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From: jespah@carson.u.washington.edu (Kathleen Hunt)
Subject: Re: Zebras
Date: 3 Dec 1993 20:54:22 GMT
Organization: University of Washington, Seattle
Just thought I'd point out to everyone that making blanket
statements about "zebras" is always unreliable because there are 3
completely different species of zebras out there, and each of the three
has (or had) many subspecies. The 3 species are:
1. The Grevy's Zebra is the large zebra with the very skinny, almost
dizzying vertical stripes, and huge round ears. Grevy's has been called
the most domesticatable zebra. Though it's larger, more powerful than
the plains zebra, it's easier to train. ("Within a few weeks of capture
I have inspanned them to pull well and steadily" wrote one trainer)
One behavioral trait of the Grevy's is that in the breeding season,
stallions do *not* have harems. Instead, each stallion is highly
territorial, defending a little patch of land, and trying to mate with
any females that happen to come cruising through. Different social
system than horses or other zebras...probably makes Grevy's males
interesting to deal with.
2. Plains zebra and quagga
The extinct Quagga (probably a subspecies of the plains zebra)
was probably the most trainable zebra of all. Captive quaggas were very
tame, and a pair of quaggas were used in harness in London in the
1800's. They were occasionally used as driving animals in South Africa
back then, and were also used as guards for horses and sheep, since
quaggas were very bold at chasing off predators. Quaggas were also one
of the most spectacularly beautiful zebras. They were overhunted...the
last mare died in 1872...(gnashing of teeth)
The common Plains Zebra can be domesticated but it's pretty tricky. A
good trainer can train them, though. They have been used as harness
animals. They are easy keepers. They're said to be more intelligent
than mules or donkeys, which may be where they get their reputation for
being difficult to train. (This is the "typical zebra" with medium-width
vertical stripes, and broad horizontal stripes on the rump)
"A photograph exits of a plains zebra four-in-hand pulling a two-wheeled
Cape cart" says this little book here. "More often plains zebras were
inspanned with mules. Presumably the mules exerted a steadying
influence..." Or how about this setup: A lead pair of mules, and then 4
plains zebras, 3 more mules and a donkey, all pulling a four-wheeled
coach! What a sight! "They pull well and a very willing...they are
perfectly amenable to the bridle...they never kick [but] when first
handled...they have an inclination to bite."
Or this hitch: two oxen, two elands (!), two plains zebras, and two
mules. Belonged to Carl "Bring 'em back alive" Hagenbeck. I think
that's the same Hagenbeck mentioned in the previous post, founder of a
German zoo, also involved in bringing Przewalski's horses in from the
wild (this ended up saving the species when the wild ones all died out).
3. The third species is the Mountain Zebra. Yes, believe it or not, these
are mountain-specialized zebras that bound around on the alpine slopes like
little mountain goats. They are smaller, and are recognizable by their
little dewlap under the neck (among other things). They are least suitable
for training, partly because their conformation makes them poor riding or
driving animals, and partly because ones captured from the wild are
difficult to tame, being especially rowdy and resistant. If you trained
one as a foal, though, who knows? There is one photo of a tame mountain
zebra stallion being ridden sidesaddle by a woman in elegant formal
attire (all black -- looks magnificent against the zebra's coat!)
So there you have it. Much of this info came from MacClintock's "A
Natural History of Zebras".
Kathleen
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