Part
2 a -- First Touch: When, Where and How
Donkeys communicate with each other
by body posture, sound,
and touch. We can communicate
with them by using their
language.
The first four to six months of a foal's
life his mother
teaches him manners. She can
comfort him by pressing her
body against his or by putting her
neck over his back. She
can correct him with a low rumble or
stomp of her foot. If
he ignores her warning she will grab
him with her mouth and
give him a shake.
A donkey uses their mouth the same way
we use our hands. We
may not think of the movement of our
hands as an aggressive
motion but to a donkey a hand reaching
for his face is a
threat. When play fighting they
use their mouth to grab the
cheek of the other donkey. This
is an aggressive action and
one we should avoid when making first
physical contact with
a young or untrained donkey.
When approaching a donkey keep your
hands and arms close to
your sides. Do not approach him
straight-on. Move to where
you will be walking toward him at his
shoulder. Read his
body posture and pause if he becomes
anxious. When you are
close enough use your body to nudge
the donkey at the
shoulder. Press against him to
calm him. Move your hands
very slowly to rub his shoulder or
the crest of his neck.
When you touch, touch firmly.
Don't pat and don't pet.
Observing donkeys I have noticed they
are very protective of
their heads and their legs. Avoid
trying to restrain their
head. This makes them feel trapped
and they will panic. It
is important too to remember in the
wild, a donkey with an
injured leg would quickly become a
predator's lunch. It is
this instinct to protect their legs
that makes them resist
having their feet handled. Donkeys
bump into each other,
lean, nudge, and rub. We can
do the same things without
using our hands. Once the donkey
is relaxed and accustomed
to our taller height and our funky
smell, then we can begin
using our hands to imitate their methods
of grooming each
other. If you had access to a
gentled donkey, you could
press your ear to his barrel and hear
him humming while you
groom him with your hands. They
use a variety of verbal
communications, most we can not hear
because the pitch is
beyond our hearing. When you
groom him, hum quietly. The
day he falls asleep while you rub him
is a day to celebrate
because it means you have finally gained
his trust.
click
here
to see the following illustrations:
Photo One:
Identifying donkey postures
Photo Two:
A donkey's reaction to someone reaching toward
his head.
Photo Three:
How a donkey's posture changes when I move from
a threatening
position to a non-threatening position.
Photo Four:
Where to touch.
Vicki/ladywife
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