Donkeys are strange looking creatures, with their big ears and big teeth - and, incidentally, there is no difference between a donkey and an ass - both names are used to refer to the animal Equus africanus asinus, its scientific name. They are a breed in their own right (whereas a mule is bred from a male donkey and a female horse, just in case you are interested).

Miranda Donkey

They are known as ‘burros’ both in Portugal and in Spain, and the only donkey breed officially recognised in Portugal is the Miranda Donkey - once widely used as the ‘poor man’s motor’ in the agricultural area of northeast Portugal called the Terra de Miranda, helping farmers with ploughing and carrying goods. They are tall (up to 1.35m) with strong legs and huge hooves, a heavy neck, and a strong chest, with dark fur and a distinctive white muzzle and white markings around their eyes. Miranda Donkeys are distinguished from common donkeys by longer hair, and they are considered more social and docile.

They were developed in an area where they were needed - isolated environments where the soil was suitable, where the weather had extremes, and where they benefited the socioeconomic status of the region. In 2001 the Miranda Donkey was recognised as a distinct breed by the Portuguese Department of Agriculture, and it was the first donkey breed in Portugal to join the group of asinine indigenous breeds protected by the European Union.

Part of the family

The donkey has always been at the centre of Mirandela society, with major trade fairs, called feiras de burros, being centred around them. Mechanised farming trends have rendered them superfluous, coupled with the fact that younger generations are leaving the farming industry and moving away, therefore depopulating the area - and they are no longer profitable as work animals. They are now little more than companion animals for the elderly, with the majority being kept by older farmers. An estimated 90% of Miranda donkey owners are over the age of 75, and it is thought that perhaps only 300 Miranda donkeys are now working animals, but the majority of the donkeys are well-cared for, many owners viewing the animals as part of their family.

Since 2003 they have been listed as an endangered breed in the light of the fact that only around 800 still remained - a quarter of the number in the 1970s - and conservationists have taken an active role in preserving them. In 2015 researchers at the University of Trás-os-Montes and Alto Douro concluded the Miranda donkey was in danger of extinction over the next 50 years. Previously looked at as the ‘stupid animal of the poor’, they had been regarded as little more than agricultural tools, but this view is changing, and after years of neglect they are now felt to symbolically represent a fading rural cultural tradition.

Eco-tourism

Modern use of these donkeys is emerging, thanks to eco-tourism playing a vital part in their survival, with donkey trekking tours becoming popular for negotiating the difficult terrain of the hills. Their temperament is ideal, and will placidly carry you, your picnic stuff or even your children for slow walks through forests and along ancient pathways to take in the wilder mountainous side of Portugal away from the hustle and bustle of towns and cities.

The re-emergence of fairs, donkey racing, etc, invigorates old local traditions and customs, with the donkey as the tool for education and awareness, enhancing a tourism targeted to environmental awareness and cultural respect.

Less positive for the well-being of the donkey and threatening their ‘symbolic and cultural worth’ is their use for donkey milk production, including cheeses. As the Miranda's milk is closest to human milk in the animal world, its nutritional value has suggested it may be a substitute for children with intolerance to cow's milk, with the cosmetics industry also making use of the milk for expensive soaps and skin creams. Cleopatra must have been aware of the milk’s value, as she supposedly took a daily bath in milk supplied by a herd of some 700 lactating donkeys. How she hit upon this idea isn't known!

Author

Marilyn writes regularly for The Portugal News, and has lived in the Algarve for some years. A dog-lover, she has lived in Ireland, UK, Bermuda and the Isle of Man. 

Marilyn Sheridan