Hello my name is Cate. That's Cate with a "c" and don't forget it! My vet lovingly calls me "peanut" and my trainer sometimes calls me "punky". I guess it's because I can get a little spunky sometimes. I can't help it! You see, if you haven't already guessed it, I am half donkey and half zebra. My mother is a donkey and my father is a zebra. I guess I sometimes act like my dad. He's a bit spunky also!
When I came to Windy Hill Ranch, I was just 1 month old and I needed to be bottle-fed. My wonderful caretakers came 5 to 6 times each day and night to give me my bottle. Everyone wants to make sure I grow up nice and strong.
Each morning I get to go outside and play with all my animal friends. I had rather much do that, than stay in my stall all day. Once I'm done with my morning grooming, my trainer puts me out in the paddock with the mini horses and mini donkeys. I especially like the donkeys because I know they are practically my cousins. I have a lot of fun playing with them and rolling around in the dirt just like they do. Sometimes I like to run like crazy around the paddock, kicking and bucking as I speed by the other animals. Maybe I will be a "racing stripe" too someday.
I bet you're wondering why people decided to breed a zedonk, like me, in the first place. Well, in the early 1900's, when explorers in Africa experienced losses in their domestic horses and donkeys, due to some strange disease, they decided to try breeding zebras with donkeys and zebras with horses to see if they could come up with an animal that was resistant to the disease, but not "wild" like a zebra. I don't know if it was a good idea or not, I'm just glad that they thought of it, because I like being a zedonk!
Today, zedonks, are bred to make beautiful and fun pets. Besides zedonks, there are also zorses and zonies. Can you guess where they came from? Right! Zorses are half horse and half zebra and zonies are half pony and half zebra.
