Strategies for the management of donkey jacks in intensive breeding systems

Donkeys are bred throughout the world and often play an important role in agriculture. They are also bred to produce mules. Traditionally, jacks are considered challenging to breed in domestic conditions, whether for natural breeding or semen collection using either jennies or mares. The donkey's natural sexual behaviour significantly differs from that of other domestic animals. This presents challenges for in-hand donkey breeding, particularly on mule studs where normally only jacks and mares are kept for breeding. This article describes some of the authors' observations on sexual behaviour in donkeys and practical experience of some of the strategies employed to apply this knowledge to breeding management, in order to improve the success of using donkeys for both natural service and semen collection.