Donkeys... were first domesticated 6,000 years ago in Egypt.  They are slow and sure-footed.  Donkeys are able to survive in very harsh conditions with much less food or water than other types of horses.

Donkeys are used to protect sheep from predators.

Donkeys are sometimes bred with horses to produce an animal called a mule.  Mules are bigger than donkeys, but stronger and hardier than a horse.  They have been used since ancient times as pack and work animals, and for riding through desert terrain.

The cross of a male horse and a female donkey is called a hinny.  If you have a female horse and a male donkey, you create a mule.

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.

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 enjoy braying, and will "sound off" at any opportunity.

Donkeys come in a variety of sizes from the miniature (under 36 inches) to the elegant Mammoth Jackstock  (14 hands and up, a hand is equal to 4 inches).