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Tampa,
Florida, is crowded with “elephants,” and Charlotte, North
Carolina, will soon be filled with “donkeys“ as Republicans and
Democrats gather for their respective national conventions. But which real
animal would win in a showdown between an elephant and a donkey? PETA takes
stock of the competition:
© iStockphoto.com/Francois6
Physical prowess: Elephants are
active for 18 hours a day and can travel up to 30 miles a day. But donkeys are
no couch potatoes, either. They can run up to 30 miles per hour and are
sure-footed on rocky mountain crags.
Compassion: Elephants wince when they see another
elephant in pain, and an entire group will pitch in to help a mother elephant rescue her
drowning baby. But donkeys are often
prized companion animals because they are affectionate and are patient with children. Donkeys are also often
tasked with watching over herds of sheep or goats.
Beauty: Standing up to
13 feet tall with trunks that can reach for 7 feet, elephants make for quite a
majestic sight. Donkeys, the smallest members of the horse family, are
beautiful in their own right, with soft coats of fawn, chocolate, red, or black
fur and a graceful gait.
Intelligence: In an experiment
to see if elephants could figure out that they had to work together, both pulling
opposite ends of a rope, in order to move food close to them, the elephants not only succeeded
but also figured out a
shortcut that researchers hadn't thought of. Donkeys aren't short on smarts,
either. Companion donkeys
answer to their names, go for walks off leash,
and can even learn to pull carts through obstacle courses.
Enjoying leisure time: Elephants like
to cool off by using their trunks to spray water all over their bodies. They
also flirt with other elephants they are interested in. Donkeys know how to
relax, too, by finding a shady spot in which to curl up to escape the afternoon
heat or rolling on their backs in the grass or dirt. Companion donkeys also
love receiving treats and ear rubs.
© iStockphoto.com/mihaperosa
As
close as it is, I think we have to call this one a tie. Please “cast your
vote” in favor of protecting elephants by refusing to support circuses and zoos and protecting donkeys
by opposing donkey
basketball games and the roundup and slaughter of wild
horses and donkeys.
2012-08-30 19:21:38
Source: http://www.peta.org/b/thepetafiles/archive/2012/08/30/elephants-vs-donkeys-who-would-win.aspx