09 January 2010

No makin fun of my ass: Jenny & Leggo

People often ask me why I don't have trouble with deer in the garden. Or, for that matter, with coyotes. We live in a very rural location, with open fields and woodlands all around us, and there are plenty of both deer and coyotes around. But we have our own built-in critter repellent in the form of our attack donkey, JennyManyAnyLumps, and her horse, Leggo-My-Eggo.

Jenny, it has to be said, is neither smart nor beautiful. In fact, she may possibly have donkey-Alzheimers, as she often forgets where the heck she's going, even from barn to paddock--a distance of maybe fifty feet. In her defence, she's somewhere around 30 years old; she was about twenty when we got her a decade ago to keep my then very young horse company. Leggo is a purebred Morgan, and horses being sociable herd animals, he didn't appreciate being an only child when we brought him from the large stable where he'd been boarded by previous owner. So we looked around, and our farrier told us about a donkey who needed a good home, and we brought Jenny home to be Leggo's buddy.



It was love at first sight. They are devoted to each other, and neither of it likes it when I take Leggo away for a ride. Jenny stands in the barn or paddock and makes desperate sounds resembling a bellows crossed with a foghorn. However, when they're together, Leggo tends to bug her, playing 'herd the donkey' on a daily basis.

Despite her age, somewhat-stunnedness, and exasperation temperament (she moves on Donkey Standard Time, which means when she feels like it, quite annoying if you're trying to get her somewhere in a hurry) Jenny is awesome at coyote and deer detection and repelling. I don't know if she thinks deer are just longlegged coyotes, but she snorts and honks and stamps at them, and she would kick the stuffing out of any coyote foolish enough to try her on. She unfortunately doesn't discriminate between coyotes and golden retrievers, Weimerauners, and even cats, so visiting relatives and friends know not to bring their dogs beyond the fence. Leggo doesn't mind, but in Jenny's mind, they're all coyotes. Our two senior cats who do go out give her a wide berth, and in the barn, she's no problem at all with them.
...when that gets boring, he just goes into flight around the pasture. Watching him gallop, buck, and have a blast gives me great delight.

Leggo likes to play with me too; we play a complex game of tag called 'Fierce Wild Horse' in which I chase him around the pasture, he gallops and bucks and snorts like a dragon, and then comes bouncing back to me if I don't get to where he's paused quickly enough to suit him. He LOVES this game, and gives me the eye hopefully whenever I come out to the pasture to visit.

Jenny looks like she was created by Salvadore Dali, with her funny neck. When we got her, she was living with a bunch of cattle, which were fed grain daily. Jenny liked to clean up the feed after them, and donkeys very curiously don't gain weight all over, but in pads and certain spots, including their toplines or crests of their necks. When the crest gets too heavy, it simply falls over. It's solid, and it doesn't hurt her, and even though she's quite svelte compared to how she was when we got her, it will never go back to its original shape. However, most of us can sympathize with her.

It doesn't affect her agility; she rolls daily, several times usually, and she gallumphs around the field when the spirit moves her to. The past few days, there's too much ice in the field under just a bit of snow, so Jenny and Leggo are both in the barn for their own safety.

Like me, however, they tolerate winter because they know that eventually, spring and summer will come, and they'll have plenty of days to bask in the sun and nibble pasture. They have a good life. Leggo is mostly a pasture potato these days with my knees like they are, but he enjoys a regular game of fierce wild horse, and he's well loved, so it's all good.

40 comments:

  1. These two are so great. :-) It was nice learning more about them.

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  2. Jodi:
    What a wonderful heartfelt and humourous post! They seem so happy together, and they create a wonderfully humorous duo do they not? I am happy to hear that the feline population gives the barnyard a wide berth. Very enjoyable read on a very chilly day, thanks dearheart!

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  3. Wonderful! Your deer detectors are much bigger than mine. Very nice pics and narrative. As you can tell from my blog, I'm a dog person, but I find your cats simply awesome. Allergies keep me away from cats.

    jim

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  4. What a wonderful friends story. They are both beautiful and charismatic. Thanks for sharing.
    Cindee

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  5. I need rabbit detectors, got those? Looks like you have a lovely life up there! Horses are so majestic, but too big for me--I'll keep my cats.

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  6. What a delightful visit with Jenny and Leggo. I hadn't heard anything about them in some time. How odd that donkeys gain weight in their neck. I love that first photo of Jenny. She looks like you gave her lemons. tee hee.... Leggo looks magnificent trotting in the snow. Let's face it, he looks magnificent doing anything.

    Lisa at Greenbow

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  7. I've always heard that donkeys do well at keeping coyotes at bay. There's a small farm nearby that has 3-4 donkeys among the cattle.

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  8. It is so lovely to meet Leggo and Jenny! A very sweet touching post Jodi! I have horse envy! I love seeing Jenny rolling and Leggo galloping. Leggo's game sounds fun! You must get someone to take photos of your playing with him. I would love to see you two playing. I have known other horse and donkey companions and they do seem to love one another. I love this post! Thank you for the big deep smiles! Carol

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  9. What a fun post. The property that joins us to the north has 4 donkeys, on 12 fenced acres.

    This morning the young man we gave permission to hunt on the property across the highway killed a coyote. He saw a big buck but didn't have a clear shot. When he started out of the woods, the coyote just stood there and stared at him. They are a non-native species here and there is no closed season nor limit.

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  10. Fun post and pictures. How wonderful that they play with you. Fierce Horse sounds like a workout-

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  11. Awww, that is such a fun post. I enjoyed it so much. Love seeing the pals.

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  12. What a great post! Thanks for the introduction. I adore donkeys, their personalities are hilarious (unless you *need* them to do something) and they are great watch animals. Leggo is beautiful, my first horse was 1/2 Morgan, it's a great breed. :)

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  13. I HAD NO IDEA!

    You're a horse person! Me, too!

    How did I miss this secret side to Jodi??

    Well, I love that goofy donkey. And, I wish we lived closer together -- actually I always wanted us to live closer together so I could steal cuttings from all of your plants!

    But, now I realize we could go riding together. My nag, Bella, would have loads of fun playing with Fierce Horse. :)

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  14. Oh Jodi...what a thrill looking at your buddies! I've never really known a horse or donkey for that matter...but always wondered about them
    What a joy you have with these two

    you have a good heart ..caring for all these animals
    WOuld love updates on their antics
    thanks so much for such a joyful post

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  15. What a great friendship. No deers or coyote in these parts but I wonder if Jenny and Leggo would see off our squirrrels :)

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  16. Lego is very identifable as a Morgan. :) What a cute pair.

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  17. Oh Jodi - what a hear warming post, I thoroughly enjoyed it.

    K

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  18. What a comical pair they make! I can hear the love in your voice when you write about them. They are very lucky to be in your care. Your post was fun to read!

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  19. I loved meeting Jenny and Leggo, what adorable animals.

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  20. They are both so sweet! I loved meeting them both :)

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  21. I didn't know that a donkey and a horse can be the best of friends. Jenny must be the most lovable donkey I have ever seen.

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  22. What a lovely pair! And it's so nice to see a Morgan; I've only read about them. Australian Stock Horses (our chief breed) are much more lightly built, probably because of our climate. Leggo looks like a very strong fellow indeed!

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  23. My daughter would like to come live with you, Leggo and Jenny. This is a great story of true friendship if I ever read one! Love love love the horsey game, too! Fun!

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  24. What a fun post to read on a cold day. Cute pics.

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  25. Loved the romp around the paddock, Jodi and hope that your long-lived Jenny will continue to live long and prosper, alongside Leggo, you and your family of people and cats. We are close to half past January; Feb will pass in a blink and then it's March and spring will be here! [I have always been an optimist, a few cruel April storms to the contrary]
    cheers,
    maureen

    http://quoddyloopers.blogspot.com/

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  26. Great post Jodi, Leggo is a beauty, I love the picture in the snow. If I was a coyote I wouldn’t want to mess with Jenny either

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  27. Terrific post. Brought a smile with all the fun the 3 of you have.

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  28. This was just the happiest and pleasing of stories, Jodi! I know you have referred to these two often, but I didn't remember the whole background. Jenny's sags are very much like our own, so we can sure connect with her on that level, and find it interesting and beautiful. I bet the coyotes of all sorts stay clear of your place. Leggo is wonderful and a lucky horsey to be living with you. :-)
    Frances

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  29. Thank you for visitng my blog and taking the time to leave a comment.I love the post about the friendship between Leggo and Jenny. When I was very young (not today or yesterday!) my grandparents had a donkey which was yolked to a cart to go to Mass and the town maybe once a week.My Grandfather had the onorous task of catching and tackling the donkey and this could often take longer than the actual journey would!Thanks for the memories.

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  30. It's all good Jodi...What a life our pets and critters lead. They are loved dearly and thrive. Thank you for sharing their story, it's delightful. Keep warm and away from those icy spots...gail

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  31. A heartwarming post about friendship, Jodi. You are blessed to have these 2 delightfully colorful friends and they are blessed to have you!

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  32. Hey Jodi...How wonderful it is that they have a safe and good life with their adopted parents. One day the journey will end but I bet you will be on another with others!

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  33. aaaaaw, this is like the horsey version of the odd couple! i love the games you play with them and how you describe donkey as salivadore dali-esque which i can really see and a lot of shrek's donkey character too! you captured the spirit of your pets very well visually and in words....what a great post!

    noel

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  34. What a great story! I really enjoyed that. They look like a couple of fun characters.

    FlowerLady

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  35. Jodi- what a wonderful story! I love that you rescued Jenny and made Leggo a lifelong friend too! What a nice looking pair. Our two baby mini donkeys run patrol on anything smaller than themselves also. They are getting used to my dogs and no longer try desperately to kill the cats but I do worry about the chickens when the snow recedes and they can come out of the run again. The pygmy goats so far run herd on the donkeys tho, still not sure what exactly they are afraid of but the mother goat seems to find this a fun game!

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  36. What a fun post! Who knew that donkeys were deer-repellents? Jenny's quirks and looks would make a great children's book.

    Leggo is lovely. Sounds like he has a great personality too. I play a version of 'Fierce Wild Horse' in the house with my orange tabby, only we call it 'Run-run' and I don't get nearly the exercise chasing down the hall that you do running around the field.

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  37. Great Jodi - now I know what I need to keep the deer under control -- a donkey and a horse! I'll tell my DH that - I'm sure he'll get a hoot out of it. Love the story of these two. They are just like house pets with all the personality of your cats. Thanks for sharing your family with us.

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  38. Jodi, that was a most enjoyable read, about Leggo and Jenny. They look very happy, it tugged on my heartstrings! You do a wonderful job there.
    The Gardener x

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  39. loved your blog...especially some of the comments, like 'JimArtof Gardening'...too funny...thank-you for sharing & letting us get to know your Jenny & Leggo thru your eyes & heart !

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