Cody's Recovery & Birthday Wish

A bit more swollen and painful, Cody was a little reluctant to trot this morning when Marissa took him out.  Nicole took over when Marissa had to leave for an appointment and by that time Cody was full on shivering! At that point Nicole comforted him and we decided to put him back in the stall and give him some pain meds.  It was then remembered that there was a foal blanket in the feed room so that was pulled out and put on him.  He didn't mind it too much and was much more comfortable later.  I turned him out into the roundpen later that morning and he had a good snooze in the sunshine and was very fascinated with the dogs a couple of houses down; he spent a good amount of time just staring at them. 

He was quite vocal today, breaking out with some fits of braying, and I like to think he was wishing Nicole a happy birthday and thanking her for helping him!  Speaking of birthdays, I guess I need to pick some dates for them, since I have no idea when they were all born.  I have an idea of how old they are so I'll have to figure it out from there.  A lot of the horse industry goes by a January 1st birthday but I like each of them to have their own day! 

Nicole & Cody

Later that day Cody was put out in one of the outside paddocks in hopes he will move around more and be more comfortable.  He was quite enjoying the bits of grass growing in amongst the weird green weeds (still don't know what they are but at least they don't hurt the horses/donkeys!).  He looked so little compared to the big old trees...

The girls continue to be cute but are becoming a bit messy as I found hay strewn about tonight.  The dumpster was delivered so I now have a place to put manure again.  Someday I hope to build a compost bin so I can use their composted manure to fertilize the pastures.  Just another thing to add to my list!
 

Vida



Hay in the Caddy and the Poo Fairy

The morning started off with putting a bale of hay in my Grandpa's Cadillac wagon (don't worry, it was on a tarp!)  Due to my current condition my friend Nicole was again kind enough to come by and put it in the car so I could take it to Cody at work.  He was feeling much better this morning - his incisions look good with a bit of swelling and he was much brighter.  He was also much friendlier and seemed to enjoy some company when we went in to check on him, feed him, and give him his medicine (which he took like a champ!). 

We had a couple of horses come to the clinic today for routine appointments and he quickly let them know he was there by calling out to them.  One horse handled it like a champ while the other was pretty spooky.  Cody got to come out of the stall this afternoon when my coworker Marissa put him in the round pen for his daily, required exercise.  I didn't have a chance to take a picture as I was in a meeting but I peeked out and it was priceless!  She later informed me that he knows how to lunge (go around in a circle at a steady gait); it makes me wonder what kind of life he had before he came to me...  I'll keep you posted on how he does.  I expect to bring him home on Friday so we will see if he has calmed down at all around the ladies or if he needs to be banished to a different spot on the farm for a while. 

Marissa followed me home this afternoon to help me out by cleaning the paddocks - I probably could have picked them myself but there was no way I would have been able to move the cans of poo with a bum leg.  Frida and Vida were quite interested in visiting with her as well as watching as she picked up their piles.  They weren't totally sure what to make of it....  While Marissa was picking the paddocks I noticed that Vida was being a rogue pooper and going in a completely new spot while Frida went over and pooed on a preexisting pile.  That Vida, I think she is a bit of a trouble maker!

Marissa then got to feed them some treats and, of course, made some lifelong friends.  They are definitely beggars - especially Frida!

Aw Nuts!

Marissa helps Dr. Hagerman & friend
with Cody's castration

Changing the world, one jack at a time...

Cody was castrated today - a little lesser of a man?  I think not!  My friend Nicole came and helped me load him into the trailer this morning since I am still in a cast and I wasn't sure how he would be.  He was a perfect gentleman!  The castration was pretty routine for a donkey, though he didn't take kindly to the procedure and was a little resistant.  Poor guy was so mad when he woke up that when I went in to his stall he pinned his large ears back and kind of groaned.  He then proceeded to stand in the corner for a while recuperating and, I am sure, trying to figure out what the heck happened to him!  The next week or so will be uncomfortable for him as he recovers but hopefully this is only a brief blip in his new life and he will lose some of his stallion (or jack, in his case)-like tendencies.  Time will only tell...

Frida and Vida continue to win my heart!  They come up to the gate whenever I arrive to see them and follow me around when I am in their paddock.  They enjoy sleeping in their hay and are still not so sure about the vitamin/mineral supplement I got for them.  I think they were getting a horse grain at the farm where they were so the supplement probably seems pretty bland to them.  I got some low sugar, hopefully healthy treats to give them and they are total chow-hounds!  Frida kept bugging me for more but I have to remain strong in the face of their cuteness and not give them everything they want.

  

The First Day

All was quiet when I went out this morning to feed the donkeys - until the girls started moving about to see what I was doing and Cody got excited and let out an impressive bray.  Bet my neighbors appreciated that at 8:30 in the morning.  The girls are very friendly and inquisitive, though a bit shy and skittish when you try to approach.  They had made a nice bed out of their hay in the stall but I appreciatively noticed that it appears they poo in a pile in one spot!  After years of cleaning up after my horse Rumba, who likes to grind everything into a nice mix, it is the small things that make me happy.  Cody, like Rumba, made a mess of his stall, having paced for a good portion of the evening, I suspect.  I spent a brief amount of time with them, fed them and headed off to work.  As I left the paddocks and got into the car, Vida followed me to the gate and stood watching as I pulled away.  Too cute!

  

Vida



Frida

After work I stopped at K&S Saddlery to exchange the weanling size halters that I had bought for suckling size; their heads were smaller than I thought!  Frida and Vida got purple and hot pink halters, respectively, and Cody got a manly baby blue.  The girls again greeted me upon arrival and Cody again brayed when they started moving away from him (or maybe because I was going to feed them soon.)  I really hope my neighbors don't mind too much... (When I had brought them home yesterday one neighbor came by after Cody let loose with an exceptionally loud, excited bray thinking that perhaps a horse was in distress!)  I put on the girls' new headgear and gave them a quick brushing - they seemed to quite enjoy that!  I went to go do the same for Cody but he wasn't all that interested and, considering what happened yesterday, I wasn't either.  Out of curiosity, when he put his nose through the fence in front of me, I put the brush up and he grabbed onto it strongly and didn't want to let go.  Definitely was not going to mess with him tonight!  I sat with the girls for a while more.  Vida was seemingly fascinated with me while I was sitting on the ground; she sniffed me for a good 5 minutes and then had her face mere inches from mine for another 10.  We had a good conversation while Frida enjoyed dinner.  I love how their big ears rotate when I talk to them.  Frida was funny when she went to get a drink from the trough, unsure of this black pool of water.  She stretched her little neck as far as she could before taking a good long drink.  All in all, I have fallen in love with these two sweet girls!  How could I not?!



Cody



Cody is going to work in the morning to get castrated.  I am hoping that this will help change his behavior and give him some relief from his current state of mind (and body).  He is a sweet boy when he is not all revved up, I swear!  I am not naive enough to think that there is a guarantee that it will be the solution but I will keep my fingers crossed.  If anything, I want to make sure he has the best life possible and, if that isn't with me and the girls, I will be sure to find his forever home.  But I sure hope it is with me...

Introductions & First Lesson Learned

So my dad and I went and picked up the donkeys this afternoon.  I adopted three donkeys in total, two girls (jennies) and one boy (an intact jack).  Here is a bit of info on each:

Frida - inspired by Frida Kahlo and so named due to her awesome eyebrows when I first met her, though she has since shed them out.  She is approximately 12 years old and light brown; she has had at least one baby.

Vida - of Spanish origin meaning "Life", inspired by her new lease on life.  She is 3 years old and medium brown; she has also had a baby.

Cody - the name he came with; I am thinking of changing it since I don't feel like it fits him.  He is 5 years old and dark brown; he is the most likely the father of the babies that Frida & Vida had this year.

Cody

We got them home and unloaded them and put them in their respective paddocks.  Frida and Vida immediately went to eating the grass that had grown in the gravel paddocks while Cody proceeded to become neurotic, wanting the be with the girls.  Come to find out, Frida is in heat!  She was doing the classic donkey signals (chewing and backing up to him).  Poor guy!  He just paced and paced.  Stupidly I tried to get him to stop for a moment by grabbing his halter and he then bit me but good on my arm!  I let him be at that moment and later confined him to his stall, though he continues to pace.  Time for him to go to work tomorrow for a little "snip snip" I think.

My brother and sister-in-law stopped by to meet the new family members.  The girls were very good and quite friendly, coming over to visit and get scratched.  I think Sammy is a donkey-whisperer since Frida and Vida seemed quite taken with her! 

Lesson #1: Don't get in a jack's way when there are receptive ladies!



Eric & Frida bonding; Vida grazing



Sammy & Vida





The Bite

Vida was quite interested in Greta, who was not so sure about these new creatures!







The day has arrived

Several weeks ago 6 miniature donkeys, along with several horses and miniature horses were put up for adoption by the local animal control.  I had previously met all the equines through work and, of course, fell in love with the donkeys.  They were little ragamuffins that needed some love and a good home and I happened to have a vacancy.  Oh geez!  Of course, the timing couldn't be worse.  I was having surgery on my ankle to repair a lax ligament and my house is soon to go under construction for some repairs and remodels.  But, how could I resist?!

So, the couple of days prior to my surgery I went out and prepared the paddocks and shelters, bought supplies, and generally freaked out that I wouldn't have enough time to get things together before I was incapacitated.  Then of course I find out I am supposed to pick them up on the day of my surgery!  Well, I got that all figured out (they were to stay at the farm that animal control was keeping them at) and I went and signed the paperwork two days after surgery.

In the downtime following my ankle repair, I read two donkey books that I purchased after discovering that donkeys are quite a bit different from horses, especially in their nutritional needs.  I'll share some interesting tidbits I learned in another post.

I am now ready to go pick them up.  My leg is casted but I am able to walk on it, albeit I do kind of hobble.  Now, I just need to convince my father that he wants to help me...