Donkeys

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July 12, 2010

PeePaw (and a tattoo)

Posted by Morning Bray under Burros, Donkeys, Friends and Family | Tags: burros, Dad, donkeys, tattoo |
[22] Comments

My dad came to visit this weekend.

It was his first time meeting Fergus and Nigel. You would’ve never known.

Nigel took a keen interest in my dad.

Fergus made sure he got scritches from PeePaw. (Don’t miss the look on Fergus’s face.)

Aww, Nigel… ever working up the courage to get closer.

Of course you knew it was inevitable… The Bernard and Ellsworth Show soon followed. Bernard thought pretending to tell PeePaw a secret…

…was the perfect ruse to make an attempt at eating PeePaw’s glasses.

My dad and Ellsworth found that amusing. Bernard then tried to eat my dad’s shoes,

…then wanted to play cone. (Good golly, look at the farmer tan on that woman.)

Ellsworth gave PeePaw a hug…

Then my dad gave Ellsworth a hug…

Then… here’s my new tattoo, up close! The top freeze mark is Fergus’s… the one below is Nigel’s. If you haven’t yet, be sure to check out Carson’s blog today to get the scoop on how it all went down.

July 7, 2010

Bernard has internet access

Posted by Morning Bray under Burros, Donkeys | Tags: Bernard, fly mask |
[46] Comments

Bernard has internet access. That’s the one explanation Don and I can come up with for what happened on Monday.

Only one of the boys has a fly mask on in this picture. Surely you can name the masked wonder…

And why don’t Ellsworth and Fergus have their fly masks on, you ask?

It was Monday morning. I had literally moments earlier posted Shoo fly, don’t bother me on the blog when I walked downstairs and looked out the window to see something amiss. Fergus didn’t have his fly mask on! But we had put it on that morning… Then I looked for Ellsworth. No fly mask on Ellsworth either.

That could only mean one thing. Bernard had read Aunt Linda’s comment on the post.

carson Says:
July 5, 2010 at 11:03 am

I remember the first time I bought a fly mask…going in the feed store and trying it on to see how much my horse would be able see once he was wearing it.

I’m very impressed that your boys are not trying to rip them off each other’s heads. (Later highlighted for emphasis.) They must realize how much better off they are with them on.

I continued my scan of the corral to find Bernard dragging one of the destroyed fly masks across the ground. Oh Bernard, you are so cut off from the computer. I mean, heavens to Betsy… Don bought the fly masks on Thursday morning. That gave the boys most of the day on Thursday, all day Friday, all day Saturday and all day Sunday to have their fly masks on without incident. Why now?

If you had been here, you would’ve heard words and phrases straight from an episode of Deadwood being muttered once we discovered the carnage. (Bernard separated the velcro from the netting on both of the destroyed masks, and we’ve since tried to sew and/or pin the velcro back on to no avail because Bernard has discovered a fun, new game called Rip the fly mask off the donkey!)

We’re back to fly spray, we have fly predators (thanks, Leah!) and new fly masks on order (they were much cheaper online than at the feed store) and are planning on trying the other remedies you’ve suggested.

Meanwhile, Bernard is grounded. No more internet access for you, buddy. It’s a good thing you’re so darn cute and we love you so. ♥

July 5, 2010

Shoo fly, don’t bother me

Posted by Morning Bray under Burros, Donkeys | Tags: burros, donkeys, flies, fly mask |
[36] Comments

We’re not sure why, but the flies are worse than usual here this summer.

They’re driving us all crazy.

The boys have coped with frequent dust baths and applications of fly spray.

Poor Nigel.

The straw that finally broke the camel’s back last week was finding pus accumulating in the corners of Bernard’s eyes. I wasn’t about to stand for that, so wonderful Don ventured to the farm supply store to pick up some new accessories for the boys.

I honestly don’t think I had seen fly masks on horses before moving to New Mexico. I’ll admit it… I remember being thoroughly confused about why people would put things on their horses to prevent them from seeing where they were going. Huh, silly me.

I’ll also admit it’s a bit unnerving not being able to see their eyes, but the boys do seem so much more at ease.

The boys took to the masks, like… well… like flies on poo.

Ellsworth, are you in there? Yes, are you in there Bernard?

If the boys are happy, we’re happy.

No mask on Nigel yet though. Don’t you worry, buddy… your mask is ready when you are.

July 1, 2010

Why do donkeys lay their heads on one another?

Posted by Morning Bray under Burros, Donkeys | Tags: burros, donkey behavior, donkeys |
[26] Comments

Why do donkeys lay their heads on one another? All of our boys do this often, and we get asked this question a lot. In fact, Nancy in NC asked just the other day, so I figure now’s the perfect time to offer an answer.

The Donkey Companion provides a great explanation for this typical behavior found in donkeys:

Assurance

Donkeys are physical animals who treasure each other through body contact. A jenny comforts her foal by holding him gently between her chin and her chest. Older youngsters and adults drape their heads across another’s back or rump to reassure or show affection; they rest their heads on a favorite human’s shoulder for the same reason.

There’s nothing at all like having one of the boys rest his head on my back or shoulder. It feels just like getting a big bear hug. ♥

Congratulations to the winner of our 150th post contest; Colleen, who left comment #21 and whose name was chosen using Random.org. She’ll be seeing a Morning Bray Farm t-shirt in her mailbox soon.

We’re so looking forward to celebrating 200 with you all!

June 28, 2010

Ellsworth’s back

Posted by Morning Bray under Donkeys, Friends and Family | Tags: Don, donkey, Ellsworth |
[25] Comments

Not a one of us has had a second of regret for adopting Fergus and Nigel in April.

In fact, Don and I have had repeated conversations about how thankful we are that one became two.

And, while some things never change… like Bernard chewing or sucking on everything he can get into his mouth…

…Don couldn’t help but notice a change in Ellsworth after Fergus and Nigel’s arrival. Understandably, Ellsworth was often quite focused on his place in the hierarchy and not on us. Therefore, Don felt he had lost his buddy.

Until yesterday.

Don got his buddy back.

Hallelujah and amen.

Everything just takes a little time to work itself out.

Did I say Hallelujah? Let me say it again.

June 21, 2010

A day with Carson

Posted by Morning Bray under Burros, Donkeys, Friends and Family | Tags: Carson |
[20] Comments

We always look forward to Carson‘s visits.

Carson has the patience of a saint when she’s working with the boys, and she’s a great teacher to me.

I was thrilled on Saturday when Carson wanted to work on clicker training using the chucker. Even Nigel got into it.

It didn’t take but a few minutes for Fergus to catch on.

He was all too happy when he realized if he touched the glove, he was going to get one of the peppermint candies Aunt Linda brought for them. I was all too happy when I saw first hand exactly how clicker training works and how it’s going to help us with other things, such as getting Fergus to lead.

Of course, Carson was practically accosted by young Bernard once he realized she had peppermint treats.

Peppermint treats or not, the boys wanted to be wherever Aunt Linda was, and I had fun being able to take pictures of Carson taking pictures. When does that ever happen?

Nigel is so close to letting us really touch him.

Of course the boys enjoyed their butt scritches and took full advantage of the fact that Aunt Linda was doling them out.

This was the first time for Carson to see Fergus and Nigel since the day after they arrived at Morning Bray.

They’ve come a long way since then.

Carson loves spending time with the boys just as much as we do. We think that’s super cool.

Bernard couldn’t agree more. I so wish I had gotten a picture of Bernard wrapping himself around Carson. She said she felt like she was being squeezed by an octopus. Mind you, Bernard doesn’t do that to just anyone… only the people he loves. ♥

June 18, 2010

Big Red

Posted by Morning Bray under Donkeys, Friends and Family | Tags: Bernard, Ellsworth, riding, riding donkeys |
[22] Comments

We’re thinking that Big Red might be a good nickname for Ellsworth on riding days. He continues to improve and gains confidence each time we put the saddle on him. And, while we’re really proud of Big Red’s accomplishments, it looks like Bernard is his biggest fan.

Because we had the luxury of having my mom here to take pictures over the weekend, we discovered some things that may have otherwise been overlooked.

I was seriously shocked to see this picture. Because I was so focused on Ellsworth Big Red, I had no idea Bernard was back there sucking on the saddle pad.

It finally got to the point that we had to put Bernard out of the corral so we really could focus on Big Red. Love you, Bernard. ♥

Fergus stayed in the corral with Big Red to offer moral support and to receive butt scritches from Don.

Big Red was quite pleased with and deserving of his carrot rewards…

…and the extra love, praise and attention he received.

We ended on a positive note (I asked him to walk and he walked, then asked him to stop and he stopped).

Of course he enjoyed a good brushing afterwards…

…and provided his signature contented sigh when his biggest fan returned to the corral.

June 16, 2010

Bernard reenacts a scene from Footloose

Posted by Morning Bray under Donkeys | Tags: Bernard, chicken, Footloose, tractor |
[18] Comments

Remember the scene from Footloose where Kevin Bacon’s character plays chicken with a tractor?

Fast forward to 2010, Bernard and Morning Bray Farm…

Fergus and Nigel thought Bernard had lost his marbles.

Bernard, really?

Here too? No, Bernard, you can not chew on the tractor. ♥

June 15, 2010

Ellsworth’s extreme makeover

Posted by Morning Bray under Donkeys | Tags: Ellsworth |
[22] Comments

While we were spending time with the boys over the weekend, Don said, “I can’t wait to see Linda’s reaction when she sees Ellsworth.”

It’s not as if Carson doesn’t see the boys on a regular basis, but it suddenly hit home as I was brushing Ellsworth what a remarkable transformation he’s undergone. Look at the difference between his hair here shortly after he came to Morning Bray Farm in September:

And this past weekend:

His hair is soft and smooth and beautiful. He’s healthy!

It didn’t take us long to see how miserable parasites cause donkeys to feel and what a difference proper care and regular grooming makes. Ellsworth is noticeably more at peace today than he was last fall. He doesn’t bite or scratch at himself anymore. Instead, he now often sighs deeply and contentedly.

And he smiles a lot more than he used to.