MEDITERRANEAN MINI DONKEYS

Miniature Mediterranean Donkeys are a breed of donkey originating from the islands of Sardinia and Sicily. Because they were so small they were employed to turn grinding stones for grain inside the peasants houses. There are 18th century wood block pictures showing these small donkeys, blindfolded, attached to the grain mill and walking in endless circles. They were also used to carry water from village wells and supplies into the mountains for shepherds.

Now almost extinct in their native land, these diminutive little animals are a popular pet in the USA, especially in the southern states. Approximately 500 have been imported into the UK from North America and are fast becoming very popular here in Great Britain.
 
Miniatures usually have at least three recorded generations of ancestry. Many have up to 400 recorded ancestors dating back to 1929 when the first imports from Sardinia arrived in the USA and were imported by Mr. Robert Green, a stockbroker of New York and sent to his stud farm in New Jersey.

Mr. Green is quoted as saying,  "Miniature Donkeys possess the affectionate nature of a Newfoundland, the resignation of a cow, the durability of a mule, the courage of a tiger, and the intellectual capability only slightly inferior to man's." Almost all Miniature Mediterranean Donkeys in North America originate from those and other early imports.

-Excerpt from the Miniature Mediterranean Donkey Association

BAILEY FARMS MEDITERRANEAN MINIATURE DONKEYS