What Do Donkeys Eat

Donkeys are members of the horse family. A male donkey is called a ‘jack’ and a female donkey is called a ‘jenny’. But what do donkeys eat? This post will answer that question and also tell you a few interesting facts about donkeys.

What Do Donkeys Eat?

Donkeys are grazing animals, just like horses. In the wild, they mainly graze on grass. However, they also eat straw, tree leaves, bark, some flowers and brambles. Donkeys that are are raised by humans are fed hay (dried grass) when the grass is not growing. Donkeys love eating bread, peppermints and ginger biscuits, but these rot their teeth!

Facts About Donkeys

• Donkeys were domesticated around the same time as horses (3,000 BC).
• Only 1.7% of donkey pregnancies result in twins being born. Both twins only survive in 14% of those cases.
• China has the larges population of donkeys- over 11 million.
• A few donkeys are raised for their milk.
• Zebras and donkeys can mate together. Their offspring is called a zonkey, zebroid or zebret.
• The term ‘donkey’ is sometimes used to describe bad poker players! The term is also used in England to describe horses that never win horse races!
• The Greek word (the language the New Testament was written in) for ‘donkey’ appears in the Bible over 100 times.

Source: clovellydonkeys.co.uk