Complete Guide to Breeding Horses and Donkeys in Minecraft
Minecraft allows players to interact with a wide variety of animals, and horses and donkeys are among the most useful mobs for transportation and carrying resources. Players often wonder, “Can you breed a horse and a donkey in Minecraft?” or “How do you breed donkeys and horses?” This guide will answer those questions and more, explaining the horse and donkey breeding mechanics in Minecraft, along with some helpful tips on using horses in boats.

Table of Contents:
- Can You Breed a Horse and a Donkey in Minecraft?
- Can You Breed Donkeys in Minecraft?
- Can You Breed Horses in Minecraft?
- How to Breed Horses in Minecraft (Horse Breeding Guide)
- Horse in a Boat in Minecraft: Is It Possible?
1. Can You Breed a Horse and a Donkey in Minecraft?
Yes, you can breed a horse and a donkey in Minecraft! Breeding a horse and a donkey together will produce a mule, a hybrid animal that has characteristics of both its parents. Mules are unique because, like donkeys, they can carry chests, but they inherit the speed and jumping ability of horses, making them a valuable resource for traveling long distances with items.
How to Breed a Horse and Donkey:
- Tame Both Animals: You must first tame both the horse and the donkey by riding them until they no longer try to throw you off.
- Feed Them Golden Apples/Carrots: To start the breeding process, feed each animal either a Golden Apple or a Golden Carrot.
- Wait for the Mule Foal: After feeding them, hearts will appear above both animals, and they will breed, producing a mule foal.
Important Note: Mules cannot breed themselves, so you will need to repeat the horse and donkey pairing if you want more mules.

2. Can You Breed Donkeys in Minecraft?
Yes, you can breed donkeys in Minecraft. Like horses, donkeys can be bred using Golden Apples or Golden Carrots. However, breeding two donkeys will result in a baby donkey (foal), not a mule.
How to Breed Donkeys:
- Tame Two Donkeys: As with horses, you must tame both donkeys by riding them until they no longer buck you off.
- Feed Them: Once tamed, feed both donkeys either a Golden Apple or a Golden Carrot to put them in “love mode.”
- Wait for the Foal: The donkeys will breed, and a baby donkey (foal) will appear.
Breeding donkeys is a great way to get more pack animals, as they can carry chests and transport items for you.
3. Can You Breed Horses in Minecraft?
Yes, you can breed horses in Minecraft! Breeding horses can result in foals that inherit traits such as speed, health, and jumping ability from their parents. By carefully selecting horses with desirable traits, you can breed faster, stronger, and higher-jumping horses.
How to Breed Horses:
- Tame Two Horses: You must tame both horses by riding them until they stop trying to buck you off.
- Feed Them Golden Apples/Carrots: After taming, feed each horse a Golden Apple or a Golden Carrot to start the breeding process.
- Wait for the Foal: Once they are in “love mode,” the horses will breed and produce a baby horse (foal).
Important Breeding Tip:
- Traits Inheritance: Foals will inherit some of the attributes of their parents, such as speed, health, and jump height. This makes it possible to selectively breed horses for better performance, so choosing parents with good stats is key to getting better offspring.

4. How to Breed Horses in Minecraft (Horse Breeding Guide)
Horse breeding in Minecraft is simple, but knowing the details about how traits are passed down can help you breed faster or stronger horses. Here’s a step-by-step guide to breeding horses in Minecraft:
Step-by-Step Horse Breeding Guide:
- Find and Tame Two Horses:
- Taming is done by right-clicking on a horse and riding it. You’ll be thrown off several times, but after a few attempts, the horse will stop resisting, and hearts will appear. This means the horse is now tamed.
- Feed Golden Apples or Golden Carrots:
- To breed the horses, you’ll need either Golden Apples or Golden Carrots.
- To craft Golden Apples, surround an apple with 8 gold ingots in a crafting table.
- To craft Golden Carrots, surround a carrot with 8 gold nuggets.
- Bring the Horses Together:
- Once both horses are tamed, feed each one a Golden Apple or Golden Carrot by right-clicking on them. Hearts will appear above the horses, indicating they are in love mode.
- Breeding and Foal:
- After a few moments, the horses will breed, and a foal (baby horse) will appear.
Horse Traits and Breeding:
- Speed: Horses have varying speeds, and foals inherit a speed value based on their parents’ speeds.
- Health: The foal’s health will be an average of its parents’ health.
- Jump Height: Foals will inherit jumping ability, which can also be selectively bred to improve over generations.
By breeding horses with the best traits, you can create faster and stronger horses over time.
5. Horse in a Boat in Minecraft: Is It Possible?
Yes, you can place a horse in a boat in Minecraft, but there are a few important things to note. Horses, like many other animals in Minecraft, can be put into boats and transported across water. This can be useful if you need to take your horse across rivers, lakes, or oceans and don’t want to swim with them following you.
How to Get a Horse in a Boat:
- Place a Boat: Simply place a boat in the water or on a flat surface near your horse.
- Lead or Push the Horse: Either lead the horse using a lead or slowly push the horse toward the boat. The horse will automatically enter the boat when it gets close enough.
- Ride the Boat: Once the horse is in the boat, you can ride the boat as normal, and the horse will stay in the boat with you. This is an effective way to transport horses across bodies of water.
Important Tips:
- Size Limitation: Boats can carry one player and one animal at a time, so if you have more than one horse, you will need additional boats.
- Breaking the Boat: When you reach your destination, you can break the boat to release the horse, but be careful, as breaking the boat can cause a bit of damage to both the player and the horse.

Conclusion
Breeding horses and donkeys in Minecraft is a fun and practical way to obtain faster transportation, more pack animals, or even hybrid mules. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can create an efficient breeding system that ensures you have the best possible horses and donkeys for your adventures.