Finding Diamond

After the devastation of losing Daisy our guard donkey, Blue the horse became sorrowful and depressed. Even though she had been there for Daisy’s passing, for several days she would head out to their winter paddock looking for her friend. Then she didn’t want to leave the barn at all, where at least there were sheep for neighbors. Being outside meant being entirely alone, which Blue didn’t want to face.

Kara’s donkey-loving friends were all very concerned about Blue and how being alone could adversely affect the horse’s mental and physical health. We didn’t need yet another tragedy on top of the last one! Kara set about scouring the internet for a new friend for Blue that would fit well with the farm.

While there was potential for another guard donkey from Colorado through the channels that had brought us Daisy, continuing cold weather and potential delivery times would hold back that option for a few months—too long for Blue to wait for a new friend.

The Northwoods of Wisconsin is not a hot spot for full-sized donkeys, and we wanted to be careful not to bring a new bucket of problems onto the farm while trying to fix one. Blue is a paint and she’s a bit on the bossy side, so a tiny donkey or a social pushover would not be good pairings with a mare with opinions.

As Kara and her friends network searched for options, she joined groups online for donkeys and even mules in Wisconsin. Many of these groups ask you to submit in order to join, and then you must wait to be accepted. Kara woke up one morning and found she’d been accepted to the mule group, and instantly a new listing had been posted about a mule outside the town of Luck.

She was a beautiful dark chocolate with blue brindle coat, about the same age as Blue, with riding and pack experience and a sweet personality. Kara arrived at the family breakfast excited at the prospect, knowing such a lovely animal would be snatched up quickly. She and Mom headed out the same afternoon to meet this mule (a cross between a horse and a donkey) and her owners.

Sometimes folks hit rough patches in life and need to let their animals go. These folks wanted to be sure that their mule named Diamond, who they loved dearly, would be getting a good home. They’d recently sold their cows and were working on rehoming a larger male mule and a tiny baby donkey as well. Mom assured them that any animals coming to our farm were essentially going to a spa.

They had her saddled up and ready for inspection. As soon as she saw Kara, she wanted to come over for cuddles and look for treats. It can truly be amazing how animals just know who their human is and why they’re there, even if they’ve never met before. Daimond was easy to lead, happy to let you look at her feet, and in good health. Looks like it was time to have yet another species on our homestead farm—mule.

Kara returned with the stock trailer the next day to pick up Diamond, who recognized her right away and easily loaded into the trailer. She stopped several times to check on her mid-trip, and the mule was riding like a champion. It was growing dark when they pulled the stock trailer up to the red barn where Blue lives.

Immediately, Blue was right up at the gate making a fuss. An equine, an equine is here! She tossed her head and whinnied, pacing back and forth. Kara led Diamond out of the trailer, and the mule was curious to come meet the horse. They sniffed noses and Blue made a great show of herself. Instead of placing Diamond in the same pen, she’d cordoned off a space at the back of the barn so Diamond could get to know Blue through the gate safely. This meant leading the mule around the side of the barn to the back door, and Blue became frantic when she could no longer see her new friend.

“Where did you go? Where are you taking her?”

In classic mare equine style, working out the social hierarchy takes a few days. Blue worked to exert her dominance, but much to her surprise, Diamond was not tolerating it, spinning around with a “talk to the butt!” pose and kicking her heels to state that this was unacceptable behavior. Blue is not used to donkey types that don’t take her sass, so it’s been a good lesson to the horse as well!

As things settle out, we are still considering whether we’ll need to invest in a donkey before summertime to help guard the sheep, but for the moment we are grateful to have found Diamond as a meaningful companion to Blue who is also ridable. Here’s to turning the corner from tragedy to comeback. See you down on the farm sometime.