A Little Rule

JJ enjoys his carrots and likes to be scratched, but he was also beginning to express his desire to not be haltered by turning his hindquarters towards me when I approach.  It was a subtle threat.  No kicking at all (I don't push him).  However, this is rude.  The best way to correct this is to encourage him to move his hindquarters away when he does this.  The lead rope didn't work, so I used a short whip with a 6 inch tail to flick towards his hindquarters.  No contact was necessary as these burros are moved around with a similar length stick (with plastic on the end) at the BLM facility.  I moved his hind end away using the whip twice.  The third time I approached, he did not move.  

We worked on picking up the front feet today.  He wants to step backwards when I reach for his hoof.  I tried holding the lead rope behind my back and forward while I picked up his hoof with some success, but I think this lesson is harder to teach him while holding the lead rope.  Today, I will tie his lead rope to a post in the aisle.  I suspect he will understand how to stand tied pretty quickly.  He has had a version of this already.  Sometimes, donkeys will hold their position stretched out with the halter taut.  I use a treat to ask them to step forward and find relief.  There is usually not nearly the amount of drama that there is for horses.  We shall see. 

Marty's training will focus entirely on catching and tying to the tree in his pen.  I can smell his hooves, so I need to prioritize standing tied and picking feet as the main training goals.  Our son has been doing well with approaching and petting.  He took his halter off yesterday because we were worried it would rub his head.  I will make a chute out of panels, if necessary, to halter him.  

Marty was more determined to turn his hindquarters towards our son every time he approached him.  I did the same lesson with him as with JJ, using the short whip to ask him to move his hindquarters away when we approach.  It took several more times, but he understood and allowed our son to approach him many times.  His reward was the removal of his halter (although that may not be understood as such).  

Our burros are over most of their fear and now they are asking their own questions.  This is when they are testing their methods of communication to express their wishes.  This is an important stage because we need to give them the right answers, without frightening them, and show them the rewards of cooperating with us.  The bonding process is at the somewhat friendly level at this stage, but we need to prove that interaction is better than being left alone.