“The passion that Meredith Hodges feels for the equines that she has fought for all her adult life is still as fresh, inspiring and infectious as it was when she first discovered the world of horses, donkeys and mules. She has never wavered in her devotion to them and in her mission to carve a lasting and honored place for them in our world. They are lucky to have her as their champion, but Meredith actually sees it a bit differently. She feels honored and privileged to be a part of their world.”
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CHASITY’S CHALLENGES: Chasity’s Health Check 3-31-20
Our veterinarian, Greg Farrand, came to do a health check on Chasity the day after she arrived. She obviously needs a lot of core strength work, but it will improve her health and keep her occupied while she is in quarantine. Simple core strength leading lessons will have a dramatic effect on her overall health and welfare both physically and mentally. Wrangler looks on with interest as the vet surveys her condition. He thought because of her enlarged, fallen crested neck and all the fatty deposits over her body that ...
CHASITY’S CHALLENGES: Chasity’s First Workouts: 4-1 & 3-20
4-1-20: I led Chasity from the stall and introduced her to her new work station. It was clear that there would be a lot of work ahead. Her neck crest was fallen to one side, but was not yet permanently broken, as far as I could tell. She had fat pockets across her body and her hooves were overgrown with shoes on the front feet. At least her feet could be balanced after removing her shoes and having her trimmed. For now, I would introduce Chasity to her new routine ...
WRANGLER’S DONKEY DIARY: After the Winter Break: 3-29-21
Wrangler is such a goof ball! Because Wrangler would lock up in front of the Tack Barn and not want to walk over the grate, I got smart and learned to take Chasity to the Tack Barn first. Then, he didn’t even notice the grate and walked right in! However, he gets pretty rambunctious about waiting his turn. I could lead them both at once, but he needs to learn to be by himself with me sometimes...and BEHAVE! When I first got Wrangler, he would get excited like this and ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 1
By Meredith Hodges Training your donkey is not really much different than training horses and mules, although there are differences in instinct and attitude that will determine your approach in given situations. The mechanics and techniques, however, remain the same. The donkey foal needs to begin his life of training with imprinting. Imprinting is simply getting your donkey accustomed to your touch, your voice, your smell, the way you look and the way you interact with him. These are all the things he learns from his mother that will determine ...
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 ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 3
By Meredith Hodges Prior to each training session with your donkey, review all that he has previously learned: Always lead him to and from the work station in a showmanship manner, holding the lead in your left hand with your right arm extended forward; groom him and clean his feet; review the turn on the forehand and turn on the hindquarters in the round pen; and send him forward to the rail in the round pen at the walk. You may have discovered that you need to follow him more ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 4
By Meredith Hodges You have, thus far, begun to teach your donkey several things: how to begin to execute the turn on the forehand and turn on the haunches, how to walk forward in a round pen from the lunge whip without a saddle or harness (then with the saddle and harness), on the drivelines, and while being ridden. He has also begun to learn how to “trot on” from the lunge whip while tacked up, and how to walk and trot on the lead with an assistant aiding from ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 5
By Meredith Hodges By now your donkey should be getting much better at his turns on the forehand and haunches on the lead line. He should be leading easily at the walk and trot and squaring up while stopped. He should be lunging at the walk and trot in the round pen, and ground-driving at the walk in the round pen, both straight and through turns and reverses. He should be walking and trotting with a rider in the round pen, without the assistant. He should be both ground-driving and ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 7
By Meredith Hodges If your donkey has any problems with the trot after the previously described exercises, it will probably be in the hourglass pattern while under saddle. If he has difficulty maintaining the trot through the turns and serpentines through the middle, and continues to bulge either one way or the other, you can try one more thing to help him. Have your assistant ride a seasoned animal through the pattern ahead of you while you follow a few strides behind. Don’t ride too close, or too far away ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 8
By Meredith Hodges Now it is time for your donkey to learn to move laterally. Lateral movements are essential to the overall balance and posture of your donkey. It will improve muscle strength throughout his body and will reduce the risk of injury or soreness while he is being ridden or driven. You can begin his lateral work on the drivelines in the large arena. Begin by driving your donkey through the hourglass pattern (after review). As he approaches the first corner cone, ask him to circle it and then ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 9
By Meredith Hodges Perfecting Lateral Techniques You have introduced your donkey to some lateral techniques both in the arena and over obstacles, and you are perhaps discovering that he is a lot better at some things than he is at others. You might find that he quits trying and goes through the bridle, going straight instead of laterally. You must understand that lateral work is very taxing for your donkey’s muscles and will tire him quickly. When he gets tired, he will “run through the bridle” and refuse to move ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part I0
By Meredith Hodges It is important that your donkey be in the best posture he can be in while he is performing at this stage of training. The way that he is moving with his body is the way his muscles and tendons will be strengthened and toned, and the way his bones will become permanently aligned. It is difficult for a rider to maintain this impeccable balance through every step and every stride. For this reason, you will use your “elbow pull” training aid to encourage your donkey’s good ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkeys: The “Sinking” Reflex
By Meredith Hodges Donkeys have a lot of behaviors that owners might find strange. One of these is dropping their spine, or “sinking,” when you put a hand on their back. Not all donkeys will do this, but many of them will, especially when they are young and or haven’t been handled routinely. I’ve personally had experience with donkeys sinking to the point that they’ll go down to the floor on their knees and bellies. You may also commonly recognize this behavior in cats and dogs. In order to understand ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Training, Part 6
By Meredith Hodges By walking your donkey through all the different phases of training, and before going on to the trot, you have given yourself and your donkey an opportunity to learn to negotiate and perfect your movements before you ask for speed. This allows for a lot more perfection of coordination to take place, so things are less likely to fall apart when you do add a little speed. This is the most obvious difference between mules or horses and donkeys. Horses and mules are difficult to slow down ...
MULE CROSSING: Donkey Talk
By Meredith Hodges Donkeys are indigenous to desert areas that are often extremely hot or extremely cold. They are tough, surefooted due to the unique shape of their hooves, resistant to parasites, and disease and can withstand wide variations in climate. They require very little to survive and actually prefer the wide variety of brush and weeds that occur naturally in the desert with one of their favorite foods being dandelions. Donkeys possess an incredible hair coat that does not shed off completely like horses do in the summer months ...
