Animal Population
Donkey Population by Country 2026
- FAO data on donkey populations carry a high potential for distortion, as many countries’ estimates are not for donkeys populations alone but combined estimates for all donkeys, mules, hinnies and sometimes additional equids such as horses and zebras.
- For example, the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimate for Brazil’s donkey population in 2024 was 739,539. However, this is a combined estimate. A more focused 2025 study by FAO in collaboration with the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE) and Agrostat found that when filtered for donkeys only, the population would total only 78,000 individuals.
- Brazil’s donkey population data have been updated in light of this disparity. However, the original FAO data are still displayed for other countries, for which detailed studies were unavailable.
- Donkey populations in many countries, particularly those in Africa and South America, have plummeted in recent decades due to demand for “eijao”, a substance that is extracted from donkeys’ skin and used in traditional Chinese medicine.
- In Brazil, more than a million donkeys were slaughtered between 1996 and 2025, reducing the estimated population from 1.37 million to just over 78,000.
Sources
- Crops and livestock products - FAOSTAT
- Researchers and producers mobilize to prevent the extinction of donkeys - Revistapesquisa
- Brazilian donkey could become extinct by 2030 with slaughter for export to China, researcher warns - BBC Brazil
- Brazilian donkeys could disappear by 2030, FAO study finds - Band
- Brazil has already lost 94% of its donkey population and the risk of extinction is imminent - Forbes
