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The Things We Make
Homemade Soap
Lotion Bars
Hand-painted Pottery
Alpaca & Llama
Dogs, Dogs, Dogs
Donkeys, Mules & Horses
Ribbon Displays
Aprons
Meet the Artisans
Artisans' Calendar
Our Favorite Links
Our Favorite Recipes
About the Farm
Our Little Long Ears
Things to Do Nearby
SE Ohio Calendar of Events
Farmers Markets
Southeast Ohio Wineries
Customer Testimonials
Site Map
FAQs & Order Info
How to Contact Us
The Adventures of Orin
the Traveling Moose
  
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Our
Little Long Ears
Meet our four little, loveable long ears - Rocket Man,
his mother Mullie and Nettie are miniature Mediterranean donkeys (also known as
Sicilian donkeys). Sage is a miniature Baudet du Poitou.
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 Rocket Man
is, as usual, in the middle front. That is his mother, Mullie, is walking
in behind him. Rocket Man is loveable and affectionate. He
likes to play with milk jugs and walk around with a bucket on his head.
His next favorite activity is hitting the others with their Jolly-Ball
toy. He is the youngest and - like most 'teenagers' - can be quite
annoying when the others just want to enjoy a little peace and quiet
under the trees.
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Nettie
is afraid of the camera so we do not have a
good picture of her. She starts walking away if she sees
someone approaching with a camera. Yes, that's her little
bullet-butt at the left in the picture above . She has the most
beautiful brown eyes and the kindest face any donkey ever had, although
you maybe never see it in a picture. She is willing and generous
and wants nothing more than to be loved. Well, maybe a lot of hay
and grass.
What's
the difference between a burro and a donkey? Nothing. Burro
is the Spanish word for donkey. Although, some
people call the wild ass a burro and a domesticated ass a donkey.
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 Mullie
Mullie
(black halter) is loyal and intelligent.
When she first arrived on our farm, she wouldn't allow anyone to touch
her. She had been neglected before coming here and we suspect
she might even have been abused. It took months of quiet encouragement but she
came out of her shell, and how! Now she can't get enough of being
brushed and scratched. She study you before deciding if you are friend-worthy; if she decides you're
ok, she's your friend for life.
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Why are they so fuzzy? In the wintertime, donkeys get a heavy
coat. Their foreheads and faces get bushy to the point their
eyes are almost covered. This picture (above left) was taken in the late
Spring
when they still had about half of their winter coats. By
mid-summer they will be sleek and shiny and look as if they had lost
about 50 pounds. As they are shedding out they look rather
pathetic. Many people shave their donkeys to avoid that 'ugly'
stage; we don't, rather we groom them because they enjoy the attention
and it is our 'quality time'. Some of our visitors who
have seen the donkeys in winter did not know they were the same animals
when they came back in the summertime.
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WARNING: This road isn't passable, not even jackassable. --- Jesse Douglas
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Sage
Sage
is a miniature Baudet du Poitou donkey.
Many people do not realize that, just like horses, there are different
breeds of donkeys. In
the wintertime she gets a long, curly coat of very soft hair. It
is a rich coconut color. If left ungroomed ,she will eventually
look as if she has dreadlocks!
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Sage is confident and kind. She loves to play
'follow-me-if-you-can', leading the others in an all-out run from
pasture to pasture and getting as close to things as she can without
running into them. Her next favorite game is playing 'chicken';
she runs straight toward you at full speed veering off to one side or
the other at the last possible second. It can be scary so don't
play if you're chicken! She is our resident pick pocket.
Although they are incredibly strong, Poitou donkeys were never used
as a work animal; they were almost exclusively used for breeding
mules. The Poitou jack was bred to a Trait Mulassier mare.
The
Trait Mulassier is also a critically endangered species, as of April
2010 there were only three in the USA! The French have taken the
lead in careful management and rebreeding efforts and both are
beginning to recover from near extinction.
The
American Livestock Breeds Conservancy is a non-profit
membership organization working to protect over 180 breeds of
livestock and poultry from extinction. Founded in 1977,
the ALBC works to conserve historic breeds and genetic diversity
in livestock. As of October 2011, their
list shows the Poitou as "critical" and the Miniature Donkey as
"recovering".
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Rocket Man Gets a Hoof Check
The farrier, Mike Blackburn,
checks for any potential hoof problems
like white line or
abscesses.
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Rocket Man Gets a Trim
Rocket enjoys having the farrier work on
his feet. However, he does not have the same
fondness for the equine dentist!
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A female donkey is called a
jenny.
A male donkey is called a jack.
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Joanna & Rocket Man
12/27/2009 - Joanna and her mother recently spent the weekend with us.
The donkeys enjoyed their visit! They have stayed here
before and Rocket Man never forgets a friend.
A
mule is the cross out of a horse dam (mother) and a donkey sire
(father). Mules are almost always sterile.
Donkey Group Hug
12/27/2009 - Brittany is enjoying a donkey group hug. She is one of the donkeys'
(and our) favorite visitors.
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Rocket Man Strikes a Pose
12/27/2009 - Rocket Man loves the camera and, it's obvious, the camera loves him!
When you come for a visit, he will be happy to pose with you.
A donkey's life expectancy is 30-35 years. They mature at about 4
years of age, later than horses.
Rocket Man, What a Cutie!
12/27/2009 - He certainly has 'cute' down to an art. Rocket Man was born May
10, 2001; Mullie is his mother. He is a gelding. He is gentle and very
affectionate.
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Donkeys and mules are smart, sensitive and affectionate.
They are sure-footed and extremely strong for their size.
They have long been stereotyped as stubborn and difficult to
control. The key to working with these bright and
inquisitive animals is to understand them and how they
differ in many ways from horses.
Are donkeys stubborn? No! Donkeys are cautious
to the extreme; they will not put themselves in a dangerous
position. So, they think things over before acting. |
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Donkey Delights
Treats are expensive! These are
quick and easy to make and no 'mystery ingredients'.
1½ c grated carrots
1½ c grated apples
½ c molasses
10 oz rolled oats
4 oz Wheaties or similar
cereal
Preheat oven to 325
degrees. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Drop
by large spoonfuls onto a lightly-greased cookie sheet
and gently flatten each cookie with the back of the
spoon. Bake for about one hours until cookies are
crispy.
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Normally, donkeys are very 'easy-keepers', requiring only water, grass hay and
grass (no alfalfa, clover or sweet feed because those things are too rich for
donkeys; it makes them fat which causes health issues), a farrier's visit only
three or four times a year for trimming the hooves, and an annual floating
(leveling the teeth and removing any sharp points). During a normal year
-not counting Mullie and Nettie's special issues- the care for all four donkeys
is less than what we spend on dog food for two Rottweilers!
Our donkeys were rescued from a less-than-ideal situation. A woman had
acquired these four wonderful creatures; we do not know when, where, how or why.
The woman and her husband divorced and she left the farm, leaving the donkeys behind.
They were in an old one-car garage standing knee-deep in
their own manure. They were not being fed on a regular basis. Nettie
has some minor health issues including a tendency to founder (laminitis) and
Mullie has some health issues and dental problems. The vet bill for equine
dentistry in December 2011 was $ 715.00 and Mullie will need a few follow-up
visits!
If you would like to make a modest donation to help pay for their care it will be
greatly appreciated. 100% of donations received will go to pay their vet
bills, equine dentistry services (floating the teeth), farrier services
(trimming hooves and checking for abscesses, white line and other hoof ailments)
and feed (hay) - only for items directly related to their care.
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Amber loves to tease the donkeys!
Searching for a mouse in the woodpile.
She tore up that huge log trying to get a mouse.
We didn't have the heart to tell her we saw it run out
the other end and was long gone!
Still alert, Amber doesn't hold still long!
Amber (front) with Rupert, her buddy.
Rupert
(left) has slowed down in his old age.
Amber is always a
whirlwind of activity.
This was a rare moment when both
were
taking a rest in the shade.
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Check out the
Things to Do
Nearby
for a list of Southeast Ohio's
Wineries, Farmers Markets
County Fairs, Golf Courses, Historical Sites, Parks
Food & Dining, so much more...
Southeast Ohio
Calendar of Events
for a list of dated events
Festivals, Concerts, Theatre, Exhibits
Horse Shows, Sales, Auctions
Lectures, Art Walks, Gallery Hops, more...
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Rupert Finds a Deer-Meat Snack
We often
find along the property deer carcases that poachers have killed just
for the head and antlers. The bodies are left behind and
sometimes thrown into the creek.
Usually,
coyotes or other dogs finish off the meat within 24 hours.
It was a frigid February day so the carcass was frozen, solid.
He worked and worked to get some of the meat off the bones.
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Deer Grazing - photo by Don Marsh
At the End of the
Day
I decide to water my garden.
As I turn on the hose in the driveway, I look over at my car
and decide it needs washing. As I head towards the garage, I
notice mail on the porch table that I picked up from the post man
earlier. I decide to go through the mail before I wash the car.
I lay my car keys on the table, put the junk mail in the recycling box
under the table, and notice that the recycling box is full. So, I
decide to put the bills back on the table and take out the recycling
first. But then I think, since I'm going to be near the post-box
when I take out the recycling paper anyway, I may as well pay the bills
first.
I take my cheque book off the table, and notice there is only one cheque
left. My extra cheques are in my desk in the study. So, I go
inside the house to my desk where I find the cup of coffee I'd been
drinking. I'm going to look for my cheques, but first I need to
push the coffee aside so that I don't accidentally knock it over.
The coffee is getting cold and I decide to make another cup.
As I head toward the kitchen with the cold coffee, a vase of flowers on
the worktop catches my eye - the flowers need water. I put the
coffee on the worktop and discover my reading glasses that I've been
searching for all morning. I decide I better put them back on my
desk, but first I'm going to water the flowers.
I put the glasses back down on the worktop, fill a container with water
and suddenly spot the TV remote control. Someone left it on the kitchen
table. I realize that tonight when we go to watch TV, I'll be
looking for the remote, but I won't remember that it's on the kitchen
table, so I decide to put it back where it belongs, but first I'll water
the flowers.
I pour some water in the flowers but quite a bit of it spills on the
floor. So, I put the remote back on the table, get some towels and
wipe up the spill. Then, I head down the hall trying to remember
what I was planning to do.
At the end of the day...
The car isn't washed.
The bills aren't paid.
There is a cold cup of coffee on the counter.
The flowers don't have enough water.
There is still only one cheque in my cheque book.
I can't find the remote.
I can't find my glasses.
And, I don't remember what I did with the car keys.
When I try to figure out why nothing got done today, I'm really baffled.
I know I was busy all day and I'm really tired. This is a serious
problem and I'll try to get some help, but first I'll check my
e-mail....
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