Flower & Cheyenne Go Home

Donkeys are social animals and need the company of other animals. Pepita arrived at Onas to befriend Paco, the original Camp Donkey. When Paco passed away, Pepita had Puddy the pig as a friend, and when Puddy the pig passed away, we knew we needed to find a new friend for Pepita.

I found someone that was looking to rehome her donkey and for a brief period, a Donkey named Dobbie stayed with Pepita. That arrangement didn’t work out because Dobbie was young, rude, and bullied Pepita. Fortunately, it all worked out because Dobbie’s owner was happy to take him back, as she had missed him while he was away. When he heard her vehicle come down the drive, with his custom trailer in tow, he gave out a huge bray...something we hadn't heard him do during his time with us.

So I was back to finding a suitable donkey friend for Pepita, and I stumbled upon a Facebook post from Aaron and Kelly, who were looking to rehome two donkeys they’d rescued from a bad situation in western PA. Aaron was there to pick up a friend’s horse and wasn’t expecting to bring two donkeys home, but he bartered with the farm owner who agreed to let him take them. Aaron wasn’t really looking to take on two more mouths to feed, but he had compassion for the donkeys and wanted to help them. 

Aaron and Kelly arranged for the girls to live at a farm, with the condition that the donkeys would be returned to them if the farm could no longer keep them. After six years, the donkeys came back to Aaron and Kelly, which is how their Facebook post reached me, and Cheyenne and Flower came to Onas. 

We really weren't looking for two donkeys, but Cheyenne and Flower are tightly bonded to each other so we agreed to give it a try. We signed a free lease agreement with Aaron & Kelly stating we would take care of all the donkeys’ needs, including their food, medical, and grooming care, and the agreement could be ended by either party at any time. 

As for their care throughout their 10 years with us, I thoroughly enjoy taking care of animals and take this responsibility very seriously.  Miniature Mediterranean donkeys are far more fragile than most people know and caring for them becomes more complicated as they age. We found out near the start of her time with us that Flower has a life-threatening allergy to a routine vaccine when she went into anaphylactic shock after receiving it. Cheyenne began exhibiting symptoms of a thyroid condition which blood work confirmed, and was on medication for several years until we got it under control. Like horses, donkeys require routine, specialized care. I arranged for a farrier every 10-12 weeks for feet trimming and their teeth were "floated" once a year by one of the best equine dentists in our area (who donated this service every year - Thank you Mr. Schultze!).  Horse and donkey teeth never stop growing, and must be filed down yearly and sharp points leveled off. Every spring, the vet would do a wellness check and routine vaccines.

After Pepita passed away last year, Cheyenne and Flower seemed like they, too, needed more social time with others. They began bickering more than they used to without another friend to round out their social group. 

The picture above shows them smiling in their new stable at home, where they have more friends to hang out with and get great care and a lot of love from Aaron and Kelly, who send me pictures of them pretty often. And while I miss them, I love seeing how happy and healthy they look. 

      - Lisa