Driving Mr. Ben

A friend of mine loaned me a harness and cart for Ben.  The Harness needs to go to the harness maker for some adjustments to make it fit a donkey properly...

If I make the crupper fit, then the britching doesn't.  If I make the britching fit, then the crupper is too short.

I finally took the brow-band off altogether because it was too tight for Ben's wide brow and oh-so-delicate and dainty ears.  We wouldn't want to pinch the ears.

But it is good enough for a little jaunt and I was determined to take my new driving donkey out for a ride before the vet comes on Thursday to work on his foot.  The canker is not yet making him lame and exercise is good for the foot so there is no reason I can think of not to.  I have no idea when or if he will be driving again so I was, by God, gonna take him out.

I know the cart needs a paint job.

I know I forgot to run the lines through the saddle rings.

I know the harness isn't quite right.

And I know that Ben is an awfully nice, well-behaved donkey.  So good that we just went out and down the road and drove into the sunset.

Care to join us for a moment?

Peace Talks

Important negotiations always take place over food...

and they do say that the family that breaks bread together, stays together.

Even if there are some disagreements along the way.

As long as the food holds out....

peace talks can continue.

Ben There Done That

Ben was half of a team of mammoth driving donkeys - Ben and Bodie.  I may not have all the sequence right, but I believe they were originally from Montana.  They went to Idaho for training and from there to Missouri (I think??  I need to check all that.), then to North Carolina.  They came to New York about two years ago to be a driving team for their latest owner.

This was actually the second team of mammoth donkeys he had bought.  One of the first team contracted EPM shortly after coming to NY.  EPM is a very nasty protozoa disease that attacks the spinal column.  It is one of those cruel, parasitic diseases that are impossible to guard against and is difficult to treat.  It can sometimes be treated and sometimes not, depending on what part of the spine is affected.  Unfortunately, this was a very bad case and the donkey was euthanized when she could no longer stand.

Mary, that gorgeous Catalonian donkey, was to be her teammate, but she is not trained yet.

Not wanting to give up on his dream, the owner then bought Ben and Bodie.  In a cruel twist of fate, Bodie was injured somewhere along the way and he developed a problem with his hip/pelvis/stifle.  It is difficult to pinpoint where the problem is and it is not easy to see unless you are really looking for it, but there is something not quite right in his left hind.  He is still mostly sound and certainly happy in his pasture, but he is not up for driving on the kind of hills we have here.  He would probably do fine if he lived in Kansas, but not on these hills.

After so much heartbreak and trouble, the owner finally gave up on the idea of having a team of mammoths and bought a pair of Standard bred horses instead.  Standard breds are common here as the harness racing industry produces and discards thousands of them every year.  When their racing careers are over, they generally end up going for slaughter or the Amish buy them and use up what is left before shipping them to slaughter.  This lucky pair made it through both the race tracks and the Amish and landed on a small farm where they go out for a pleasure drive a few times a week.

That leaves Ben and Bodie with no job.  The owner needs a team to manage the wagon he has and Ben is the sole donkey up for the job.  Since he can't do the job alone, and the Standard breds are working out well, the owner is looking to consolidate and have a few less mouths to feed.  Bodie is now retired and may be available to the right home as a companion or light duty.  If it is not the right place though, he will stay where he is.  These are VERY nice and much loved donkeys.

Ben and Bodie are in the 11-14 age range.  They are both 60 inches tall and have both riding and driving experience.

Ben's fancy, official name is Ben There Done That and it suits him to a tee.

If I had to choose one word to describe him so far, it would be: phlegmatic.

Phlegmatic with the thread of devilish mischief that lies at the heart of all donkeys:)

Ben does have a been-there-done-that attitude though.

He is also very well mannered, kind, sweet and lovable.

With a booming, sonorous voice that sounds remarkably like a foghorn.

The BIG Reveal

It was a spur of the moment thing.  I honestly don't know what came over me.  Mammoth donkeys are very rare in these parts and well trained riding and driving mammoths are generally unheard of.  I guess it was the wagon ride and the lure of having a nice driving donkey that did it.

I didn't set out to get another donkey.  I resisted.  Truly.

All summer, everyone has been sending me links to this donkey and he was only 30 minutes away, but I said, "NO, get thee behind me Satan, I will not give in to temptation!".  

But then I did.

His name is Ben.

We're all surprised.

Some of us more so than others.

I had to lock Tessa up for a short while as she wanted to protect "her" donkeys from this intruder.  If anyone would make a good guard donkey, it is Tessa.  A pack of coyotes wouldn't know what hit them.  Once Tessa decided that he meant no harm, she accepted him with no qualms.  He is a bit intimidated by her, but, so far, he prefers her company.

Emma is wary, but deeply intrigued.

Which is actually a pretty good summation of her personality now I think about it.

Maybe she thinks she is looking in a mirror.

Ben is not so sure that he wants any new donkey friends.

And Ramsey?  My poor little Ramsey who is just a bit of a momma's boy and who is also, maybe, perhaps, a teensey, tiny bit sheltered and spoiled?  He is frightened and appalled.

I do hope that everyone just needs a bit of time.  Ben got here on Friday afternoon and he is missing his Catalonian girlfriend.  Emma and Ramsey are not used to anything intruding on their kingdom. Tessa, once she decided her guard duties were unnecessary, is content to let the donkeys sort themselves out.

I hope they do sort themselves out.  God knows what I'll do if they can't live together in peace.

A missed opportunity????

There is a Mammoth Jackstock jenny for sale about 4 hours from here.  She is 4 1/2 years old, well started under saddle and big enough for me to ride.  It seemed like fate that, just as I am beginning to think about another riding animal, this jenny would show up in place where mammoth donkeys are exceedingly rare and at a price that I could just manage to afford. 

I have never ridden a donkey, but after getting to know Emma, I really like the idea.  I was very excited about this and for a brief time that I thought I would be bringing her home.  But (there is always a "but" isn't there), I have some concerns about her soundness.  There is something not quite right about her knees that I can see in her photos and she is severely cow-hocked.  I know I could probably arrange to have x-rays taken and I might have but....there were just too many red flags.

I managed to track down her original owner who told me that the current owner is unhappy with her because of problems with her legs and that is why she is for sale.  The current owner tells me that there is no problem, it is just that the joints of mammoth donkeys take longer to develop.  She used the phrases "her knees are still filling in", "they just move some because they aren't closed" and "they just have some fluid on them".  It may be true that mammoths take longer to develop but, at four months shy of her fifth birthday, I think they should be as "filled in" as they are going to get. I already have one young, crippled horse, I can't handle another just now either emotionally or financially.  Are there any Mammoth  Jackstock experts out there who care to weigh in here? 

I also started having doubts that a riding donkey would be the right mount for me.  Most of my riding buddies ride gaited horses who cover a lot of ground.  While none of them are the kind of riders who expect their horses to gait all the time or would leave me behind, I don't want to become an anchor to the whole group.  Sill, this donkey would have been for me, not them.  If it wasn't for the doubts about her knees.... Again, any donkey riders out there have an opinion?

I really liked the sound of this jenny and from her photos and videos I think she is a wonderfully sweet and beautiful animal.  I was halfway in love with her without ever meeting her in person.  There were just too many red flags and obstacles in the way and I decided to pass on her.  If it had only been one thing, I'd have gone to see her but, when I added up the bad vibes I was getting plus the distance, the cost, the worries....

Still, I can't get her out of my mind.  I think I did the right thing but, I think this one is also going to haunt me.  Did I pass up a golden opportunity or spare myself a lot of grief? 

A beautiful donkey

Some friends of mine sent me this photo of a mammoth donkey that belongs to some friends of theirs (was that convoluted enough for you?).  She is so beautiful, I thought everybody should get a chance to "meet" her.  And no, she is NOT for sale (dang it). 

A whole new meaning to "barn-sour"

Emma is only 16 months old and had never even worn  halter before coming here so I hadn't been expecting much when I first started working with her.  However, I have been continually amazed at how fast she learns and she absolutely loves doing it.  I had heard from several sources that I need to let her mature before doing too much with her.  Honestly though, I keep having to come up with new things for her to do so she doesn't get bored and go looking for trouble.  I do try to keep all our training sessions fun, interesting and include lots of carrot slices so really,  she thinks they are great games rather than work.  She looks forward to our "games" every day and will start making up her own if I don't get moving fast enough.   *Note:  Be very, very careful about letting your donkey make up her own games:)

Yesterday, I brought Emma out onto the lawn intending to work on her leading skills and play around with some obstacles.  Since we were going out by ourselves and leaving Tessa in the barn, I figured we'd be lucky to get to the end of the driveway, which is about 500 feet from the barn.  When we got there though, it was very clear that Emma was enjoying herself and wanted to keep going.  The only time she balked at all was when I tried to turn her back to the barn.  So, we just kept going.  We went all around the neighbors place, down the road and through the woods around the back of the house.....She wanted to explore everything.

Emma has completely redefined the term "barn-sour".   We went out again this afternoon and wound up stopping at several of the neighbors houses where she got to meet lots of new people (and got to eat even more carrots).  We were out for about an hour and a half and walked nearly two miles and I still had to pull hard to get her back to the barn.  I am thrilled that Emma likes going out like this.  The exercise is good for both her body and mind.  The only problem I can see, is that Tanner and Emma don't want any part of going out together.  Since I already take Tanner hiking every day, this could get to be a bit much.  I think the search is officially on to find another riding animal.  One that Emma could follow along behind.  I have a few ideas and some options and perhaps, maybe.....there is a really big, mammoth saddle donkey out there that could use a good home?????