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and the frogs of the hooves are in a different position . Donkeys ' backs are flatter than horses ' and more often than not cannot hold a saddle . Donkeys and horses differ on a genetic level : horses have 64 chromosomes and donkeys 62 . Both horses and donkeys are social creatures , but horses are naturally herd animals and prefer to live in a larger group , whereas donkeys tend to pair off and form a strong bond with just one other of their kind . Horses have an extremely strong flight response and will run from any perceived danger , but donkeys are harder to startle and will consider the risk before they decide to either run or stick around . So what are mules ? A mule is produced when you breed a male donkey to a female horse , also known as a mare . A hinny , meanwhile , is produced when you breed a stallion , or male horse , to a female donkey . Mules possess characteristics of both of their parents . Mules and hinnies have 63 chromosomes . Because of their parents ' incompatible chromosomes , these creatures are generally sterile . Mules can take after their horse parent or their donkey parent , making easy identification a little bit trickier than it is with an animal which is 100 percent horse or donkey . Mules often have the flatter spines and larger ears that their donkey heritage passes on to them . However , mules tend to be larger than donkeys , with more delicate bone structure . Mules can be used for many of the same riding disciplines that horses are used for , depending on the quality of the mule . The physical characteristics that mules share with horses include shape of the body , the coat , and teeth . The hooves of a mule are harder
HORSEMANSHIP
than those of a horse . There is a large variation in the colour and size for both donkeys and mules worldwide . The coat of a mule is usually brown ( sorrel ) or bay but there is considerable variety just like horses . Other common colours are black and grey , while less common coats are white , roans ( both blue and red ), palomino , dun and buckskin . Donkeys are usually grey but some are dark brown , black or light-faced roan . They also have dorsal stripes ( a dark stripe from mane to tail ) and a crosswise stripe on the shoulders . Every mule hasaunique Mule bray that is a combination of the horse ' s whinny and the grunting of the wind-down of a bray . Most mules start out Whinee ..... like a horse and end in -aw ah aw like a
donkey . Both donkeys and mules love broad-leaved weeds and roughage such as barley straw . This should form a large part
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