Miniature Donkeys Bred For Long Hair

2011 - Volume #35, Issue #6, Page #21

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A breeder of miniature donkeys for more than 15 years, Martha Howard has spent the last 5 years working to produce animals with the recessive long-hair gene. She now has donkeys that grow long hair and hold it throughout the summer.
So-called “wooly donkeys” are rare and their coats are usually shed in early summer. She estimates there are only about 100 true, long-haired donkeys in the world.
“I have a jack called Orion with hair about 9 in. long that he holds through the summer,” says Howard. “His is the best I’ve seen for the quality of hair and for not shedding.”
Howard picked up her line of wooly donkeys from a breeder who had worked on the trait for more than 20 years. Hers represent the 6th or 7th generation of the trait.
The trait is recessive and has to be present in both jack and jennet. Orion has 3 generations of wooly donkeys on the sire side and possibly 3 or even 4 on the dam’s side.
“I’m breeding for long hair that doesn’t have a massive undercoat,” says Howard. “Regular donkeys shed their coats in the summer and get very slick. There is a breed of mammoth donkeys that is long-haired, but their hair forms dreadlocks in the summer. Orion’s long hair was the same in October as it was the previous December.”
Howard plans to breed Orion. A 3/4 brother sold recently for $4,000. She has sold some females to European buyers for more than that. She says the French, who developed the Poitou breed of long-haired mammoth donkeys, are very interested in the miniature long hairs.
The process of selecting for the long hair is slow, as donkeys have a 12-month gestation. Howard also waits to breed her jennets until they are 3 years old. Selection is further complicated by the presence of spotted long hairs.
“One out of four spotted donkeys won’t produce,” says Howard.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Martha Howard, 5600 Bethany Rd., Mason, Ohio 45040 (ph 513 398-3341; mhoward@eos.net; www.donkeys.net).

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Miniature Donkeys Bred For Long Hair AG WORLD A breeder of miniature donkeys for more than 15 years Martha Howard has spent the last 5 years working to produce animals with the recessive long-hair gene She now has donkeys that grow long hair and hold it throughout the summer So-called “wooly donkeys” are rare and their coats are usually shed in early summer She estimates there are only about 100 true long-haired donkeys in the world “I have a jack called Orion with hair about 9 in long that he holds through the summer ” says Howard “His is the best I’ve seen for the quality of hair and for not shedding ” Howard picked up her line of wooly donkeys from a breeder who had worked on the trait for more than 20 years Hers represent the 6th or 7th generation of the trait The trait is recessive and has to be present in both jack and jennet Orion has 3 generations of wooly donkeys on the sire side and possibly 3 or even 4 on the dam’s side “I’m breeding for long hair that doesn’t have a massive undercoat ” says Howard “Regular donkeys shed their coats in the summer and get very slick There is a breed of mammoth donkeys that is long-haired but their hair forms dreadlocks in the summer Orion’s long hair was the same in October as it was the previous December ” Howard plans to breed Orion A 3/4 brother sold recently for $4 000 She has sold some females to European buyers for more than that She says the French who developed the Poitou breed of long-haired mammoth donkeys are very interested in the miniature long hairs The process of selecting for the long hair is slow as donkeys have a 12-month gestation Howard also waits to breed her jennets until they are 3 years old Selection is further complicated by the presence of spotted long hairs “One out of four spotted donkeys won’t produce ” says Howard Contact: FARM SHOW Followup Martha Howard 5600 Bethany Rd Mason Ohio 45040 ph 513 398-3341; mhoward@eos net; www donkeys net

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