Donkeys are members of the horse family and have been domesticated by humans for thousands of years and artwork in Egypt depicts images of donkeys carrying loads for their Egyptian masters. It is estimated that there are over 40 million donkeys across the world... that's an awful lot of donkeys!
Donkeys and mules are not the same animal... although sometimes confused. A mule is the offspring of a male donkey (also known as a jack) and a female horse (mare).