The Norman donkey, french: Âne Normand, italic=no, is a

breed A breed is a specific group of domestic animals having homogeneous appearance (phenotype), homogeneous behavior, and/or other characteristics that distinguish it from other organisms of the same species. In literature, there exist several slig ...

domestic donkey The domestic donkey is a hoofed mammal in the family Equidae, the same family as the horse. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a ...

from

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

, in north-west France. It is found mainly in the present-day

Lower Normandy Lower Normandy (french: Basse-Normandie, ; nrf, Basse-Normaundie) is a former administrative region of France. On 1 January 2016, Lower and Upper Normandy merged becoming one region called Normandy. Geography The region included three departme ...

and

Upper Normandy Upper Normandy (french: Haute-Normandie, ; nrf, Ĥâote-Normaundie) is a former administrative region of France. On 1 January 2016, Upper and Lower Normandy merged becoming one region called Normandy. History It was created in 1956 from two d ...

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

, and is also present in

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

and the

Pays de Loire Pays de la Loire (; ; br, Broioù al Liger) is one of the 18 regions of France, in the west of the mainland. It was created in the 1950s to serve as a zone of influence for its capital, Nantes, one of a handful of "balancing metropolises" (). ...

. It is the smallest of the seven recognised French donkey breeds. It was formerly used as a pack animal in agricultural work, mainly for carrying milk churns; it is now used in leisure sports and tourism. The breed was recognised by the

Ministère de l'Agriculture The Ministry of Agriculture, Agrifood, and Forestry (french: Ministère de l'agriculture, de l'agroalimentaire et de la forêt) of France is the governmental body charged with regulation and policy for agriculture, food, and forestry. The Minis ...

, the French ministry of agriculture, in 1997. The

stud book A breed registry, also known as a herdbook, studbook or register, in animal husbandry and the hobby of animal fancy, is an official list of animals within a specific breed whose parents are known. Animals are usually registered by their breeders ...

is kept by the Association de l'Âne Normand, an association of breeders.

History

The breed originated in the three

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level ("territorial collectivity, territorial collectivities"), between the regions of France, admin ...

s of what is now Lower Normandy, the

Calvados Calvados (, , ) is a brandy from Normandy in France, made from apples or pears, or from apples with pears. History In France Apple orchards and brewers are mentioned as far back as the 8th century by Charlemagne. The first known record of Norm ...

, the

Manche Manche (, ) is a coastal French département in Normandy, on the English Channel, which is known as ''La Manche'', literally "the sleeve", in French. It had a population of 495,045 in 2019.Orne Orne (; nrf, Ôrne or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.Ministère de l'Agriculture The Ministry of Agriculture, Agrifood, and Forestry (french: Ministère de l'agriculture, de l'agroalimentaire et de la forêt) of France is the governmental body charged with regulation and policy for agriculture, food, and forestry. The Minis ...

on 20 August 1997. In 1998 a total of 225 Norman donkeys had been identified; the total number is now 1450.

Characteristics

The Norman donkey measures . The coat may be

bay A bay is a recessed, coastal body of water that directly connects to a larger main body of water, such as an ocean, a lake, or another bay. A large bay is usually called a Gulf (geography), gulf, sea, sound (geography), sound, or bight (geogra ...

in all its shades, chocolate brown or black ''

pangaré Pangaré is a coat trait found in some horses that features pale hair around the eyes and muzzle and underside of the body. These pale areas can extend up to the flanks, throat and chest, behind the elbows, in front of the stifle, and up the bu ...

'', with a darker dorsal stripe and shoulder-stripe; the legs often show zebra-striping. The surround of the eyes and lower part of the muzzle are grey-white, as is the belly.

Use

Like the Cotentin donkey, the Norman donkey was used in the 19th century as a pack animal to transport

market garden A market garden is the relatively small-scale production of fruits, vegetables and flowers as cash crops, frequently sold directly to consumer A consumer is a person or a group who intends to order, or uses purchased goods, products, or s ...

produce, or take hay to livestock at pasture, or to carry milk-churns in a time when cows were milked by hand in the field; often the milkmaid or ''triolette'' sat on top of the churns. It was also used in harness, sometimes to pull a large wheeled churn, a ''godaine''. Today it may be used as a pack animal for hiking or trekking.

References

{{equine Donkey breeds Donkey breeds originating in France Normandy