# African Cowboys? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 16, 2003, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894 "2003-01-16T02:38:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 8\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Mr.Moonlight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Mr.Moonlight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moonlight)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 2:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/1 "2003-01-16T02:38:04Z")
It seems to be accepted that humans got their start in Africa. That being the case, in all that time why has no one domesticated the zebra? Are they that much different from horses? Can you imagine a grander sight than a Zulu cavalry thundering across the plains on zebras? ---
**Author:** ![Super\_Gnat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e274bd/32.png) [@Super\_Gnat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Super_Gnat)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 2:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/2 "2003-01-16T02:42:10Z")
I believe somewhere in _Guns, Germs, and Steel_ Jared Diamond mentions the unfortunate habit zebras have of biting and not letting go. Basically, they’re untameable. [hijack]Are there zebras in South Africa?[/hijack] ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 2:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/3 "2003-01-16T02:47:23Z")
> [@](#): > > _Originally posted by **Super Gnat** _ > > [hijack]Are there zebras in South Africa?[/hijack] Yep. As to the OP - What **Super Gnat** said. Not all animals are suitable for domestication and the various species of zebra ( there are at least three ) by and large seem to fall into the unsuitable category. There have been many attempts to tame them down in the modern era, with only very mixed success. - Tamerlane ---
**Author:** ![sugaree](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@sugaree](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sugaree)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/4 "2003-01-16T03:18:02Z")
I vaguely recall something about an eccentric, late Victorian Englishman who had a pair of zebras to draw his coach. Here’s [some modern draft zebras](http://www.geocities.com/TheTropics/Cabana/6873/trophy_rm.html). I’m not getting anywhere near them myself. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Moonlight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/e495f1/32.png) [@Mr.Moonlight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Moonlight)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 3:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/5 "2003-01-16T03:45:00Z")
So the sad truth … the bottom line, is that Captain Kangaroo was not telling the truth when he said a zebra is a horse wearing pajamas? Can there be that much difference between the two animals that would render the zebra unfit for domestication? Could we get Ellie-May Clampett to contribute to this discussion? If it is merely that zebras have bad attitudes, maybe they should shave off that punk mohawk mane that they all sport. ---
**Author:** ![astorian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ad7895/32.png) [@astorian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/astorian)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 5:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/6 "2003-01-16T05:43:39Z")
Let’s just say that Africa is a very hostile environment, one in which it just doesn’t pay to be nice! You’ll find that most animals in Africa have a much meaner disposition than their cousins on other continents: zebras are much meaner (and harder to train) than horses, African elephants are much meaner (and harder to train) than Indian elephants (who have been domesticated for centuries), and African bees are much meaner than bees on other continents. Understand, these animals live in an environment where you could easily be some predator’s lunch at any moment. If their instincts tell them to fight, to resist all efforts at capture (and, therefore, domestication), well, those instincts have served them well for a long time. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 12:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/7 "2003-01-16T12:20:04Z")
The Disney movie **Swiss Family Robinson** features a race with someone riding a zebra, but I seem to recall hearing that it’s just a painted horse. Re: th title – there was a 1960s TV series starring Chuck Connors called **Cowboy in Africa**. And **Mighty Joe Young** featured them before that. ---
**Author:** ![Yeah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/dbc845/32.png) [@Yeah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yeah)\ **Post date:** [January 16, 2003, 6:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/african-cowboys/148894/8 "2003-01-16T18:39:45Z")
“Let’s just say that Africa is a very hostile environment, one in which it just doesn’t pay to be nice!” Let’s not just say it unless someone has some evidence for it. You are comparing domesticated animals (e.g., horses, domesticated elephants, and domesticated bees) with wild animals. And it’s not like Europe and Asia never had predators. How about wolves? and lions roamed Europe until relatively recently (2000 years ago). And if African animals are so mean, how was the donkey domesticated from an African wild ass?