Bluegrass Burro Rescue

Donkeys crack me up at times. They are so different from horses. I put 4 piles of hay out- where do the girls go? Of course to share one pile! 😂 Wilma is integrating into the Rosita/Bonita clique, and that makes me so happy. It will be hard when they go to their new home, and Wilma is left by herself. I’m hoping our girls will allow Wilma to join them.

Congratulations to Hattie on her new home! I’m so proud of how far she has come since she’s been here. We wish her and her adopter all the very best!

Trigger warning- death photo-

I thought I’d share a moment that reflects how intelligent animals are, even though it’s very sad.

Wilma was separated from her daughter Pebbles for one night prior to the vet coming. She hollered all night. It made for a long night, listening to her braying.

When it was determined that Pebbles was suffering terribly and there was no hope, we made sure that Wilma did not see when Pebbles was euthanized.

After the vet left, Ashlyn brought Wilma to see Pebbles, to show her that she had passed. I cropped the photo so Pebbles’ body is not seen, but she passed so peacefully and immediately. We are so grateful to our vet for that.

Wilma sniffed her daughter, stood there for a few minutes, processing it all. Ashlyn let her take all the time that she needed. Finally, Wilma walked away.

Since then? Wilma has not once hollered for Pebbles. She knows that she is gone from this earth. Had we not shown her Pebbles’ body? Wilma would always wonder where she is, and would continue to cry for her. By allowing her to understand that Pebbles was gone, Wilma is able to move on.

Here are Pebbles’ radiographs and some information on what’s wrong with them-

The imaging of Pebbles’ right forelimb shows what was happening internally:

-Rotation downwards of P3, also known as the distal phalanx, the coffin bone, or the pedal bone.
-Improper angling of P2, also known as the middle phalanx or the short pastern bone.
-A bone spur on the front of P2.
-The incorrect angles of P2 and P3 causing the navicular bone to rub against the back of P2.
-Mottling/breakdown of the bone density of P3.

Externally, we could see:

-Lack of toe (one of the main contributing factors to her pain).
-Minimal heel to be removed to relieve some of the pressure on her toes.
-We could also feel where her soft tissues were started to bulge from the strain placed on them from the incorrect angles.

A combination of these factors had her in pain while walking, despite our efforts for pain management and hoof growth.

We could have opted for a deep digital flexor tenotomy- a surgery that cuts the deep digital flexor tendon to stop the tendon from pulling on P3. Even combined with corrective trimming, she still had a low success rate. This would have been a long and painful process for her, and with all contributing factors in mind, we felt that humane euthanasia was the best course of action for her. Some people will disagree with this decision, but at the end of the day, the comfort of the animal is our priority and it was not fair to keep Pebbles in pain.

Run free in the greener pastures in the sky, Pebbles. 💙

Today sucked, to put it bluntly. Pebbles was laid to rest after X-rays revealed that the damage to her hooves were too far gone. She was in horrible pain, and we could not let her continue to suffer. She was such a sweet donkey, right to the very end. Our hearts are broken, not only for ourselves, but for her mom, Wilma. This is the heartbreak side of rescue, when even our best efforts aren’t good enough. 💔😭

A long but productive day here at the rescue! One of the new boys had his tag taken off, the rescues had a visit from Wilbers farrier service LLC, and then Hattie and Wilma had some loading practice- which they did great with!

The new boys were getting a little impatient while waiting for their dinner tonight! 😆 They’re already starting to get more curious and confident. We can’t wait to start working with them!

I just love how donkeys share! The 4 new burros are joined at the hip- lol! They all eat from the same hay bag, even though there are multiple. Those yellow grain pans? Well, those are still a bit too scary to try yet. They will figure it out! 😁
Then there are Jed and Jethro, sharing the same hay pile too. Donkeys are so different from horses. 🩷