#donkeyoftheday 153:

Aitana was the main focus for the farrier's work on all the donkeys' hooves today. She has had historic problems with front tendons and the hooves need repositioning every few months. Jacobo the farrier has done great job again, so Aitana can now descend slopes more comfortably.

As she grows in confidence, she puts up more of a fight and the hoof trimming was accompanied by angry snorting, stamping and rearing. Quite a circus!

#Asstodon #Thursbray

Evening feed for three donkeys and one philosopher.

#Asstodon #Thursbray

https://youtu.be/Q86wxSe-5xQ

#donkeyoftheday 131:

Cyril was obsessed with trying to get himself in perfect proportions.

#Asstodon #Thursbray

#donkeyoftheday 110:

Aitana always seems to look amazed by her Peasant.

Aitana siempre parece sorprendida por su campesino.

#Asstodon #Thursbray #BurritosdeEspaña

"Education is important but
🫏
donkeys is importanter"

Happy #Thursbray on #Asstodon

#donkeyoftheday 103:

Following the development of the 'ambulance' saddle (see DotD 101 & 102) SaddleAid.org has produced variations for use in donkey therapy.

There are many different activities in donkey therapy, mostly involving interaction with the animals. Donkey riding therapy requires more preparation and specially trained animals. Donkeys are particularly good with autistic humans. They are instantly sensitive to all disabilities and adapt their behaviour.

#Asstodon on #Thursbray

Evening feed.

In soft springtime sunlight. Rubí, Matilde, Aitana and Morris hurry to their feed.

#Asstodon #Thursbray

https://youtu.be/UeMKpQNoM3w

Donkey gives his Peasant a foot massage.

I was sitting down quietly in the sun with Aitana when Morris came over and demanded all the attention: apparently giving me a foot massage... Very weird behaviour!

#Masstodon #Thursbray

https://youtu.be/VLQkZ5ONiAk

#donkeyoftheday 91:

Rubí under a tree.

This week has been a thorough grooming week, getting all the donkeys' coats back into condition at the end of winter. Vacuum cleaning is a great way to pull out thousands of little flakes of straw from deep-down in the coat, but Rubí is relieved when the alien space-vacuum attack is over.

#Asstodon #Thursbray

@lizhanson

Very good reference back to the Aesop story! (The donkey and the lapdog, last #Thursbray.)

It was the only way to catch Aitana and clean her up (her eyes were pretty grotty). Foals are really hyperactive and never stop racing around! Within a short while, she was too big to sit on my lap and that was the end of that!

"The Ass & the Lap Dog" from Aesop's Tales.

There are many moral stories involving donkeys but if you've never read this short tale, I assure you it is very funny.

Link to the version of the tale on Library of Congress web page, from where the illustration comes:
https://read.gov/aesop/108.html

#Asstodon #Thursbray #dogsofmastodon

#donkeyoftheday 85:

Donks usually bray every day: socially or demanding something. Rubí donkey has not brayed since Christmas.

She didn't bray for the first six years, then one day in 2017 she did a strange bray-barking episode and now she repeats it very rarely.

"Is today a brayday, Rubí? Or another not-brayday?"

Rubí sighs. "Haven't you got it yet? I'm non-braynary."

#Asstodon #Thursbray (or not)

#donkeyoftheday 79:

Morris donkey with primary school children and their teacher, on a visit to the donkey field. Donkeys love the attention they get from 'little people'.

However much fun this may be, it needs clear boundary-setting before kids enter the field: e.g. sturdy footwear only, or stay outside the fence; no walking behind rear-end (!) and clear instructions on open-palm feeding of treats to donkeys. The supervising teacher takes full responsibility.

#Asstodon #Thursbray

#donkeyoftheday 74:

Lesser-known facts of donkey walking, brought to you by Rubí and Matilde this #Thursbray from an olive grove in the Costa Blanca:

1. The rhythm of slow hooves on the road when walking one donkey di-dum-di-dum, becomes di-didi-dum-di-didi-dum when walking two donkeys. They synchronize the rhythm.

2. When wearing a pack-saddle and pannier bags a donkey will halt before entering an open gate that it judges too narrow for the load to pass. Millennia of experience!

#Asstodon

#donkeyoftheday 69:

A fine specimen of a working donkey in the type of arid environment to which donkeys are well adapted.

When selecting photos of #workingdonkeys for this series, I try to celebrate responsible examples of donkeys enjoying their work. There are, of course, many unsuitable examples out there.

The various equine charities' work with the United Nations shows how animal welfare is the key to donkeys' continuing role in sustainable economic activity.

#Asstodon #Thursbray

@theappletree

I like your photo of the donkey in his stable doorway: very atmospheric!

#Thursbray

@equusasinus Do you just claim every day of the week as a donkey day??

..

I love it.

#monbray #tuesbray #wednesbray #thursbray #fribray #saturbray #sunbray

And at this time...
Breakfast.
Everyone eats something.

#breakfasting #eattogether #Thursbray #Thursday #ThursdayThoughts #marmot

#donkeyoftheday 57:

Outside the old farmhouse we used to rent, Rubí donkey seen practising with monster-on-wheels following behind.

Unusually, she is wearing a pack saddle for this, while we awaited the arrival of a proper harness.

These days we live beside a mountain road with blind corners and sheer drops, so we no longer use the donkey trap. It is too dangerous when motor traffic or cyclists suddenly appear around the corner, going too fast!

#Asstodon #Thursbray #BurritosDeEspaña

#Thursbray:

The week's #donkey manure ready for collection. Sixteen 42 litre buckets waiting at the Poo Gate.

Spanish Ministry of Agriculture requires declaration of the outgoing weekly quantity of poo (estiércol) on a registered control form detailing my farm registry number and those of all the receiving farms. (The estiércol here is collected by a registered organic orange orchard.)

#burrocracy gone mad!
Poo total for 2022 = 8,320 kg

#Asstodon #equusasinus #BurrosDeEspaña #asstiércol