BEEBE, Ark (KARK) — If you have ever dreamt of owning not just one, but two zebras – you finally have a chance during an auction scheduled for Friday night in Arkansas.
The auction is being organized by the Beebe Horse Auction. Blake Wilf, who runs the auction, said the male and female zebra are two-years-old and were raised on a bottle.
“This is the first time we’ve had a zebra,” said Wilf. “They’re pretty rare. They sell a lot at exotic auctions but not common in horse sales.”
The group’s Facebook page describes the zebras as being haltered a handful of times but have been running with donkeys for the past year. The zebras will come to a feed bucket, but they have not been messed with lately.
“This is supposed to be a breeding pair. It’s a male and a female,” said Wilf.
Wilf said this is the first time the auction will include zebras and the cost of each one could be as high as $10,000, but it’s an auction after all.
“It’s unlimited and depends on who wants it bad enough,” he said.
Wilf added the zebras will be tested for Coggins before the sale, which he said is a law.
According to the San Diego Zoo, when zebras are grouped together, their combined stripes make it hard for a lion or leopard to pick out one zebra to chase. Zebra stripes are unique to each individual, and researchers in the wilderness have used zebras’ individual stripe patterns for identification.
“Zebras communicate with facial expressions and sounds. They make loud braying or barking sounds and soft snorting sounds,” according to the San Diego Zoo.
The zoo said zebras have excellent hearing and eyesight and can run at speeds of up to 35 miles per hour.