Pack animal
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A pack animal, also known as a sumpter animal or beast of burden, is a working animal used to transport goods or materials by carrying them, usually on its back.
Domestic animals of many species are used in this way, among them alpacas, Bactrian camels, donkeys, dromedaries, gayal, goats, horses, llamas, mules, reindeer, water buffaloes and yaks.
Diversity
Traditional pack animals include ungulates such as camels,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> the domestic yak, reindeer, goats,<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> water buffaloes, and llama, and domesticated members of the horse family including horses, donkeys, and mules.<ref name=DonkeySanctuary>Template:Cite web</ref> Occasionally, dogs can be used to carry small loads.Template:Cn
Pack animals by region
- Arctic – reindeer and sled dogs
- Central Africa and Southern Africa – oxen, mules, donkeys
- Eurasia – donkeys, oxen, horses, mules
- North America – horses, mules, donkeys, goats
- North Africa and Middle East – dromedaries, horses, donkeys, mules, oxen
- Oceania – donkeys, horses, dromedaries, mules, oxen
- South America – llamas, donkeys, mules
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Pack llama, Rocky Mountain National Park, Colorado
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Pack water buffalo, Sumbawa, Indonesia, early 20th century
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Pack donkeys, Devon, England, c. 1906
Uses
Hauling of goods in wagons with horses and oxen gradually displaced the use of packhorses, which had been important until the Middle Ages, by the sixteenth century.<ref name="Aston2006">Template:Cite book</ref>
Pack animals may be fitted with pack saddles and may also carry saddlebags. Alternatively, a pair of weighted materials (often placed symmetrically) are called panniers.Template:Cn
While traditional usage of pack animals by nomadic tribespeople is declining, a new market is growing in the tourist expeditions industry in regions such as the High Atlas mountains of Morocco, allowing visitors the comfort of backpacking with animals.<ref name=DonkeySanctuary/> The use of pack animals "is considered a valid means of viewing and experiencing" some National Parks in America, subject to guidelines and closed areas.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In the 21st century, special forces have received guidance on the use of horses, mules, llamas, camels, dogs, and elephants as pack animals.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Load carrying capacity
The maximum load for a camel is roughly Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Yaks are loaded differently according to region. In Sichuan, Template:Convert is carried for Template:Convert in 6 hours. In Qinghai, at Template:Convert altitude, packs of up to Template:Convert are routinely carried, while up to Template:Convert is carried by the heaviest steers for short periods.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Llamas can carry roughly a quarter of their body weight, so an adult male of Template:Convert can carry some Template:Convert.Template:Cn
Loads for equids are disputed. The US Army specifies a maximum of 20 percent of body weight for mules walking up to Template:Convert a day in mountains, giving a load of up to about Template:Convert. However an 1867 text mentioned a load of up to Template:Convert. In India, the prevention of cruelty rules (1965) limit mules to Template:Convert and ponies to Template:Convert.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Reindeer can carry up to Template:Convert for a prolonged period in mountains.<ref name="Nickul1997">Template:Cite book</ref>
See also
References
External links
- Llama Backpacking Template:Webarchive Documentary produced by Oregon Public Broadcasting
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