The modern domestic donkey (Equusasinus) descended from the African wild ass, (E. africanus) in northeastern Africa from about 6000 years ago.

Growing demand for donkey meat and skin in China is causing a sharp decline in the animals in Kenya. Animal rights campaigners warn that donkeys could soon disappear in the east African country, where they play a vital role as beasts of burden, especially in rural areas.

Donkey stakeholders have petitioned the government to ban donkey abattoirs countywide to protect the endangered beast of burden that stares at extinction by 2023.

In recent years, smallholder farmers across Kenya have faced an unusual problem: They have awoken to find that during the night, their donkeys — essential for heavy labor — have been skinned by thieves, leaving only the carcasses behind.

Night and day, he thinks of his donkeys. Are they still in the fields, munching on hay? Or has someone stolen them once again, wrecking his business for some foreigner's cash?

Globally, the importance of Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) and the associated demand for products of animal origin is growing at a rapid pace.

In recent years, there’s been a huge, rising demand for donkey hides in China, where they are used to make an ancient health-related product called ejiao.