A Hinny is a hybrid between a male horse and a jenny donkey. Hinnies are often smaller than mules because donkeys are smaller than horses.
It is debatable whether the difference in the size is only because the donkey is smaller than the horse, or if it is a natural consequence of the reciprocal cross. The American Donkey and Mule Society (ADMS) however says, “The genetic inheritance of the hinny is exactly the same as the mule.”
Just like mules, hinnies come in several sizes. They can range from as small as 24 inches to American Mammoth Jacks that can be over 60 inches tall. However, other than size, there are only minor differences between mules and hinnies.(source)
A Cama is a cross between a male Camel and a female llama. The first Cama was born on 14th January, 1998. This kind of hybrid animal is produced at the Camel Reproduction Centre in Dubai. That’s because an adult Camel may weigh six times as much as a llama, so the mating must be produced by artificial insemination.
Camas are herbivores, just like their Camel fathers. They can drink lots of water on one go, and then survive with little or no water for a long time, just like its father.(source)
A Tigon might be a hybrid animal, but has visual resemblance to both its Lioness mother and Tiger father. A male Tigon also has the signature Lion mane, though shorter and less apparent. They grow up to the size of their parent species and weigh almost 400 pounds. This is because they inherit the Lioness’ growth-inhibitory genes.
Tigons, just like Ligers are not sterile. Back in 1943, a Tigon was first successfully mated to a lion at the Munich Hellabrunn Zoo. In India’s Alipore Zoo, a female tigon was successfully mated to an Asiatic Lion to form a rare second generation hybrid was called a Litigon. This Ligon gave birth to seven such Litigons across her lifetime, and one of them weighed as much as 800 pounds!(source)
A Zebroid is a cross between a Horse, Donkey or any other Equine for that matter. They have been bred since 19th Century, and Charles Darwin has noted several of these hybrid animals in his works. It generally doesn’t matter which Zebra species is used. Zebroids don’t occur in the wild, and are often infertile. They physically resemble their non-zebra parent, but are striped like a Zebra.
Zebroids are preferred over Zebras because the latter can’t be ridden like Horses or Donkeys as they have a different body shape. However, a Zebroid can often be more temperamental than a pure breed horse.(source)
A hybrid between a male Lion and a Tigress, Ligers date back to early 19th century. They are bred in captivity and enjoy swimming, just like their Tigress moms and are sociable, quite like their badass Lion dads.
However, unlike Tigeons (Male Tiger+Female Lion) that are just about the size of a Tigress, these hybrid animals are the same size as prehistoric American lions. Most believe imprinted genes may be the reason behind their gigantic size.
The Guinness Book of World Records has recognized Hercules the Liger as the largest living cat on Earth. Believe it or not, he weighs a whopping 902 pounds!(source)
