Abe is a four-year old little mule we rescued along with four wild foals last year when they were in danger of being sent to slaughter. Abe was completely unhandled by humans, and it’s taken a long time to get him to trust anyone.
We sent Abe to a trainer for about nine months so he could learn how to be caught, how to pick up his feet for the farrier, how to load into a trailer and all the other things a little mule should know. He “kind of” understood when he was being taught, and it still takes between three to five minutes of him spinning around while we stand next to him until he will stop for us to put the halter on him. It used to take us 30-45 minutes to catch him, however, so things are actually going pretty well!
Abe enjoys running around in the round pen.
Abe is still tentative outside of his stall and we limit the time we walk him around the property in case he gets scared and bolts, but he sure likes to get out into the round pen and run around! He is getting so good about being able to walk around the ranch on the line – if he gets scared or uncertain, he just stops and refuses to move, but he’s getting much better about trusting us outside of his stall, too!
We let Abe run around on the line while he’s in the round pen – we don’t pull on it at all – and he’s able to run around and get his energy out! The only reason we still keep a line on him is so we don’t have to chase him, which keeps everything positive. He’s learning that he can stand quietly while we walk up to him, and he knows he doesn’t need to run away.
Abe really loves volunteer Erin.
She spends time with him in his stall, just hanging out with him, and doing some energy/massage work with him. His stall is the first one you get to when coming up our driveway and when Erin arrives, he watches her hoping she’ll come say hi.
Abe has discovered one of the finer things in life: Apples.
When he arrived after his time “at school” he would never even look at you. But apples are the great equalizer and he soon realized that a nice human arm with an apple at the end of it isn’t so bad after all.
Mules are known to be difficult and stubborn, and while Abe is definitely both of those, he is also a gentle boy and never tries to do anything malicious. We’ll continue to work with little Abe and hopefully he will begin to trust people completely.
If you haven’t sponsored a Hanaeleh horse before, now is your chance to really make a difference by sponsoring little Abe. Your sponsorship makes a huge impact by providing his hay, grain and supplements to keep his coat nice and shiny! And, of course, his vet and farrier care.
You can sponsor Abe for as little as $10/month right here. You’ll get a photo of little Abe and updates whenever you wish.
YOU CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE in this little boy’s life. Set up your tax-deductible monthly sponsorship today!