Wednesday, September 24, 2014

Donkeys!

What are donkeys good for? Pets, of course!!! If we'd like to share our farm with donkeys, do I need any other reason? Naw. Pets are totally fine. 

Today I stopped by to see two donkeys that need to be rehomed. Although I've never met these two before, I've often talked with their owner over the years, hoping I suppose that there might be some baby donkeys in the works. No luck. But I've always been fond of the idea of sharing my life with donkeys. I've had ponies in the past and thoroughly loved them. Kept them to the day they died of old age. But never donkeys. While I understand that donkeys are not ponies, I still would like having donkeys. So ...... meet Dink and Donk.........
I was so pleased to see how friendly these two are. One thing I know about donkeys is that they don't forget mistreatment. These two very obviously have never been mistreated. They are mild, friendly, docile for donkeys. They seemed comfortable around me, as I was with them. 
So if all goes well, Dink and Donk will be moving to my homestead. They can help eat the grass and make the place look "homesteady".... is there such a word? I won't ask any work from them, but if they happen to team up with the sheep, then they can be pasture guards. Donkeys intensely dislike dogs, so Dink and Donk can help protect the flock from stray dogs. Fine by me. 

3 comments:

  1. Donkeys are way cool! Terrific at announcing intruders, and gentle (if raised that way).
    Great names, Dink and Donk!

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  2. An email from Fineartgourds:
    During my fifth grade year we lived at the Old Sula Stagecoach station up on the Continental Divide at the head of the BitterRoot River, then opperating as a headquarters for wilderness outfitters and breeding and raising mules. To catch the schoolbus we had to hike a mile or so of meadow and pasture and ford a small stream (the headwaters); inhabiting one bit of pasture and chained across the trail was the resident breeding Jack, a relatively enormous and certainly homicidal creature who lay in wait in the darkness of dawn each day for any human child foolish enough to attempt the trail instead of bushwhacking around the area as usual..... unforgetable the sound of that screaming bray and those teeth bared, yearning for your bones!

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  3. Stef, thank you for the warning. Dink and Donk are gentle donkeys. Would they chase and kill a dog that entered their pasture? Most likely, in fact I hope they will! To me that's a good feature for a flock defender. I'm sorry about your dogs, but afterall the donkeys were only doing what came naturally. But I will heed your warning and keep my own dogs out of the pastures. Plus I plan to introduce the dogs to Dink and Donk under controlled circumstances until the donkeys learn to tolerate them. I am aware that donkeys are smart enough to learn their "own" dogs from "not own" dogs.

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