Should I?
Recently I realized that I have only been reacting to life, and not setting some personal goals. I am very poor, however, could acquire in a few years some capital to invest into a proper home of my choosing. I am not really looking forward to the long years of work ahead of me, I will admit.
This is where the donkey comes in.
I have heard that these creatures lived almost human lifespans, and still being quite young, thought about acquiring such beast.
Does anyone have experience working with such animals? I only have experienced going on a trek with a couple of them, and they seemed to be a very personality distinct specie.
Would it be lonely without me? I am planning upon getting it when I manage to escape the city and acquire a river accessible abandoned property somewhere. It would max be left alone 3 days as a shopping trip or when gone fishing.
To me, they are amazing beings. Their faces are so expressive, and make hilarious sounds. They eat almost anything that nature provides around them. They bound to other animals and protect them all while still having a good time. I plan on making a foyer for it when it’s raining, so it can chill by the fire.
Also do they actually perform farm labor, last one told me that it was a human myth.
They are not an animal you should get based on whimsey, they are animals that take a lot of effort and time to take care of, even if compared to other farm animals they’re considered lower maintenance.
Donkeys are working animals, but I don’t know what you mean by farm labor exactly. They were primarily pack animals and transportation animals. They helped people carry their stuff when travelling because they’re actually quite strong, often stronger than horses of comparable size, and they’re lower maintenance and less expensive than horses. Even today they’re still regularly used for that purpose in countries with less industrial development. But even in countries where they aren’t used as pack animals donkeys usually still have a job of some sort, often as a comfort companion animal for other species like horses (they’re less high strung than horses and have a calming effect on horses that take behavioural queues from herd mates for example) or guardian of a herd of other livestock like sheep or goats. They aren’t made to stand around doing nothing in a pen all day. And no, you absolutely shouldn’t just leave one alone for 3 days, they’re highly social animals who need companionship to be happy. They can get lonely and bored easily, and will not enjoy being alone for long periods of time. They do best with a herd to socialize with or at least another donkey (with some caveats in regards to ungelded donkeys). Companionship is very important for their mental well-being, and no, you will not be enough on your own, especially if you plan on taking 3 day fishing or shopping trips. Donkeys often form pairs and bonds with other animals in their herd and being without their companion or companions is stressful for them.
And they may be easier to care for than horses, but that doesn’t mean they’re maintenance free, or expense free. Their hooves need to be clipped regularly, they need constant shelter available since they have less protection from the elements due to the fact that they were bred for arid environments. They need proper access to grass hay for grazing but not enough to cause founder and obesity since they’re prone to over-eating if food is available in too much abundance. They need a certain amount of grazing hours per day, and constant water available. And those are just the very basics, I could go on for much longer on this topic, but this comment is already getting long.
Donkeys are also not as easy to train as horses, and can exhibit a lot of stubbornness. They also need a lot of enrichment via toys and activities.
I wouldn’t consider donkeys to have almost human lifespans. They live to about 30-35 years on average, which is a larger lifespan than some pet species, but isn’t comparable to humans.
If you want a lower maintenance companion animal with lots of personality then tbh just getting a regular dog or cat would probably fit your intended lifestyle more. You can even leash train them and bring them on your trips if you want.
Thank you for the information, other comments have pointed their need for mental stimulation and companionship. I intend to look into many options, and a fellow donkey mate is on the list of primary considerations. On the subject of donkeys, do you know if they are rather patient? Would they rather walk around or laze about (it depends on the donkey, I bet)? I am trying to picture their behavior, from the minimal amount of research I’ve done. I saw a YouTube video of them galloping and it was very entertaining. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hk0V07YNWxA
EDIT: Donkeys dont sound easy to keep by no stretch of the imagination, and I have alot of time to get acquainted with the volume of work it will take to keep one happy!
I still don’t recommend getting a donkey. 2 donkeys just means twice the work and twice the cost, and they are already expensive high maintenance animals. Like I mentioned before, they are not beginner animals, they’re animals you should only get if you already have significant experience maintaining a farm and working with livestock animals. Before deciding or even planning to get a donkey you should try to get training, or a job or volunteer position, actually working with donkeys and other farm animals for an extended period of time, including feeding, grooming, etc, like a farm hand or something along those lines. Lots of places are willing to train employees who don’t already have experience. And I don’t mean do it for a week or two, I mean do it for a while, learn the routine, and see how much manpower it takes to care for various types of farm animals. No offence but I really get the impression that you’re looking at this from a very idealistic and rather naive point of view as someone who has no idea what caring for an animal like this is actually like. So I think it’s vitally important for you to actually get experience working with animals like donkeys and horses and so on before even considering owning one.
Donkeys are very active, intelligent animals who need lots of stimulation and enrichment. They aren’t the type to laze about at all. They need lots of toys and activities to keep them entertained. They get bored easily. Every donkey’s personality is different. Some are sweet and placid, while others are ornery and aggressive. They need to be properly socialized if you want to reduce the risk of aggression and get them used to human interaction, and there’s also factors that can influence their behaviour like like if they’re a jack or a jenny , and whether they’re gelded or not. You generally shouldn’t keep 2 ungelded jacks together for example, or an ungelded jack and a jenny (not to mention they could end up breeding which would cause a whole host of issues). 2 geldings, 2 jennies, or a gelding and a jenny are usually recommended. And it’s worth noting that donkeys are large animals. Even miniature donkeys are roughly 200-400 lbs, heavier than even the largest dog breeds. If they get aggressive they can do a lot of damage to humans, especially the non-miniature ones. They’ve been known to kill predators like coyotes and wolves, which is why they’re often used as guardian animals for smaller livestock like sheep and goats. In some rare cases they’ve even killed humans, though it is extremely rare. That said, the injuries they cause can be pretty severe. They can kick and bite very hard, break bones, puncture skin, etc.
Even if you are dead set on getting a donkey and don’t want to get experience first via a job or volunteer position, there are many farm animals that I would recommend trying to raise first before moving to donkeys. Ducks, goats, and chickens are good starter livestock. Then you can try bigger ones like sheep and pigs. Then maybe you can think about trying a donkey or two. And a miniature donkey might be a better donkey to try first before considering larger ones.
Im not just saying this for you, because it won’t just be about you, I’m also saying this for the donkey. You cannot decide to get one on a whim. You have to be willing to invest a lot of time and effort into their care. You owe it to the animal, because they have no control over where they live or who cares for them or how well they’re treated. The one with complete control over their life is you. It’s a big responsibility, which means it’s up to you to do your due diligence. Do not just think about this in terms of what you want, think of it in terms of what they need and and if you are capable of providing that. Jumping into it without any hands-on experience is not doing your due diligence. And you need a plan/arrangement from the start for if it doesn’t work out. A friend with a farm or a rescue who’s willing to take the donkey if you find you’re unable to care for it. I’ve known people who wanted to get dogs and were convinced that they could care for a dog, and then found out that they couldn’t even emotionally handle many of the basic requirements like dealing with chewing on a remote or jumping on people. It is extremely difficult to have an accurate idea of what it’s going to be like to care for a pet you’ve never had before from research alone. And compared to donkeys a dog is easy mode.
I cannot emphasise enough that you really need to put a lot more thought into this before saying you want to actually own a donkey imo. A lot the time when people who get donkeys and other similar animals on a whim because they like the idea of owning one it ends up badly for the donkey, who ends up mistreated, or abandoned, or rehomed. Even if they’re treated well while in the person’s care, rehoming them is still stressful for them. It’s not fair to the animal if you put them in that situation.
So if you still decide that you want to get a donkey, then make sure you don’t get one until you have the right experience to know what you’re doing. If you want a donkey, but a donkey isn’t a beginner animal, then you need to make sure you’re not a beginner when you get one.