Born : 19th June 2001

Pet Name : Pozee-Tinkerbelle

Breed Name : Zebroid

Mother : Shetland Pony, pet name Tilly

Father : Zebra, pet name Bijou

When Pozee-Tinkerbelle was born, it was a breathe of fresh air for all at Eden Ostrich World. The foot and mouth crisis was making its mark on us, and until 2nd of July 2001 we were unable to open because of the restrictions placed upon us by what was MAFF but is now DEFRA. Although we have not had the disease, we lost our pigs, goats and sheep in the cull, which was devastating. Still today, FMD is not over, and having opened, we are well aware of the risks that face us, this meant working closely with DEFRA to make sure all risks were accessed and dealt with accordingly.

Believe it or not, we were totally unaware that Tilly the Shetland Pony was expecting a foal when we received her. Having shared a paddock with a zebra at her previous home, they had obviously got to know each other very well! Ten months after coming to us we were amazed when she gave birth unaided to Pozee. It was very obvious that she was a zebra-foal from day one, as her markings were very prominent. From that point there was lots of media attention, as she was such a rare species. Having found out that she officially was a zebroid, it was then time to decide on her pet name. We ran a competition in a local newspaper and at the visitors centre to name her, and received over 450 entries. Some of the most popular ones being, Cobra, Jezabel, Lucky, Spot, Stripey, Tigger, Zara, Zebedee and of course Pozee and Tinkerbelle. The lucky winner was Matthew Stockdale age 8, who received a season ticket for himself and his family, there were also several other runners up, who all received day passes.

Information on Zebra Hybrids:

Zebras, horses and donkeys are all members of the equines. Each have slightly different genetic history. The fact that equids of different species can mate together and produce offspring is a result of this genetic history. Depending on which equid mates with which equid, and how closely related they are, the hybrid offspring may or may not be sterile. Hybrid sterality is usually the result of chromosome mismatching. Throughout the centuries there has been mention of zebra hybrids, with horses and donkeys. Most have been in a controlled environment where owners of different species of equids have purposely crossed them. There are many terms used to name hybrids, including, zorse, zony, zebrass, zedonk and many more. A more romantic name the "Golden Zebra", recently surfaced, although it is not technically accurate.

Zebra hybrids can be trained just like regular equines, but this training process is often very difficult, and is best carried out whilst the hybrid is still young. They tend to have very strong personalities and are very stubborn. They can be trained to be used under saddle or as pack animals, but again much work has to be done, and many hours spent overcoming their strength and outgoing personalities. Zebra hybrids have many traits, and include, differently shaped hips, generally larger ears, mains are often stiff and upright, and also the noise they make will often be a "qua-ha" or a "barking" sound, like a zebra. Typically a zebra hybrid will have boldly striped legs, a clearly marked dorsal stripe, and varying degrees of striping on the face, neck, shoulders and body, usually being dark brown stripes over a varying degree of colours, depending on the colour of the mated equid.

As zebra hybrids are uncommon, and especially in Tilly's case as she is a shetland pony, it is very hard to gauge just how Pozee will develop. There are many questions we have ourselves and at the moment these are un-answered. But hopefully time will give us those answers, and in the mean time we'll enjoy and appreciate her for what she is, our little miracle!