I'm beginning to think that Paladin might be the smartest donkey I've ever seen. Yesterday everyone was out & about for the day. John was working outside in case things got out of hand, with our "Wild Child". John said the dogs started barking & he saw Frijolita, Daisy, & Hanna trotting across the wash. They came around the pens into John's area & then headed for the house. John looked around & didn't see Paladin or anything that would have caused them to run, so he went back to his business.
A little while later I heard the dogs barking & went out to see the girls running in the driveway. When I called to them, they came running to me. Just then I saw Paladin running across the wash from behind the pens, headed for Burroland at a high rate of speed. "Darn it, I think they saw me this time"..............!!!! It seems he has figured out we can't always see him, & seems to know where he can be & not be seen.
I would love to find the perfect home for him, someone that wanted to devote their time to working with him. He is so quick to learn (good or bad) & really enjoys being around people. Of course he also enjoys playing with the donkeys too. He seems to be very intelligent, thoughtful & willing. I've only seen him spook once & that was a little boy. I doubt if he had ever seen a child before. But he is a challenge at this time in his life because he is so full of himself. He needs someway to use up all that excess energy, besides being obnoxious. Ha!
He & Gus have been playing a lot lately, & this morning we noticed Gus has some swelling & a bloody place underneath his belly at the flank area. I'm not sure but after watching the geldings play I think one of their favorite tricks is to go for the "boy" parts. I would imagine in the wild they try to rip the scrotum when they are fighting for dominance. One way to cut down on the competition for the girls I would imagine........... YUCK! Of course the geldings don't have much to grab, so the surrounding area suffers, if someone like Paladin is particularly aggressive.
Of course Gus is one of those, that thinks if you start messing with him, you are probably trying to kill him, & he goes into protective mode. And he's big & strong enough to make his point perfectly clear. Consequently, I didn't get a very good look, noticed some swelling, a little blood, a lot of hair in the way. So I sprayed vigorously with betadine, dabbed a little with a rag, which was when he decided I was trying to kill him, & consider it doctored at least for now. We'll watch it for a few days to make sure he's OK. He's suppose to go to his new home next week, so it would be nice if he was still in one piece by then.......!!!
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