Both Sides

 Equines have an unusual quirk in their brain structures.  The parts of the their brains that process the visual images received by by their eyes are not fully connected.  That's why a trail horse will often spook at the same object twice; once on the way out and then again, on the way back.  The best way to deal with this is to make sure both eyes look at the spooky object.  With a little imagination, you can guess why this might actually work to their advantage.  For an animal that needs to be alert for predators, dismissing an object easily would work against them in the wild.

This also means that we need to work with equines equally on each side during training.  Sometimes, we skip this step, or hurry, and that results in unevenness.  I'm already thinking about this with Jeremiah.  I first pet him on his left (near) side.  He seems to prefer that I approach him on that side.  I doubt there is any trouble with his vision.  I think this is just a quirk or natural unevenness he developed.  When the animals are moved around in holding pens, it is likely that the handlers are right handed and move them from right to left (facing their left sides).  That could be the simple explanation.  So, I have been trying to even up the offside with the near side by focusing on spending as much time petting both sides of him.  We have made great progress last night and this morning.  I can touch his shoulders, neck all the way to his ears, cheeks, upper legs, back, and sides.  He takes pieces of carrot very carefully from my hand now.  This morning, while I was standing next to him, he turned his head towards me several times.  Best of all, he seemed to be waiting for me for both his breakfast and when I returned later for training.  

Carrots and Scratches

 9/7/2020

The smothering blanket of high humidity lifted a little as winds from the Northeast passed in overnight.  Everyone felt better this morning.  

Jay (JJ, Jeremiah) is becoming more accustomed to the routine.  He watched as I fed the barn horses and then brought him his flake of hay (plus, a few oats and minerals in a bucket).  He enjoys the minerals, but isn't showing any interest in the handful of oats.  

Next, I cleaned the stalls.  I do this twice per day because it keeps the bugs down.  He has been alert when I climb over the corral panels to scoop his pen, but this morning, he grazed.  He knows that isn't training time.  I left him to eat his breakfast in peace for an hour or so.   

When I returned, I had a few, small carrots.  He took them from my outstretched hand cautiously and I backed off while he enjoyed his first treat.  I left the third one on his hay.  

Next, I approached him for scratches.  He was easier to approach and seemed to enjoy it for the first time.  He reached down and grazed a bit while I scratched his back.  He likes the area around and below his ears scratched.  I left after a good scratching session.  It was good to see him happier today.  

Ready for the Rain

 Jeremiah watched a bit forlornly this morning as the horses and pony he barely knew were led out of the barn to the pasture.  He could catch glimpses of them in the pasture around the buildings, but their absence seemed to worry him.  He has not even touched noses with the horses, (his HMA has only burros; no wild horses).  However, he has no doubt become familiar with them in his years at the holding facilities.  

He has not brayed, which is not unusual.  A wild burro has every reason to hold his tongue when he is unsure of his surroundings.  The day his bray echoes through our farm will be a good day.  We hope to add another burro to our farm eventually.  That will be better for both.  

After an extensive scratching session, he trusted me to touch his head enough to remove the halter.  He looked at me brightly when it was gone.  Almost a thank you.  

Finding a treat he enjoys will help with training.  I dropped a bit of carrot on his hay this morning,  He ate it.   

This afternoon, I used a sheep hoof trimmer to neatly cut his BLM cord off of his neck.  He has worn that ever since he was processed into the holding facility, so it will be quite a change.  They are useful in quickly identifying animals in holding, but he has a family and a name now, so he doesn't need it. I hope he sleeps well tonight.

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First Touch 9/5/2020

 It hasn't been 24 hours yet since JJ came home, but he is doing very well.  I gently moved him around with just the minimum pressure (me walking towards his hind end) and used the words Walk and Whoa until he knew what I was asking.  It's too hot to do much and donkeys hate to be drilled.  When he was stopped, I practiced moving towards him and retreating towards his shoulder until he could tolerate me almost touching him.  I kept it up without touching him until he didn't flinch his shoulder as if a fly were about to land.  Then, I reached out and touched before retreating.  I did that several times until he tolerated longer scratches along his withers.  I repeated the lesson in the evening, but added touching his other shoulder.  He is not ready for anything else, yet.  At this point, we will rest here.  I will continue the lessons and try to build trust at this level.  I don't want to lead him or push him in any way until he is not just tolerating, but receptive.  

Rain is coming tomorrow.  His nylon halter will be a heavy, wet burden likely to rub his head.  HIs nylon neck cord will also rub him in the heavy rains.  My simple goal tomorrow will be to remove them.  He is not ready for leading, yet, and if I can touch him, I can train him.

Jeremiah Was Not Just a Bullfrog

 The name of a place can be descriptive of the terrain, animals, or plants to be found there.  When one mentions the Nevada desert a lot of animals come to mind, but I will admit that a bullfrog is not high on the list.  Nevertheless, there is a place known as the Bullfrog Herd Management Area and that is where our burro's story began.  He was born in 2014 and rounded up in 2018 in the Bullfrog HMA.  Upon arriving, he was vaccinated, dewormed and gelded, none of which was likely to endear him to humankind. Since then, he's been in BLM holding pens, which I suppose is like a form of wild burro purgatory.  Sometimes humans moved him with flag sticks from one pen to another, but, just as in the wild, the other burros he was with were his temporary family.  

His journey east, with all the other burros and Mustangs being adopted for this event, was delayed several times.  The pandemic made it difficult and hurricanes made it treacherous, but he arrived, safe and sound.  

My first glimpse of him was when the TIP Challenge organizers (and their equine savvy kids) moved him through the lanes and into a chute where I had my trailer backed up.  He was a furtive grey creature dwarfed by the sheer size of the specially made chute.  They used twine to lower a halter into place and strap it on his head.  Then, I watched as they opened the chute for a path to the trailer.  He was unimpressed.  As many times as he has been loaded and unloaded on his journey east, I could understand.  He turned back a few times but flag sticks directed him toward the inevitable.  His lips were clamped tight and his body tense as he finally decided to step into the trailer.  

I had one pit stop at a gas station on the two hour drive.  He mashed himself against the front wall of the trailer, as if trying to blend in, while I quickly ran inside the convenience store.  At our farm, I set up the portable corral panels that directed him into a large pen with food, water, and a shade tree.  

We named him Jeremiah, (the aforementioned Bullfrog HMA) and because we hope he will be a friend of ours.  His nickname is Jay.  He got to work mowing the grass in his pen and learning the sights,sounds, and smells of his new home.  

One short session with him to find out how close he would allow me to get to him.  We worked up to five feet and called it a day.  He has a lot to take in.  

Training the Burro

 We love donkeys.  We've had several over the years, beginning with the irreplaceable, beloved Donkeyotee.  When he passed away, the farm was incomplete.  Xavier was next.  He came from a horsetrader via an auction.  He was a very good boy, but he bonded closely with Gus the feral pony, so he left with his best friend.  Rosie was our only jenny.  She was sweet but only pasture sound.  Our farm could not provide her with 24 hour turnout like she needed, So she became a companion to an older horse.  For five months, we have been without a riveting bray to greet us at mealtimes.  No bright brown eyes peering hopefully for attention.  Nobody to stand in the way of the poop piles while we are cleaning, or knock over the wheelbarrow.  

All the donkeys we've had were trained and loved.  They were good for the vet and farrier.  They went for hikes with us and played the role of Christmas donkey for the school Nativity.  The big ones could be ridden and the smaller ones could carry packs.  It's been a joy to have donkeys around.  

This time, we decided to try to adopt a BLM burro.  These descendants of the miner's best friend live in remote parts of Nevada and Arizona.  They live in a world of rattlesnakes, mountain lions, javelinas and scorpions.  They dig water holes with their hooves that wild animals actually depend on.  Unfortunately, the rangeland (our public land) which supports them is in demand by oil, natural gas, mining operations and others looking to exploit the natural resources.  Even ranchers are given leases to run their cattle in the fragile desert.  The desert can only support so many wild animals on the remaining land, so the burros (and wild horses) are periodically rounded up and auctioned off.  Many don't find homes and spend their days untamed but locked up in holding pens.  The BLM offers them up for adoption, either live or online, several times per year.  Those that are passed over too many times are sold for pittance to dealers, who then sell to slaughter (the middleman is necessary because the government is forbidden to sell directly to slaughterhouses).  Many organizations try to help facilitate finding homes for the passed over animals to prevent a sad end.  One is the Mustang Heritage Foundation.  They sponsor Mustang Extreme Makeovers and TIP Challenges.  These are opportunities for people to adopt and train a wild Mustang or burro and then present the animal in a special show 90 days later.  The idea is to show how easy these animals can be gentled and learn to trust people.  They are clean slates.  Scared, but not scarred.  Their bloodlines are not traceable by human records, but nature makes them hardy and tough.  All equines have a sociable nature and that is what makes them bond closely with people.  This is easy to see when you look at the amazing things people have taught Mustangs and burros in a short time.  In the TIP Challenge, yearlings Mustangs and burros learn how to lead, pick up their feet, load in trailers, walk through obstacle courses, and some even learn how to do tricks.  For the adult Mustangs, they are shown under saddle in everything from jumping and dressage to reining and cow work.  

So, it was natural for me to wonder how well I would do with a burro in 90 days.  All of our donkeys have had zero, or very little, training.  I have taught them all of these things (and more).  Could I answer this challenge?  Could I teach a wild burro, like I've taught our domestic donkeys?  

Many who take on this challenge are professional trainers.  They train and then sell the burros to a good home. I'm not a professional trainer and this burro will be our new friend (so, if I mess up, we have to live with him!).  We want a desert friend to go hiking and camping with.  To give treats to and scratch their backs.  To enjoy the unique personality of a long eared buddy.  

We picked him up on Friday, September 4th, two hours from our farm.  We are at the apex of Florida summer.  The height of the crushing steamy heat..  Not exactly what a desert creature expects.  It limits training times to mornings and evenings, but a lot can be done when you spend time with an animal.  

I hope to keep you updated as to the progress (or lack thereof).  Feel free to laugh at my mistakes or enjoy the little breakthroughs.  

It will be a patient and thoughtful journey.  Donkeys are not horses.  They can move fast, but prefer to conserve their energy and think about things.  The flashy round pen training techniques don't work on donkeys because they push too hard and too fast.  If you push a donkey, they just shut down.  On this journey, we will be on donkey time.  It's a nice way to travel any road.  

Fiona and the Cow Bra

First of all, no cow should need clothing of any sort.  You should breed for good udders in the first place.  Well, I have been trying to do well, in that respect.  We did well with the first bull we took our cows to.  He was very nice and his dam had an excellent udder.  However, that second batch of calves came from the first ' herd sire' we brought home.  I made a classic mistake.  I bought the bull based on his build, but I failed to check his dam's udder.  That bull gave us Fiona.  She bonded with our son at the fair.  She was four months old and he was two years old.  She was tied up next to the trunk where he sat.  They told each other secrets and he fed her treats.  She licked his head in gratitude (we told him that's why he has a crazy cowlick!).  He gave her hugs and she became his pet cow.

As she grew up, she was still the darling of the cow herd.  After she had her first calf (a bull, soon to be steer), I would tilt my head and squint my eyes and tell myself that her udder wasn't THAT bad.  Many more bull calves followed.  She was a great beef producer for us, but her udder deteriorated.  Soon, she had two funnels in the front.  Meanwhile, she began public appearances at church and school.  She had a yearly gig as a Nativity cow.  The kids gathered around her, the donkey, and our sheep.  They were dressed in various roles to tell the story of the Nativity to the littlest kids at the school.  They gave Fiona hugs and told her their big kid secrets.

I was very worried about Fiona's udder when she had her last calf.  He seemed to favor 2 out of 4 quarters (the back two).  We treated her for mastitis in the front two quarters, just in case.  He should have been her last calf.  We worked hard at separating her from the bull.  However, in the chaos of moving to a new farm, she got into the pasture with him, and, of course, it was the right time.  Luckily, he is a good bull with excellent maternal traits.

Before this calf was born, Fiona's front two quarters were so stretched and swollen that she managed to step on herself, causing injury.  We cleaned her up and wrapped it with paper tape to keep it clean, but she needed support of some kind.

Meanwhile, Fiona gave us a perfect little heifer.  A long awaited little dun for Fiona's last calf.  This time, however, Fiona only produced a little milk in the two rear quarters.  So little, that we were worried about the calf.  I started bottle feeding.  The baby took a little time to figure it out, but she was definitely hungry!  Today, Ursa is five days old and she gets bottle fed three times per day.  She nurses from Fiona for comfort.  We tie Fiona when we bottle feed, for safety.

We reduced our herd, sold the bull, and now the only calves will be via AI, so Fiona is retired from being a mama cow.  She is ten years old.

There was still the issue of giving Fiona the support she needs   A cow bra, if you will.  So, I ordered 'big man' suspenders and experimented with various undergarments until I found boys boxer briefs that fit her (our son did not like them).  We rigged up the ensemble and it seems to be working.  If it keeps her comfy and keeps her from injuring herself, then it is worth it, even if it looks funny from the road.  Luckily, we live on a dirt road that isn't a main thoroughfare.  After all, our son is still mortified that we are technically using his underpants!

Fiona and her homemade bra.  And one of baby Ursa with her bottle.

Great news!  We have been cutting back our herd and the money from the sale of several cows (all to good homes) will go towards a partial mastectomy for Fiona.  Once her calf is six months old, she can be weaned and Fiona can get her surgery.  No more stepping on herself.  

UPDATE: 6/18/19

Ursa the calf is doing well. She is eating grain and nursing from both rear teats.  She looked good, so we stopped the bottle supplementation about a weeks ago.  Fiona is tolerating her bra and allows me to change out the underwear.  It isn't bothering her and she is healing up.  Unconventional, but effective.