Ayla_noemi
Chillin' with the herd
Hello,
I’m sharing this story because I don’t know what else to do.
In December 2013 while I was in the service my husbands spine fractured due to undiagnosed bone cancer. 4 surgeries, 3 metal implants, 3 months of radiation, over a years worth of chemo, countless biopsies and 1 bone marrow transplant later I decided it was in the best interests of my family to separate from the service in order to move to Florida and be closer to my in laws. My husband is convinced his years are numbered and wanted to fulfill him dream of building a small family farm before it was too late.
We bought a house with a bit of land and started working on adapting it for our needs and wants. My husband was eager to fill our home with animals. I knew we were not prepared for them all. I was raised in the country around animals but had no experience with the animals he wanted most wich was a breeding pair of mini donkeys. My husband must spend most of his day resting due to pain and the effects of his treatments so naturally the care of these animals is my responsibility. We acquired a pair of mini donkeys who were not very social. We really did not shop around we just bought the first ones we were offered. We kept them in a decent sized enclosure for a few weeks working on gaining their trust. The Jenny came around but the jack would only approach very carefully just long enough to get his snack and run away. We got a few pets in but every time he felt our touch he would run away. He is not and has never been aggressive. He has never made an attempt to bite or kick. He is good with our other animals. He has never shown aggression to anyone. I know intact jacks can be dangerous but my husband is determined to make it work.
My problem is his hooves. They are severely overgrown. He shows no signs of discomfort that I have noticed but it has to be uncomfortable at the least in my opinion. We have attempted to hire multiple farriers but have not found anyone willing to try and help him with his hooves. The only offer we received was to relocate him to the farriers home for a month so the farrier could work on his antisocial behavior for $650. I thought this was a good idea but my husband and mother in law are convinced that it was only an opportunistic offer.
I don’t know what to do at this point. From what I’ve researched sedatives are not a good idea with donkeys. I’ve condidered buying a hoove trimming chute and doing it myself but I’m not sure if his size will be an issue. Of course my husband is against buying the chute since it is expensive. I’ve also considered letting a vet do it but haven’t really looked into vets who do hoove trimming in my area because I’m not sure what the best option is. I know my donkey needs to be socialized regardless of what I do about his hooves but i feel like he’s reached the point where he should not wait to get them taken care of. My Jenny is a wiggle worm when it comes to hoof trimming but it can be done. I have told my husband that if we can not properly care for our Jack we should rehome him but he does not want to.
Which of these options should I put my foot down on? Are there any other options out there that you’d recommend? Honesty will be appreciated I know this is our fault and I’m not easily offended. I know this post will probably upset most of you to some degree but that is not my intention. Please help. Thank you in advance.
I have included the only close up recent picture of my jack I could find. I blacked out most of the picture in order to keep things decent since he was attempting to mount our Jenny.
I’m sharing this story because I don’t know what else to do.
In December 2013 while I was in the service my husbands spine fractured due to undiagnosed bone cancer. 4 surgeries, 3 metal implants, 3 months of radiation, over a years worth of chemo, countless biopsies and 1 bone marrow transplant later I decided it was in the best interests of my family to separate from the service in order to move to Florida and be closer to my in laws. My husband is convinced his years are numbered and wanted to fulfill him dream of building a small family farm before it was too late.
We bought a house with a bit of land and started working on adapting it for our needs and wants. My husband was eager to fill our home with animals. I knew we were not prepared for them all. I was raised in the country around animals but had no experience with the animals he wanted most wich was a breeding pair of mini donkeys. My husband must spend most of his day resting due to pain and the effects of his treatments so naturally the care of these animals is my responsibility. We acquired a pair of mini donkeys who were not very social. We really did not shop around we just bought the first ones we were offered. We kept them in a decent sized enclosure for a few weeks working on gaining their trust. The Jenny came around but the jack would only approach very carefully just long enough to get his snack and run away. We got a few pets in but every time he felt our touch he would run away. He is not and has never been aggressive. He has never made an attempt to bite or kick. He is good with our other animals. He has never shown aggression to anyone. I know intact jacks can be dangerous but my husband is determined to make it work.
My problem is his hooves. They are severely overgrown. He shows no signs of discomfort that I have noticed but it has to be uncomfortable at the least in my opinion. We have attempted to hire multiple farriers but have not found anyone willing to try and help him with his hooves. The only offer we received was to relocate him to the farriers home for a month so the farrier could work on his antisocial behavior for $650. I thought this was a good idea but my husband and mother in law are convinced that it was only an opportunistic offer.
I don’t know what to do at this point. From what I’ve researched sedatives are not a good idea with donkeys. I’ve condidered buying a hoove trimming chute and doing it myself but I’m not sure if his size will be an issue. Of course my husband is against buying the chute since it is expensive. I’ve also considered letting a vet do it but haven’t really looked into vets who do hoove trimming in my area because I’m not sure what the best option is. I know my donkey needs to be socialized regardless of what I do about his hooves but i feel like he’s reached the point where he should not wait to get them taken care of. My Jenny is a wiggle worm when it comes to hoof trimming but it can be done. I have told my husband that if we can not properly care for our Jack we should rehome him but he does not want to.
Which of these options should I put my foot down on? Are there any other options out there that you’d recommend? Honesty will be appreciated I know this is our fault and I’m not easily offended. I know this post will probably upset most of you to some degree but that is not my intention. Please help. Thank you in advance.
I have included the only close up recent picture of my jack I could find. I blacked out most of the picture in order to keep things decent since he was attempting to mount our Jenny.