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Would you drink milk from a donkey? These lads sell it on the streets

For a quarter century or more, Ricardo Alegria and his brother Marco have led donkeys through the streets of Chile’s capital, milking them on the spot for customers.

Chile Donkey Milk Photo Essay Marco Alegria hands a customer a small cup of fresh donkey milk AP AP

RICARDO ALEGRIA IS a different sort of milk man.

For a quarter century or more, he and his brother Marco have led donkeys through the streets of Chile’s capital, milking them on the spot for customers.

It’s a rare job, but a very old one. The ancient Greek physician Hippocrates recommended donkey’s milk for some ailments and at least some claim that Cleopatra bathed in it for her skin.

The use of donkey’s milk has persisted in some parts of the world.

APTOPIX Chile Donkey Milk Photo Essay Ricardo Alegria holds his donkeys by a leash as he yells to sell their milk in the streets of Santiago, Chile AP AP

 

Even Pope Francis has said he drank it as a boy in Argentina, prompting an Italian company that produces the milk to give him two donkeys recently.

The Alegrias sell shot-sized cups of the milk for about $2 (€1.64). A half-litre, the most they say a donkey produces in a day, goes for about $20.

Ricardo Alegria said the milk “is taken as a vitamin jolt for babies with gastric problems,”

Chile Donkey Milk Photo Essay AP AP

Researchers at the University of Camerino in Italy have reported it can be a good substitute for children with allergies to cow’s milk. But adults often drink it too.

Fifty-four-year-old Carlos Aravena said he’s been raising burros on the outskirts of Santiago and selling their milk as long as he can remember. His father did as well.

Read: ‘Our nativity donkey was literally squashed by an overweight man’

Read: Maybe Labour should canvass with donkeys … it worked in the 1940s

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    Mute Shane Walsh
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    Jul 11th 2016, 10:50 AM

    Idiots & The Internet should not mix.

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    Mute The Girl
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:00 AM

    I agree…but idiots are idiots with or without the internet. It just helps us to see the level of their eejitness

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    Mute Ron Spaghettini
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:05 AM

    What a gobshyte.

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    Mute ktsiwot
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:07 AM

    Can you imagine Aussie Osborne at the height of his powers if there was social media.

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    Mute Anonymous Man
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    Jul 11th 2016, 1:55 PM

    Idiotnet.

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    Mute Kieran Stafford
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    Jul 11th 2016, 8:39 PM

    Facebook is full of idiots

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    Mute Good Early
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:08 AM

    Hope the cops keep an eye him for the rest of his life. He has all the hallmarks of a sociopath.

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    Mute John Doyle
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    Jul 11th 2016, 10:49 AM

    Dirty B@stard

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    Mute Permo Dermo
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    Jul 11th 2016, 10:54 AM

    Can we get his surname changed by deed poll? I don’t like his Irish surname sullying our gene pool

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    Mute Smiley
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:09 AM

    Good idea. Change his whole name to Richard Cranium.

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    Mute Piotrek Król
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:05 AM

    It’d be nice if he got his own head bitten off by a shark.

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    Mute Alois Irlmaier
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:07 PM

    Not right in the head at all, anything for fame not matter how sick or how cruel. I despair at the human race sometimes.

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    Mute Marie Gunbay
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    Jul 11th 2016, 2:01 PM

    You and me both Alois

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    Mute AARO-SAURUS
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    Jul 12th 2016, 1:55 PM

    Throw him into a pit with hungry rats. I’m sure he’ll find that hilarious too.

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    Mute Alois Irlmaier
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    Jul 14th 2016, 12:16 AM

    Have people lost their empathy these days, if so what have they replaced it with as it seems psychopathic in nature. A while ago an air rifle was used to shhot a baby and so on with other stories, if you can do those things to animals then you can do them to people then as many mass murderers have done in the past.

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    Mute Alois Irlmaier
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    Jul 14th 2016, 12:18 AM

    Too true Marie.

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    Mute Slim Browne
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:25 AM

    Wudnt it be n ice if that rat had some incurable disease and the head biter suffered a long and painful demise, the tauts of that makes me so happy

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    Mute Tomred
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    Jul 11th 2016, 3:14 PM

    Calm down there Slim….

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    Mute Goldberg
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:35 AM

    Aussie Osborne

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    Mute Fionn Bohane
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:40 AM

    Great shout haha

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    Mute garb yakob
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:51 PM

    Just 3 years? Not sure this guy is capable of maturing to a pet caring stage after 30 years. Once again the human race embarrasses!

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    Mute Daffy the Bear
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:21 PM

    Weil’s Disease too good for this trash..

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    Mute Christine Gleeson
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:31 AM

    Pity he didn’t catch some terrible disease

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    Mute Alan Scott
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:48 AM

    Terrible and shocking also the Journal is feeding this shocking story by posting photos of this idiot . Hope he feels the pain and stress himself that he inflicted on the rat.

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    Mute Kieran Finn
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:53 AM

    Muppet gets the publicity he craves by doing something awful , the idiots will now go looking for this and he will gain more notoriety, what a time to be alive

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    Mute Joe Murphy
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    Jul 11th 2016, 10:53 AM

    It’s the natural progression of the internet.

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    Mute Eyepopper
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:48 PM

    Taking time out from his rocket science degree then yeah…..

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    Mute Lauren O'Halleron
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:51 PM

    My god that poor rat :-(

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    Mute gus sheridan
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    Jul 11th 2016, 2:07 PM

    He looks a bit like a failed experiment himself, total moron!

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    Mute Marc Power
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:24 PM

    Someone should bite his head off

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    Mute Grace Jeaney
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    Jul 11th 2016, 1:24 PM

    Disgusting idiot.

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    Mute nifty50
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:35 AM

    A rat’s head for a rat’s head sure

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    Mute Gerry Fallon
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    Jul 11th 2016, 8:14 PM

    What a sick perverted piece of trash.he needs to be locked up for a long time . he’s a danger to society.he really is.

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    Mute Kalon Dillon
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:28 PM

    Definitely some lad from Ireland first time abroad.ha! Crazypaddy

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    Mute Aideen Thornton
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    Jul 11th 2016, 12:35 PM

    ‘Australian man who bit head off a live rat banned from owning pets’, so no, not definitely some lad from Ireland.

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    Mute Kalon Dillon
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    Jul 11th 2016, 3:08 PM

    Well with a name like maloney there’s Irish in there somewhere probably from the rat though. Ha!

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    Mute Paul Culligan
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    Jul 11th 2016, 3:06 PM

    Poor fu*kin rat. Betcha he’d rather have been eaten by Minnie Mouse.

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    Mute Damo_Greene
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    Jul 11th 2016, 7:06 PM

    Sick bast@rd

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    Mute Bridget O'Hanlon
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    Jul 11th 2016, 11:10 PM

    And yet this is not news in Australia!

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