From Paul the Octopus to a psychic pig and even a group of “mystic meerkats”, football loves its animal predictions – and now the Donkey of Destiny has burst on to the scene.
Diwa, a Moroccan donkey of unassuming appearance, nevertheless clearly possesses hitherto unheard-of powers of prediction.
The World Cup wonder has made a strong start to his match predictions in the group stage of the tournament, correctly selecting both France and England as winners, over Australia and Tunisia respectively.
Diwa, who lives at the SPANA veterinary centre in Marrakech, picks his favourite in each match by choosing between two buckets of hay, each decorated with the flag of one of the competing nations.
And the Donkey of Destiny has made a controversial, but sensible, prediction for tomorrow afternoon’s showdown between Morocco and Portugal, shunning his home nation in favour of the Euro 2016 winners.
SPANA chief executive Geoffrey Dennis said: “Since the World Cup in 2010, there have been many pretenders – from mystic mules to clairvoyant camels – but Diwa seems to be the real deal.
“We’ll be willing him on and hoping he can go all the way to the final – but there’ll be bucketloads of hay for him either way.”
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“We don’t have a crystal ball, but we can say for sure that the future is far brighter for the working animals we treat,” said Mr Dennis. “All these hard-working animals deserve a life free from suffering.”
Paul the Octopus became an unlikely star of the 2010 World Cup when he correctly predicted the outcomes of a string of matches, including selecting Spain as the eventual winners, by selecting a mussel from boxes decorated with nations’ flags.
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Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.
