r/Donkeys Jan 23 '25

šŸ«A New Life for Donkeys and Mules!ā­ļø

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561 Upvotes

We did it!

We officially moved to our new sanctuary on January 11th!

It took 3 years of planning and building, 8 team members, 14 hours, and 8 trips back and forth, but all the donkeys are now enjoying their forever home at Rancho Burro Donkey Sanctuary.

Moving day from the old sanctuary was filled with a mix of emotions. As we loaded each donkey, memories of their difficult pasts surfaced, reminding us of how far they’d come. Seeing them step onto the trailer, headed towards a life of peace and freedom at Rancho Burro, brought tears to our eyes. It was a powerful moment for everyone on the team, a testament to the resilience of these gentle animals and the love that makes their new life possible.

Our team and the donkeys watched the sunrise together at the old sanctuary and the sunset at the new one...together the family we all have come to be.

They now have rolling hills to explore, spacious pastures to roam, unlimited enrichment, a comfy new barn, and a covered arena to keep those hooves dry in the winter (which will also double as an event space!).

We even welcomed a new resident, Ginger the mule! She didn’t have a good future ahead of her before her owners reached out to us, but we are so grateful they didd and for her place in our family.

This sanctuary is a safe haven for our current donkeys and mules, and a refuge for those who need us in the future. Part of our mission is to share the goodness of donkeys with the out community!

None of this would be possible without YOU! Every donation has helped us build this special place.

Exciting things are happening at The New Rancho Burro Donkey Sanctuary! Stay tuned for updates on our new programs, workshops, and classes.

We’ll sharing ongoing inspiring case studies highlighting our new dedicated medical room, rescue journeys and rehabilitation efforts.

We are incredibly grateful for your support. Every donation makes a difference!

Visit the link in our bio and learn how to get involved today!


r/Donkeys 3h ago

Number One Fan

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376 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 2h ago

POV: The Tiny Waffles gets featured on NatGeo 🤭🤭

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44 Upvotes

Thats National Geographic, in case I’m just old and making a reference nobody will understand🤣


r/Donkeys 1d ago

Birthday baby!

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559 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 4h ago

Grazing Muzzle?

5 Upvotes

Our gelded jack is overweight and being put on a diet. We need to get him a grazing muzzle for turnout time to be with our cow herd. I'm struggling to find a grazing muzzle locally so need to order. His harness is a colt size so is too big around his nose, but it fits ok everywhere else. He's considered small sized standard.
Does anyone have a link for a grazing muzzle that is $40 or less and is a good fit for a donkey? Thanks!

(pic is from several months ago where he still had his winter coat. He's slimmed down a little since this pic as well. )


r/Donkeys 1d ago

Just my lady being sweet. 🄰

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162 Upvotes

She was just being affectionate so she could stop working lol.


r/Donkeys 2d ago

Do Burros count??

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793 Upvotes

South Dakota Burros!!!


r/Donkeys 1d ago

Image source: Evil donkey pony breeder. Reply:

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190 Upvotes

Opinion? You want my opinion, not facts? I know farm animals and studied genetics in Uni for six years. I have worked with large farm animals for almost two decades.

Fact: You should put this creature down instead of making it suffer for your choices.

Fact: the older and larger he gets, the more he will suffer.

Fact: You want him to grow and suffer. You have made that clear now.

Opinion? Sure!

You are some fucking ignorant irrisoponsible owner with no balls to put a gun to an animals head, surrounded by treats, pets, blankets, and a hole. If you can not do that, you should not own a large animal.

Who the fuck gets an animal without knowing a vet in the neighborhood.

I may not have a lot of money, but even my donkey gets an annual checkup, shots, fairer visits, and has a 2k emergency saving account. My dogs only have 500$, each.

What, did you think your instagram would like a pony donkey cross?

Fucking coward on a throw away account deleted their posts.


r/Donkeys 1d ago

Mini donkey eating poop....yuck! Help!

6 Upvotes

I have two minis on a half acre dry lot. They are almost two years old. This weekend, I caught one of them eating their own poop a couple of times. This was a (gross) first for us. They each get a half cup of Nutrena Empower Topline Plus and 2.75 lbs of hay a day split over a morning and evening feeding. I spread the hay in little around the lot so that they can walk around and so that it takes them more time to eat. Their body condition/weight is good and stable. They are on a dewormer rotation every 10-12 weeks (Panacur, Zimercterin Gold, and Ivermectin is the rotation). They also have a mineral lick (the Producer's Pride red brick). They have trees to scratch on, a hanging ring that I put hay in and two balls I stuff hay in as a toy.

I did add a second salt block (since they do like it) and ordered two hay pillows with 1" net size so it takes them longer to eat each day (https://www.thehaypillow.com/products/mini-hay-pillow?srsltid=AfmBOooOZSbrVsb4JowDMd9Z1Or3AIhFQy-gtIFzwrMAdalNlF-FHE5p).

Is this poop eating normal? Anything I am missing? Thanks!


r/Donkeys 2d ago

Windshield Wiper Tail

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159 Upvotes

David the Donkey at the Wheeler Farm in Utah seems to be happy lately. His tail is wagging back and forth like a windshield wiper on high.


r/Donkeys 2d ago

Help, I need advice about my mini mule baby. He's 3 weeks old and his front legs are getting worse.

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38 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 3d ago

Who can resist a good flubber lip?!? Not me, and especially not when it’s The Tiny Waffles flubber🤭

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284 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 2d ago

Flies flies flies

12 Upvotes

Hello donkey community! I’m a first time donkey owner, rescued 2 timid and very neglected jennies last year. One of them is white and the flies just bite the living daylights out of her. Both front and back legs are just covered in bites. Im currently wrapping her legs with athletic horse tape as well as doing a wipe on treatment of pyranha almost daily. However the wraps don’t stay on very well and the fly spray does not seem that effective. Currently I have my property sprayed for flies and have fly bags hanging out the trees away from the stables in attempt to reduce the population. Any tips and tricks would be very appreciated because I just feel so horrible watching her suffer!


r/Donkeys 3d ago

Nervous until you see the movement

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179 Upvotes

Anyone get nervous about a basking donkey and wait for them to show signs of life?


r/Donkeys 5d ago

Donkey Hiking the French Alps

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530 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 5d ago

I managed to catch some pre-dinner zoomies on camera before The Tiny Waffles and Mojo noticed me watching 🤩

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225 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 5d ago

Two donkeys, two very different techniques...in the end, the sophisticated tease-and-pull and the full-on-face-smash both get the job done🤣

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354 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 5d ago

Any other MI donkey owners here? How do we protect them from this horrendous air quality?

29 Upvotes

Like the title says, I’m in Michigan, which is getting annihilated by the Canada forest fire air. Our Air Quality Index is off the charts. Right now it’s 421 in my area. I’m scared and worried for my equines: two mini donkeys and a mule. I called the vet, who said to make sure they don’t work today, but beyond that, there’s nothing to do. The smoke is everywhere. Right now, they have access to the pasture and an open barn. They typically roam freely and aren’t used to being tied up. Thought about bringing them in the barn, closing the windows, and throwing a purifier in there, but not sure if that’s ideal. Am I overreacting? There seems to be no end in sight when it comes to the AQI forecast. This horrific smoke can’t be good for them. Thanks for any/all recommendations.


r/Donkeys 8d ago

Ripley vs Rubber Chicken

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478 Upvotes

A while back, someone suggested I give Ripley a rubber chicken. Well, today was the day… and it went about exactly as I expected.

She cautiously examined it, suspiciously tolerated a few squeaks, and gave it a look of complete disappointment while internally contemplating the life choices that had led to this moment.
In all the time I’ve owned Ripley, I’ve never seen her play. Sure, she might throw in an occasional buck while racing with the horses up the hill for a cookie, but even that is rare.

Ripley is only 8, but she has the energy of an 80 year old librarian. She found the rubber chicken loud, unnecessary, and frankly a little inappropriate.


r/Donkeys 8d ago

De Ezelshoeve, donkey sanctuary in The Netherlands

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710 Upvotes

I got the opportunity to visit this sanctuary today, it's such a wonderful experience if any of you are ever in the area, I highly recommend it.

They have many areas to roam and are treated so well. They love hugs and pets. This is also the home of the oldest donkey in The Netherlands, 40 year old Chico.

The donkeys were so cute and the staff was lovely :3


r/Donkeys 8d ago

New walk in shelter for our paddock area!! Almost done!

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107 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 8d ago

A walk in the park with Ripley

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1.2k Upvotes

I was getting bored with our usual haunts, so I decided to take Ripley on an adventure to the public park.

We wandered through the woods along the disc golf course, crossed a bridge, checked out the picnic areas, inspected the playgrounds, and made a lap around the baseball diamond. The place was a ghost town. Absolutely no one was there! One of the reasons I decided to go to the park was for a little social interaction. It feels kind of weird being completely alone in such a public place. It almost makes you feel like you’re breaking the rules. You start to overthink things, ā€œOh no! What will people think if they see me here?!ā€

Truthfully, if I had run into anyone, they probably would have thought I was a total weirdo. Maybe not completely mentally stable. Best case, I looked like someone with absolutely no sense of direction, zigzagging through the park like a possessed Roomba… that just happened to have a donkey.


r/Donkeys 8d ago

Over the river and through the woods!

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451 Upvotes

Weird to think this is the first real bridge Ripley has ever walked over. We’ve done so many fake bridge obstacles… it’s like all of our training has led up to this moment!


r/Donkeys 9d ago

Tough crowd.

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607 Upvotes

r/Donkeys 9d ago

Finding donkey tack?

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170 Upvotes

Specifically for a mini donkey. He’s going to be in a few parades and I can get him boots and a new halter but I’d like to find something to put on his legs or an over his back. Any ideas? Picture to pay the donkey tax.