Driving Miss Daisy

Sheep are wonderful creatures—fluffy, docile, mowers of pastures. Grassfed lamb is incredibly delicious, wool yarns so versatile and warm, and nothing says cuteness quite like little lambs frolicking about in the green grass. But sheep have one major drawback: they are vulnerable to predators.
Lacking any form of self-defense outside of bunching up or running in terror, sheep are an ideal lunch option for a host of predators living in the woods. Because our farm is within the boundaries of the Chequeamegon National Forest, those predators have easy access onto the property.
Keeping our sheep safe from the predators has been an ongoing process on the farm, including major projects like installing high tensile, five-strand electric fencing, maintaining an open (mowed) perimeter between woods and fenced pasture, installing flashing Nite Guard lights, and maintaining a guard donkey.
Yes, you read that right, a guard donkey. This small-horse-sized, long-eared equine is a critical pasture companion for our sheep. With their sonar detection ears, donkeys are alert to dangers sheep wouldn’t even notice, sound the alarm, and protect their flock with keen teeth for biting and throwing and strong hooves for kicking and stomping. Wild donkeys have a long, adversarial relationship with wild canids, and the best guard donkeys come from wild stock.
Our first guard donkey, Belle, is the daughter of wild rescue burros. Through acclimation on our farm, she grew to see the curious sheep as her children, braying when each lamb was born (even if she was living in another building) and remaining alert to their whereabouts and moods. Following the sheep out to pasture each day, Belle was not willing to come inside at evening-time until all the sheep were in the safety of the barn. She somehow knew it was her job to keep everyone protected.
Within a short time of adding Belle to the farm, the local wolf packs changed their paths of travel from going straight through the barnyard to bubbling around it at a good distance. Even without a fight, the wolves instinctively knew that life would be much easier for them if they avoided this strong, fierce animal. And they also knew that Belle was watching them and sounding her call if she saw or smelled any approaches.
But Belle is now up into her 30’s, which is quite geriatric for a donkey. While she is in good spirits, her vim and vigor is waning. We had tried adopting a different donkey a few years ago (Lexy), but she did not have the wildness traits of Belle, nor had she any interest in sheep. Lexy is now on a horse farm and very happy, but it meant we would have to try again for a new guardian of the flock.
While on our trip to Colorado two Januaries ago, Kara and I visited a lady just outside Castle Rock who works with the wild burro rescue program to “gentle” donkeys for guardian purposes. Donkeys can work with horses, cattle, alpacas, and more. While male donkeys can be used to clear an area of predators (say before calving), female donkeys are the ones with potential to develop the motherly bond Belle has shown for our sheep.
Twice, it seemed that the handler had a good match for the farm, but twice the donkey refused to be gentled enough to be handled by people in a way that would be necessary on our farm—like being led in and out of pasture, have her feet touched, take a halter on and off without fuss. Then, finally, the third round proved to be the charm, and soon Kara was eagerly sharing videos of “Daisy” and her training progress.
“Daisy let Nicki touch her today!” came an announcement from the kitchen. “And she LOVES carrots!”
Gray with the classic dark cross on her back, just like Belle, Daisy proved to be innately curious and more accepting of human interactions than her trailer-load companions. Soon she was going for walks with her trainer with a lead rope, then working up her confidence going in and out of trailers.
And then the challenge began—how to get Daisy home to the farm. Our old farm truck was really in no shape to make the voyage to Colorado (I’ve written a whole other story on that poor beast already), though our trailer is more than adequate. Nicki was busy and couldn’t swing the whole round trip. So we would have to hire a driver, but how to find a good one? This donkey was precious cargo!
There began the convoluted journey Kara named “Driving Miss Daisy”—vetting haulers for days and days, calling for quotes and doing quality (and legality) fact checks. There’s a lot of things that could go terribly wrong when hauling animals, and while we would have felt most confident taking her ourselves, the time and the truck issue were against us.
And then, at last, a reputable find. Daisy had her own box stall (next to an expensive race horse), her own stash of food from her Colorado home, and a one-way ticket to Wisconsin. “Nicki’s picked out her traveling clothes,” Kara announced one morning. “A new halter and lead rope, so she’s all ready to go.”
The day of Daisy’s arrival on the farm, Kara was making soup and, of course, keeping all the (generous) carrot ends as treats for the new donkey. After a skillful backing up of the palatial trailer down our snow-packed roads, it was time for Daisy to step out onto our farm. But, in true donkey fashion, she put on her concrete feet and didn’t want to move. Out came the carrots, some gentle time to get used to the new people, new sounds, and new smells, but still she wasn’t ready to proceed any further than the bottom of the ramp.
Ah, but Nicki had given Kara some advice. She went and got Belle. As soon as Daisy could see another donkey, she was quite ready to start moving again. Belle, knowing the fragility of her age, wasn’t nearly as excited to see Daisy! We’re keeping them separate for now, while Daisy acclimates to her new home.
I met the new donkey later that evening while doing chores. She was in the south wing of our 1919 barn, watching from the other side of her gate, nose and ears working overtime. Eight years old, Daisy is in her prime and healthy. She’s been settling in quite well, watching the ewes from her back window with interest. I’m sure that she’s hoping Kara will be coming over with more carrot pieces soon.
Welcome to the farm Daisy! I’m sure you’ll be watching for those wolves down on the farm sometime.