Please tell me more about the wattled donkeys I love them
OF COURSE! ! I have been waiting for this moment FOR MONTHS.
Wattled donkeys in my Fallout Fan lore are beasts of burden common in the NCR, often used to transport supplies to the war front. They’re also exported into the Mojave through the Crimson Caravan, making them an increasingly common sight among Nevadan farms and pack routes.
These donkeys differ from the feral burros endemic to the Mojave in a few ways; first and foremost, they’re domesticated. Their demeanor towards people is much more clearly that of a companion or work animal; they’re not shy, and they’re not too spicy. They like apples, to be pet, and to pull on people’s pants legs and drool on them.
Second of all, they have funnied faces.
Wattled donkeys have flexible, inflatible, trunklike noses that attach loosely to their upper lips. Inside are complex organs that help them filter out particulates like sand, dust, and hair before they can get to their lungs. This is an adaptation that helps them respire normally during high-effort hauls through sandy, stormy desert terrain. Their trunks can squash and stretch to help them grab onto things, and when it’s cold or they’re guarding something in their mouth, they often ‘scrunch’ up tightly to their face.
Wattled donkeys also obviously have... wattles. Their wattles are large, fleshy flaps that run from under their chins to just above their chest. These wattles are full of fatty tissue that accumulates toxins and radiation. Wattled donkeys are not born with their wattles, but rather develop them over time specifically to ‘capture’ contaminants that enter their bodies. Mojave predators unwise to this rarely strike farms again after taking a wattled donkey, because this organ is pure, concentrated poison.
Lastly: Wattled donkeys have PIPES.
They are capable of truly extraordinary volume. This, mixed with their fearlessness and general tendency to act as if they are beyond the reach of death, makes them very desirable as livestock guardians. The bellow-bray of a wattled donkey is so ferocious and surprising to Mojave predators (and cattle-thieves) that most turn tail then and there.
They truly are just sturdy, brave, loud, poisonous little horses.