can be kept as pets. In some societies, horses are a source of food, both meat and milk; in others it is taboo to consume these products. In industrialized countries, horses are predominantly kept for leisure and sporting pursuits, while in other parts of the world they are used as working animals.

Because horses and humans have lived and worked together for thousands of years, an extensive specialized vocabulary has arisen to describe virtually every horse behavioral and anatomical characteristic with a high degree of precision.

The English-speaking world measures the height of horses in hands, abbreviated "h" or "hh," and is measured at the highest point of an animal's withers. One hand is 4 inches, or 10.16 cm. Intermediate heights are defined by hands and inches, rounding to the lower measurement in hands, followed by a decimal point and the number of additional inches between 1 and 3. Thus a horse described as 15.2 hh tall, means it is 15 hands, 2 inches, or 62 inches/1.57 m in height.

The size of horses varies by breed, but can also be influenced by nutrition. The general rule for cutoff in height between what is considered a horse and a pony at maturity is 14.2 hands (147 cm, 58 inches) as measured at the withers. An animal 14.2h or over is usually considered a horse and one less than 14.2h is a pony.

However, there are exceptions to the general rule. Some smaller horse breeds who typically produce individual horses both under and over 14.2h are considered "horses" regardless of height. Likewise, some pony breeds, such as the Pony of the Americas or the Welsh pony, share some features of horses and individual animals may occasionally mature at over 14.2h, but are still considered ponies.

The difference between a horse and pony is not simply a height difference, but also a difference in phenotype or appearance. There are noticeable differences in conformation and temperament. Ponies often exhibit thicker manes, tails and overall coat. They also have proportionally shorter legs, wider barrels, heavier bone, shorter and thicker necks, and short heads with broad foreheads. They often have calmer temperaments than horses and also a high level of equine intelligence that may or may not be used to cooperate with human handlers.

Light riding horses such as Arabians, Morgans, or Quarter Horses usually range in height from 14.0 (142 cm) to 16.0 hands (163 cm) and can weigh from 386 kilograms to about 540 kg (850 to 1200 lb). Larger riding horses such as Thoroughbreds, American Saddlebreds or Warmbloods usually start at about 15.2 hands (157 cm) and often are as tall as 17 hands (172 cm), weighing from 500 kg to 680 kg (1100 lb to 1500 lb). Heavy or draft horses such as the Clydesdale, Belgian, Percheron, and Shire are usually at least 16.0 (163 cm) to 18.0 hands (183 cm) high and can weigh from about 680 kg up to about 900 kg (1500 lb to 2000 lb). While ponies cannot be taller than 14.2h (147 cm), they may be much smaller, down to the Shetland pony at around 10 hands (102 cm), and the Falabella which can be no taller than 32 inches (78 cm), the size of a medium-sized dog. However, while many miniature horse breeds are small as or smaller than a shetland pony, because they are bred to have a horse phenotype (appearance), their breeders and registries classify them as very small horses rather than ponies.

The largest horse in (recorded) history was a Shire horse named Sampson, later renamed Mammoth, foaled in 1846 in Bedfordshire, England. He stood 21.2½ hands high (i.e. 7 ft 2½ in or 2.20 m ), and his peak weight was estimated at over 3,300 lb (approx 1.5 tonnes). The current record holder for the world's smallest horse is Thumbelina, a fully mature miniature horse affected by dwarfism. She is 17 inches tall and weighs 60 pounds.

The International Museum of the Horse

Slideshow : Beautiful horses

The Donkey

Donkeys, zebras and mules all differ somewhat from horses in conformation. The most noticeable difference is of course the ears. Donkeys' ears are MUCH longer in proportion to their size than a horse's. The necks are characteristically straighter in the longears, and most donkeys and all zebras lack a true wither. The croup and rump are also a different shape in the donkey and its hybrids, lacking the double-curve muscled haunch. The back is straighter due to the lack of withers. Dipped loins or severely swayed backs are a conformation fault, unless in old animals or brood jennies who have produced many foals, and not due to genetic factors.

The mane and tail in the donkey are coarse. The mane is stiff and upright, rarely laying over and the tail is more like a cow's, covered with short body hair for most of the length, and ending in a tasseled switch. Donkeys do not have a true forelock, although sometimes the mane grows long enough to comb down between the ears toward the eyes. Because the mane is stiff and sometimes flyaway, many donkeys, especially show stock, wear their manes clipped short or shaved close to the neck.

Hoof shape varies as well, donkey hooves are smaller and rounder, with more upright pasterns. The legs should have good bone, but many donkeys of common breeding may appear to have long thin legs with tiny feet. Larger Asses such as the

Poitou or Andalusian types may appear opposite, with huge, heavy shaggy legs and large round feet. Good legs and feet are essential for breeding Mules, as a good foot is much preferable to a large body on tiny stick legs and feet.

The vocal qualities are the frequently remembered differences in the long-ears. The donkey's voice is a raspy, brassy Bray, the characteristic Aw-EE, Aw-EE sound. Jacks especially seem to enjoy braying, and will "sound off" at any opportunity.

Although many donkeys are the familiar gray-dun color, there are many other coat shades. Most donkeys, regardless of coat color, will have dorsal stripes and shoulder crosses, dark ear marks, as well as the "light points" - white muzzle and eye rings, and white belly and inner leg. Leg barring ("garters" or "zebra stripes") may be present as well. Small dark spots right at the throatlatch, called "collar buttons" are a good identifying marking and occur occasionally. These typical donkey markings may be passed on in part or whole to Mule or Hinny offspring.

Colors in the donkey range from the gray shades of gray-dun to brown, a rare bay (though not as red-toned as in horses) , black, light-faced roan (both red and gray), variants of sorrel (Registry term - RED), the blue-eyed Ivory (also called cream or white-phase), Frosted/spotted White, and a unique Spotted pattern. True horse pinto, horse aging gray, horse appaloosa, palomino and buckskin do not occur in the donkey.

The more unusual colors are the Dappled Roan, where the face and legs are light and the body is marked with "reverse" dapples (dark spots on a light background, as opposed to the horse dapple where the dapples themselves are light on dark), frosted gray (with light faces and legs and some white hairs in the coat) the pink-skinned, blue-eyed Ivory white, and the frosted spotted white. The frosted spotted is an apparent combination of a graying or roan with the spotted pattern, and can throw either more FSW, spotted, or frosty roan colts. The animals are best defined as a spotted animal where the skin is spotted but the color does not necessarily show through on the coat (it has roaned or "grayed"; out) . Frosted spotted white (FSW) can be identified from Ivory white by checking the skin around the eyes and muzzle. Ivory (creams) will have blue eyes and true pink skin, while FSW will have dark eyes, dark "eyeliner" and dark spotting on the skin.

Another unusual variant of the spotting line is the "tyger spot" pattern. These donkeys vary from the typical large spots over the ears, eyes, and topline. The body will be covered with small round spots resembling the appaloosa type.

Donkeys come in a variety of sizes from the Miniature Mediterranean (under 36 inches) to the elegant Mammoth Jackstock (14 hands and up ). The rare French Poitou donkey, characterized by it's huge head and ears, and very thick, shaggy, curled black coat, can stand 14 to 15 hand high. (There are estimated to be about 400 purebred Poitous left in the world today.)

The types of donkeys are labeled by their sizes; 36" and under, Miniature Mediterranean, 36.01-48", Standard, 48.01" to 54" (jennets) or 56"; (jacks), Large Standard, and 54/56" and over, Mammoth Stock. There are no real populations of BREEDS of donkeys left, such as the Catalonian, Majorcan, or Andalusian. Modern donkeys can strongly resemble these ancestral breeds in TYPE, but are not classified as those breeds unless they have traceable pure-bred pedigrees to those lines.

Donkeys can be used just like horses under saddle and in harness, although donkey are more laid back and self-preserving in nature. They prefer to do what is good for the donkey, which is not always what the human thinks is best (especially when it comes to getting their feet wet...). They are very friendly, and their nature makes them excellent for children. Donkeys can perform all the gaits horses or mules do (yes, some are even "gaited", exhibiting a single-foot gait), but galloping is usually not on the program unless dinner is being served.

Donkeys can also make wonderful guard animals - the right donkey gelding or jennet will take care of an entire herd of cattle, sheep or goats - the natural aversion to predators will inspire the donkey to severely discourage any canine attacks on the herd. Dogs and donkeys usually don't mix, although they can be trained to leave the house or farm dog alone!

The Mule

Definition of a mule

A mule is a cross between two species of equine: the horse or pony (Equus caballus) and the domestic donkey (Equus asinus). The word 'mule' is used for either the cross of male donkey on female horse or female donkey on male horse, although the latter cross is more correctly known as a 'hinny'.

Despite the fact that both mules and hinnies each have one horse and one donkey parent, the two crosses generally differ from each other in appearance and stature and to some extent in temperament - a fact which has been recognised since they were first bred.

What do mules look like?

The mule proper is said to have the body of a horse with the extremities of a donkey. The most noticeable points are its long ears, short thin mane, which may stand upright like a donkey's or be a little longer and flop over, and a tail which has shortish hairs on the dock a little longer than the donkey's but also has long hairs like the horse's, and is much fuller than the donkey's. The withers are low or non-existent, the back flat with a goose rump, the body flat-sided with weaker quarters than the horse, and also narrower and less deep-shouldered. The legs are, like the donkey's, straight, with small, hard, dense, upright, straight-sided hooves. The head is a little narrower than the donkey's, but otherwise very similar, except for the eyes, which are specifically mule - but difficult to describe.

The hinny generally has the body of a donkey with the extremities of the horse. The ears are shorter than a mule's, the mane and tail longer and thicker, the legs stronger with hooves which are rounder and less upright, the body rounder and deeper, and the head shorter and narrower. The most common coat colour is blue-grey roan. However, it is noticeable that hinnies differ far more from each other than do mules, with every imaginable variation, from being almost indistinguishable from a horse, through being mule-like, to being almost indistinguishable from a donkey.

Advantages of mules

Mules, having hybrid vigour, can grow taller than both parents. Weight for weight they are stronger than horses, and are much longer-lived with much longer working lives, although maturing slightly later. They rarely become ill or lame or suffer wounds, can withstand extremes of temperature, can live on frugal rations, have tremendous stamina and resilience and are exceptionally sure-footed.

Hinnies are said to lack hybrid vigour, and it has always been recognised that they are smaller than mules (although this may partly be due to their being carried in a smaller womb), less strong and with less stamina and hardiness.

Mules' temperament

Mules have a reputation for being obstinate and bad-tempered, but as with donkeys, the mule's legendary stubbornness is in fact a manifestation of its talent for self-preservation. There are times when a human finds this 'talent' annoying, when he is disobeyed by a mule, but there are many other times when it can be a great advantage: if a mule takes care of itself, then it follows that it is also taking great care of its cargo, human or otherwise. It is not for nothing that mules are chosen rather than horses to take tourists down the Grand Canyon! By intelligent handling, it is quite possible to foresee occasions on which a mule is likely to be 'stubborn' and to avoid them.

The undeserved reputation for bad temper is, I believe, due to the mule's unexpectedly sensitive and untrusting nature. Until he has learnt to trust a person, he is worried that the person may do him harm, and will take defensive action (never offensive) by kicking them, should he feel the occasion merits it. And mules are splendid kickers - they kick fast and accurately, and if a mule misses, it is because he intended to. Unfortunately many of the people who have worked with mules over the centuries have not appreciated this sensitivity, and have not understood another characteristic of the mule: that you cannot force him to do anything, but must persuade him, or organise his work so that he is only asked to do those things which he will want to do. Failure to appreciate this has led to many a battle between man and mule, and to the mule's bad reputation.

Mules are highly intelligent - mule devotees would say more intelligent than horses - and are very quick to learn, with a grasp of a situation which often seems little short of miraculous. This means that their handlers need to be quick-witted to stay one jump ahead of them. A well-trained and handled mule is obliging, kind, patient, persevering, calm, tolerant, sensible, loyal, affectionate, playful - and also proud, jealous and calculating. Being so intelligent, a badly trained and handled mule can be a problem.

Hinnies tend to be more donkey-like in temperament, which may be partly due to the fact that they were reared by donkeys, although this is unlikely to be the whole of the story. They are generally quieter, more compliant, less curious, less adventurous and less independent than mules. Being less sensitive and untrusting, they are less likely to kick, preferring to avoid trouble rather than confront it. Despite their reputation for being less useful than mules, there are many examples of their being much appreciated.

You are visitor number

Please post your comments and suggestions here

Disclaimer : The information on this site is meant as an aid to students and fellow veterinarians and should be used for educational purposes only. The views expressed are solely that of the author and should not be construed to be that of his employer or any other organization.

Google Sites

Report abuse