MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 2

By Meredith Hodges

If you have followed the steps outlined in Donkey Training, Part 1, your donkey should now—be easy to catch, let you put on his halter and lead, stand quietly while being groomed, allow you to pick up and clean his feet, follow you on the lead both over and around obstacles, load into a trailer, and follow your shoulder and your verbal commands. He should be happy and willing to be with you. This is a good time to let him watch other animals being worked, if possible. Donkeys and mules really can learn the purpose of their training when they see other equines being worked. When they are watching, you can almost hear them saying, “When is it going to be my turn?” They may actually be jealous of time spent with someone other than themselves. They’ll get to see other animals being tacked up in bridles and saddles and handling it well. When it is their turn to be saddled or bridled, they are not as afraid as they might have been if they had never watched.

Another good idea is to lead them around the area in which you will be working, so you can “inspect” it together. This allows them time to see if there is anything to which they may take exception before you start asking them to do anything. They will appreciate your consideration and be more willing to work for you. Don’t assume that, just because they were there the day before, they will remember that it was all right. Begin each new day with a brief walk around the schooling area. After all, things do have a way of changing from day to day, even if it is as slight as a new plant, or a stick, or anything that wasn’t there before. You may not remember things in such minute detail, but donkeys definitely do. This is one way you can minimize distraction and resistance during the actual training process.

Now you and your donkey will begin his training in a round pen, or a small pen that has been modified so that the corners are rounded. Take him into the round pen with only his halter and lead. The first thing he will need to learn is to move away from pressure. Donkeys naturally move into pressure and are terrific “crowders.” They always seem to want to be as close to you as possible. I would suspect that this is a defense tactic. Horses and mules have the initial natural instinct to flee when they think they are in danger. Donkeys are just the opposite and will freeze. If a donkey is attacked, he will move his body into the predator in hopes of knocking him to the ground, where he can then use his hooves and teeth for defense. It is important that you teach him right from the beginning that you are not a predator and that he must not move into you. If he does knock you down, it could be very dangerous, especially if he is a jack.

Take your donkey to the middle of the pen and ask him to “whoa.” Reward him for whoa, then step toward his shoulder—pulling his head toward you—tap him on the flank and stifle, and ask him to “move over.” Do not move your body unless you absolutely have to. You want him to keep his front end bent toward you, step under with his near hind leg, and begin to execute a turn on the forehand. This means his front legs will stay stationary while the hind legs move around them and away from you. You want your donkey to take only one step each time you tap him, so don’t get carried away and tap him too hard. We are laying the foundation for hindquarter control and it is easier to let him move slowly, one step at a time, in the beginning than it is to ask him to slow down from too many steps later on. Watch his hind legs to make sure he crosses in front of the offside hind, and stop and reward him after each tap and step. He will probably double in the barrel and move his front legs as well in the beginning. As long as he moves his hindquarters away from you, reward him and repeat. We can perfect his style as he learns what is expected. The first few times, ask only for one or two steps. When he has done this exercise on the near side (left), repeat them from the off side (right). During each session, you can ask for a few more steps in each direction.

When he is doing the turn on the forehand fairly easily (it doesn’t have to be perfect), you can begin to teach him to move his shoulders away from you with a turn on the haunches. This is much more difficult, since donkeys love to “glue” their front feet to the ground. Take the side of his halter in your left hand, ask him for one step forward and push his face away from you as far as your arm will reach. Then, in the right hand with the end of the lead, tap him firmly on the shoulder and give the command, “Over.” If his hindquarters come around, leave your left hand on the halter and take your right hand and use your body weight to shove him over one step. Stop, praise and reward him for moving his shoulders (even if you had to do all the work). Now try again, tapping him with the end of the lead. If he still won’t move his shoulders, repeat as before. If he does not begin to try to move his shoulders after three tries, use a riding crop in your right hand and tap the shoulders sharply with it—only once! He will probably be so surprised that he will step over quickly. Be ready to reward him when he does. Then stop your lesson there. You can ask for two steps in each direction during the next session. If you try to do any more, you will encounter resistance and he will be unwilling to perform and may run off, so be patient and be ready to take all the time HE needs.

Next, you will teach your donkey to back up. Hold the lead in your left hand, pull down and back, release, down and back, and release while you give the command, “Back.” If he doesn’t take a step back, use your right hand to push and release on the middle of his chest. It is most effective if you use only one finger, and you may have to push hard before you release to get the desired response. When he takes one step back, no matter how small the step is, reward him with a treat, praise him and stroke him on the shoulder, wither, or poll, or scratch his chest—whichever pleases him most. Do this exercise no more than three times, and then end your lesson. You can ask for a better response the next time.

Repeat these three exercises until he begins to move easily away when you ask. It may take three or four sessions. When he does comply easily, you can begin to teach him to lunge. Review these exercises every time you begin your training session. Then release the lead from the halter. Hold the lunge whip in your left hand and use your right hand to point to the right (the direction you wish him to go).  Raise both your arms in unison and tell him to “walk on.” If he doesn’t move away, lower both arms and raise them again, repeating the command. If he still won’t move out, give the verbal command again and give him a firm tap on the gaskin, just below the tail and above the hock, then take a step back and wait for him to comply (donkeys need time to think). If he still won’t move, repeat this action until he does. Once he does start moving away, follow behind and to the side at a distance that he will tolerate. This distance will vary with the individual donkey.

You can determine the distance you need to keep from your donkey to get the desired response by watching his reaction to you. When you are too close, he will stop and tuck his tail. If you are too far away, he will slow his gait and begin to wander. When you are the correct distance, he will walk forward, although, in the beginning, he will hesitate after every step or two. Practice moving into him and away from him to get him to move. Try to stay out of his space and keep him moving forward after the initial tap of the whip. If he stops and doesn’t seem to want to move, strike the fence behind him once you have him on the rail. Try NOT to hit him if at all possible. Remember, donkeys freeze when they are confused or frightened and you will get nowhere with him at that point. He needs to learn, but he also needs to enjoy what he is doing. Don’t forget to reward him frequently, but be sure that you ask him to go further each time, or you may find yourself training him to walk only so many steps at a time. In the beginning, ask him to go in only one direction and change directions at each session. You can teach him to reverse and go forward later, once he has learned what you are asking.

When training your donkey, make sure you have plenty of time: You never want to get in a hurry. You want your time together to be a fun and enjoyable experience, with each of you learning about and from the other. Most of us today are on fast-forward but remember—your donkey is in slow-mo!

To learn more about Meredith Hodges and her comprehensive all-breed equine training program, visit LuckyThreeRanch.com, MEREDITH HODGES PUBLIC FIGURE Facebook page, or call 1-800-816-7566. Check out her children’s website at JasperTheMule.com. Also, find Meredith on Pinterest, Instagram, MeWe, YouTube and Twitter.

Covered in TRAINING MULES & DONKEY: A LOGICAL APPROACH TO TRAINING, TRAINING WITHOUT RESISTANCE  and EQUUS REVISITED at www.luckythreeranchstore.com.

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