A Mexican donkey has landed itself in jail after biting and kicking two men.

The animal was locked up in a holding pen normally used for keeping drunks off the streets after it lashed out at the pair at a ranch in Chiapas state, local police revealed yesterday.

The owner of the angry ass, Mauro Gutierrez, has been told that he will have to pay the injured men's medical bills before the creature is released from custody.

Genaro Vazquez, 63, told police that the unnamed donkey bit him in the chest on Sunday and then kicked 52-year-old Andres Hernandez as he tried to come to the rescue, fracturing his ankle.

"All of a sudden, the animal was on top of us like it was rabid," Hernandez said.

It took six men to restrain the enraged beast, police said.

Throwing non-humans in is nothing new in Chiapas. Previous animal inmates include a bull that devoured corn crops and destroyed two wooden vending stands in March.

In 2006 a dog was locked up for 12 days after biting someone. His owners were fined US$18.

Yesterday, a Chiapas police officer Sinar Gomez said the donkey would remain behind bars until its owner agreed to pay the men's $420 (£215) medical bills.

"Around here, if someone commits a crime they are jailed no matter who they are," said Gomez.