Gracie Belle is doing remarkably well at Morning Bray Farm.
It’s her second week here, and she’s been inducted as a full-fledged member of the herd.
Gracie is beautiful, she’s smart and she’s gaining confidence by the day.
Now that she’s settling in, I figured I’d share a bit of her history with you.
Here’s her BLM capture data:
Date: January 17, 2011
Location: AZ0021 Double A
State: Arizona
This means Gracie was captured in the Double A Wild and Free-Roaming Burro Territory in Kaibab National Forest, Arizona. The BLM maintains a wild burro herd there of between 22 and 35 animals.
Wild burros have been known to occupy the territory since the late 1800s. A wild burro is a free-roaming, unclaimed, unbranded burro that descended from pack animals that wandered off or were released by prospectors and miners.
We’ll never forget or replace the herd that Gracie left behind. What we will do is make sure she knows she’s now with another herd that loves her just the same. ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥ ♥
Morning Bray Farm 
August 30, 2011 at 4:45 am
What a beautiful lady burro. I’m so glad to see Gracie Belle has won the hearts of all the boyz, I knew it wouldn’t take long!
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August 30, 2011 at 5:37 am
Five heads in the tub. Priceless !
I love a happy donkey story 🙂
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August 30, 2011 at 6:14 am
I wonder if she had a baby burro or two out there? I would guess she did, unless they tried to round up all the jacks every year??
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August 30, 2011 at 6:44 am
CeeCee,
I’m definitely thinking she’s had at least a baby or two.
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August 30, 2011 at 7:16 am
Gracie will be a pocket burro in no time.
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August 30, 2011 at 7:25 am
She’s going to love her life with you all.
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August 30, 2011 at 7:33 am
You needed Gracie for your herd….and so she had to leave hers in Arizona. It’s the way the universe works. She is lovely.
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August 30, 2011 at 9:24 am
Gracie Belle is absolutely gorgeous. She has a soft, feminine look to her that the boys definitely don’t have. She seems very refined and lovely.
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August 30, 2011 at 10:27 am
Ah, Gracie, think of this as your retirement. No need to wonder if you’ll find enough food, if the water hole will last the dry season, or if a cougar is on your trail. All your worries are over–plus, you know, there’s entertainment here. 😉
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August 30, 2011 at 12:14 pm
Seriously, Justina–in response to your comment on my blog–she evaded capture for 10 years. There must be a reason she ended up in the pen this time around. You are probably extending her life; I can’t imagine the AZ desert would be too forgiving of a “middle-aged” burro.
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August 30, 2011 at 9:19 pm
Flartus,
Sending a big hug your way. xo
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August 30, 2011 at 10:45 am
Love seeing her with her head in the feed tub with all the boys! No more scrounging through the cholla looking for food. The pickins are pretty slim here in AZ. I’m sure she’ll be mothering them all soon. She is beautiful. 🙂
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August 30, 2011 at 11:28 am
I love your ‘burro’ updates and adding Gracie is just the icing on the cake. I have to check your blog everyday to see what the ‘herd’ is up to. I am glad that Gracie has been so welcomed, and the fact that she just took over was totally adorable! THANK YOU!
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August 30, 2011 at 12:42 pm
I look forward to your blog every morning – how quickly and how well Ms. Gracie has fit in!
I am curious, though, why they round up the wild burros, and why Gracie seems so – um – ‘unwild’? I think of feral cats who get rounded up to be spayed/neutered (because of exponential overpopulation) and released again, and how incredibly challenging they are to handle or to domesticate. I must forage around the internet for more information on wild burros and the Arizona round ups.
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August 30, 2011 at 9:25 pm
Jean,
Why the BLM rounds up wild mustangs and burros is quite a controversial subject. (If you do some research, you’ll understand what I mean.)
SImply put, according to BLM, the gathers are needed to bring herd sizes into balance with other rangeland resources and uses, as required by Federal law and approved land-use plans.
I absolutely love what you do with those dogs, by the way. Thank you for doing what you do.
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August 30, 2011 at 3:24 pm
For having been around people for just over 6 months, I’m amazed at how relaxed she is. Is it typical for burros to tame this easily?
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August 30, 2011 at 9:33 pm
Suzanne,
It varies. Gracie is reminding me much more of Fergus (go figure) by coming around quite quickly. It’s my understanding that George at 7MSN was much the same way.
On the other hand, Alan at 7MSN took around five months to come around… and then there’s Nigel, who’s going on 16 months here and we still can’t put a halter on him, which means no foot trims and no vaccinations. And believe me, we’ve worked and worked and worked with that sweet boy.
There are so many variables at hand. We have absolutely no idea what their life in the wild was like, what their capture was like, or what their life in captivity was like prior to adoption.
Bottom line for burros/donkeys is that they need to trust… and based upon individual experience, the amount of time necessary to trust varies.
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August 31, 2011 at 5:08 am
Gracie Belle could tell us a lot, I´m sure.
I`m glad to see her doing well and be accepted by the boys. She a great enrichment for the herd.
Liebe Grüße,
Pia
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August 31, 2011 at 3:33 pm
I wonder if that’s where she got her mad fence climbing skilz?
🙂
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