I inherited a donkey. Now what?

[BrayJunction]

I obtained 3 donkeys at the beginning of June. They were mostly tame, but had had no training. I'm using "Clicker Training for Your Horse" by Alexandra Kurland and have trained 2 of them to accept having their halter put on, and to back up with a pressure cue to their chest. The 3rd is very skittish, so I'm clicker training him to stand still while I pet his withers, lightly groom him, and even touch his face. I've also taught all 3 to touch an orange cone with their nose. In Kurland's book she describes dealing with some pretty raw, wild horses and having a lot of success using the clicker. Good luck with your donkey!

 

[hydroswiftrob]

*UPDATE*
I have corralled her to a smaller area. (That was a feat within itself)

Her feet do look fine to me, but I will take a pic so you all can be the judge.

She is cautiously eating hay out of my 7yo son and 13 yo daughter's hand. She will not come close when I am around. She is terrified of our Great Dane.

Contacting the previous owners is out of the question. We had a major falling out when buying the house. (long story, they didn't live up to their end of the bargain and if I wanted to be an @$$ *pun intended*, I could sue)

No one has seem to answer the bray question yet, and this had me worried the most. She snorts but cannot bray. Is this a learned trait or possible she has a cold, etc?

 

[sawfish99]

It's impossible to say about the braying. You would need a vet exam to determine if there is something wrong. Some dogs almost never bark. Some horses rarely neigh. She may not have anything to cause her to bray.

On the hoof pictures, try to get side and front profiles of the front and back hooves. I will assume picking up the feet is out of the question.

Donkeys sometimes fear the height of adults. One I trim is almost impossible to catch, unless you are an 8 year old boy. Then it will walk right up and be gentle.

 

[hydroswiftrob]

I hope this works. It has been so long since I posted pics the archaic way, I had forgotten how.

 

[sawfish99]

Yes, you need to have a professional work on her hooves. It is difficult to tell everything from the pictures, but:
the back right looks very long with underrun heels
back left looks long from the front view, but not the side. It is hard to tell in the soft footing.
both front hooves look like they may have 1-1.5" of excess growth that needs trimming
both fronts look twisted in the side profile. Very hard to tell if it is an illusion from the hoof coloring and soft soil, but the front right also looks abnormal in the front view.

Until she can be safely handled, it won't make a difference. My opinion is either care for her properly or find someone else to take her off your hands.

 

[Lupa Duende]

Agree with the last poster.
How easy is it to find a farrier in your area? IT is difficult around here to say the least. I ended up taking my goats to the vet as the farrier (who is married to a lady who has a feed store) 'only does stables'..., not us whacko mums that adopt the wayward goblins. The goats' hooves were curled up an Under. The doeling with the best hooves, Ziege, had turkish boots that hurt whenever she lay down.
I am about to cruise the farrier list for Maggie, a sweet wee pony we adopted Friday night. Her hooves don't look so hot but I know a wonderful horse lady up in my parts so I know she can help find the right person for Maggie.