They Are Family (a tribute to Ginger)

The most common question I get asked from people who find out we raise donkeys is, "What do you do with them?" There are several answers that we have come up with like, they keep the weeds down, we walk them and play with them, we have therapy sessions with them, we show them. But most recently it has hit home that they are members of our farm family. They are more than pets. Each one has a distinct personality from the others and we have learned what we can expect from each one, even down to the new foals. They have a way of communicating that is so loving and non judgemental. This is why it was so hard to make the decision to put down our sweet Ginger girl.

As a newborn, Ginger had some mental and physical setbacks that started her off at the vet. She bounced back for a time but then she really started to have trouble with her feet. It seemed like she had some degeneration going on and had zero muscle strength to keep her back feet upright. They would roll to the side and we knew she was in pain. We attempted specialty trims on her hooves and a few different kinds of shoes. Each time we tried something new she seemed to improve for a time which gave us hope.

Since she was a newborn, Ginger has had issues with her back legs.

The vet showed us how to glue on plastic shoes that helped Ginger walk correctly. These had to be replaced regularly.

She was so friendly and loved people more than any of our other donkeys. We wanted to be able to use her for therapy if we could only help her walk better.

We took her to a birthday party when she was 10 days old and she loved the kids!

She was also fearless. She was never afraid of our tractor and would plant herself right in front of it as we were driving through the barnyard. There was a time when we were at the vet and a vet tech came out with two dogs that were not leashed (dogs and donkeys are generally not a good mix). The dogs were the same size a Ginger and I was slightly anxious to see what would happen. Her ears were pricked forward but she didn't even flinch with nervousness. As one dog came up to sniff her, without the slightest warning, Ginger's back leg shot out and nailed that dog square in the chest. He yelped and ran off and Ginger acted as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. (The dog was just fine, though a little wiser, and the vet tech said that was the coolest thing she had ever seen).

Ginger's legs worked for kicking dogs but not for walking. We took her in for an x-ray and discovered a mess with her coffin bone and other ankle bones and knew there was so much scar tissue built up along with arthritis. We had done everything we could and it was a matter of time.

From that last vet check, it has been four months. Ginger would lay down more and more each day and didn't like to leave the barn to eat; it was just too much painful work. I think it was her way of telling us she was done.

On the morning of July 28, 2022, our hearts broke as we said good bye. She was one of the family that touched us more than we can describe. To say she will be missed doesn't even begin to explain how we feel.

We love you little Ging.