The curious donkey

Just after I finished tending to the garden for a brief while after work yesterday, the donkeys ambled up from their favorite spot in the pasture. Time for a visit. These early evening visits are a treat - a chance to walk around together, or perhaps a time for brushing and feeding. The donks are especially keen on the possibility of a treat: hay, carrots, or an apple - heck, even a weed seems to taste sweeter when it is eaten from the hand.

This evening, Molly rolled in the dust bath, while Ambrose pestered me with nudges, seeking out a hoped-for treat. Since I'd brought no treats with me, I hoped a good ear-scratching might content him, and that's how I was occupied when I heard rustling from near the entrance to the old groundhog burrow about 40 feet away.

That accursed groundhog! It had recently reopened the hole that we have been regularly filling in ever since Keith stepped knee-deep into it nearly two years ago.

That bold groundhog deserved a good scaring off, so I walked towards it, eager to surprise it. Ambrose heard the rustling, too, and followed. Good! He had found something else to direct his attention to besides pestering me for treats.

I approached the hole quietly. At a distance of about 25 feet, I saw the foraging critter. A skunk. A big skunk. Big.

It saw me, too, but seemed calm enough, though watchful. I backed away as quietly as I had come.

But not Ambrose. He had seen the skunk, too, and judging by the way he had his ears cocked forward as he stared at the stranger, he was intrigued. He slowly approached the skunk. I held my breath.

As Ambrose continued towards the skunk, it turned to face him - which was better than if the skunk had turned the other way 'round. I managed to break out of my trance in order to call out Ambrose's name to no effect. I then whistled - the same whistle I use to let him know it is time for hay. No dice. He wanted to check out the skunk.

The skunk ducked down its hole, but Ambrose kept approaching. He peered into the burrow. Surely, this would end in disaster.

Time for action. I turned around and walked towards the barn, not because I was fleeing the scene, but because going to the barn is as sure a sign of impending hay than anything else, and might be enough to take his attentions away from the dang skunk.

It worked. Molly and Ambrose followed me to the barn. No donkeys received a dose of skunk perfume.

We're wondering if this is the same skunk that had been plaguing our basement up until a month or so ago. Time to plan our next campaign.

Comments

[peppylady]

Your Donkey is cute.

[Birdsong]

What a great story! I too have been hoping to avoid a donkey-skunking, as I never did succeed in coming up with a remedy to clean up a dog, and a donkey is sure a lot bigger... good luck dealing with your freeloading skunk.

[Rachel]

Whoa! Good thing Ambrose didn't get skunked!! Ha! Poor thing. That would have been awful.

[Michelle]

Living in East Texas, I am all too familiar with skunks. I would drive by one that had sprayed somewhere almost every morning on my 20 mile commute to school. I figure if it smells that bad at a distance, I never ever want a close encounter. Good thinking. BTW, the babies are darlin'.

[Kelly]

A knitter and donkey lover??? I scored on this one :) I'm a knitter as well as a donkey lover. I was searching for donkey stitch markers and happened upon you blog. Your donkies are gooooooorgeous! Luckily you don't have to tomato juice bath ambrose lol

[Ken]

Hello Janis,
I hope for that for you and Keith, your summer is full of fun distractions from the web.

I am sure you are busy maintaining the lovely farmett and attending to the needs of those adventurous donks in the back. Not to mention needing to fend off other uninvited critters.

Also hope that the heavy rain and flooding I've heard about in the Washington DC area has missed your farm.

(Maybe like you) It seems like I've lost much of my interest in the web in the past year. Lately when I open the IE browser, I check one or two sites, and am reminded of that TV commercial where the guy turns the web page and is then confronted with "You Have Reached The End of the Internet". Just seems remarkably dull of me not to find more interesting sites on the web.

As for me, I continue to enjoy unicycling, fitting in a daily ride of 2 to 8 miles weather and work schedule permitting. The beauty of it is that most everyone smiles as I past on the big 36inch wheel.

So I hope all is well down on the farm, Take care.

[Jerry]

The donkeys are heading out all over. I think I reported that there are five (now six) minihorses at a place down the road. One day we saw a donkey (smallish, but probably not a mini) in a stall. He lived there alone except for visits from the minis for a couple weeks. He got the afternoons on the pasture, and the minis got the morning shift. Now, he is being allowed to mingle all day long, along with a little pony that has been newly acquired. Quite a group..

The folks that have them are swell people, and they are all rescued animals, some with horrendous stories. We're always glad to see a new arrival, because that means another critter is safe!

The last time I stopped by, they had just gotten the sixth. The lady that owns them told me he did one trick, and would I like to see it? Of course I did, and she said. "Trick, baby." He walked over to a half barrel and put his front feet up on it. I asked if that was the trick, and she grinned and said, "Yes." So I went over and petted him and praised him up big time for his trick. He seemed really chuffed and got down and then up again so I had to do congrats again.

What a marvelous world we have...I wish more people appreciated it like you and your readers do!

[Kay]

I am babysitting two donkeys for a few weeks and they are cute. Their job seems to be to play and eat all day. They are very curious about what I am doing or who is visitng the farm.
I have read some of your posts and find them entertaining. I love this country life. After retiring from civil(?) service it is so calming, my spirit soars.
Kay