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By Mail Foreign Service
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Why do I look different, mum? Pippi Longstockings stands next to her mother at a reserve in Georgia, U.S.From above the haunches, this six-day-old foal looks every bit a donkey as she plays with her mother.
But the striped legs are a sure giveaway that something is a bit different about her.
In fact the youngster - already named Pippi Longstockings after the children's books is a zedonk. With its zebra father, she joins the likes of mules (horses and donkeys) and ligers (lions and tigers) as the latest hybrid.
The newborn, who has black stripes prominently displayed on her legs and face, was born at Chestatee Wildlife Preserve at Dahlonega in the southern U.S. state of Georgia.
C.W. Wathen, the sanctuary's founder and general manager, told The Times of Gainesville, Georgia, that the foal has a zebra's instincts.
He said she sits up instead of lying on her side, as if she's staying alert for predators.
Donkeys and zebras don't usually mate, but zedonks turn up occasionally.
Wathen says that in about two weeks, the foal will begin roaming the property with the rest of the animals.
But don't expect Pippa to breed - hybrid animals are usually sterile.
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