North American donkeys

[1][a] Donkeys were first transported from Europe to the New World in the fifteenth century during the Second Voyage of Christopher Columbus,[2]: 179  and subsequently spread south and west into the lands that would become México.

[4]: 11  Donkeys arrived in large numbers in the western United States during the gold rushes of the nineteenth century, highly regarded as pack animals and for working in mines and ore-grinding mills.

[2]: 179  In the early days of the conquistadores, jackasses were highly valued as sires for mules,[10]: 284  which were esteemed as riding animals by the Spanish, and reserved for the nobility.

[4]: 11  Roughly 200 years later, donkeys arrived en masse in the western U.S. during the gold rushes of the nineteenth century, as pack animals and for use in mines and ore-grinding mills.

The widespread use of donkeys for work largely came to an end with the collapse of the mining boom, as well as the subsequent introduction of railroads across the nation, especially in the west.

In 1929, Robert Green of New York imported seven donkeys belonging to the smaller, indigenous Sardinian breed to the U.S.; the first foal was born that same year.

Green was a lifelong advocate, and said of his animals: "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 an intellectual capability only slightly inferior to man's."