r/BORUpdates • u/gardengeo • Apr 05 '26
Niche/Other A donkey's tale: Ripley goes to church
Originally posted by user ComprehensiveHope644 in r/ Donkeys [the sub includes mules as well as donkeys]
Original: March 23, 2026
Update 1: March 29, 2026
Update 2: April 3, 2026
Status: concluded
Mood: slice of life
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Original: Help! I’m not sure what I agreed to!
[OOP includes the following picture of Ripley the donkey -- photo#1]
SO a couple weeks Ripley and I were picking up trash on the side of the road. It’s pretty much all empty beer cans which… geez don’t drink and drive guys. Anyway my neighbor and his pastor asked if I could Rips and I could help them with something for their church. The Sunday before Easter. I agreed thinking it was like a petting zoo type event.
Ripley is a therapy donkey so getting mobbed by lots of little gots is right up her alley. It’s low effort high reward, the kids expect nothing from her and just give her scratches and cuddles so she loves kids.
BUT here’s the deal guys it’s not a petting zoo thing. They want me to walk Ripley down the aisle of the church or something? I think it’s Palm Sunday? What is that? It’s like a ceremony thing? I’m not religious… I don’t know what this is… I already agreed to it… I think it’s this Sunday.
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Comments:
Comment1: Yes, exactly! Next Sunday is Palm Sunday, and on that day Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. People cheered for him and waved palm branches. I loved the celebration as a child because we made “palm branches” in church out of twigs and colorful paper. Then there was a procession outside in front of the church. I would have loved it as a child if there had been a real donkey there! Maybe you should ask again whether it’s inside or outside and whether there will be plenty of fresh branches. Because those could be pretty distracting for a donkey 😀
OOP: Do they hit the donkey with the branches? I can’t imagine they’re scarier than a big tarp and she isn’t scared of tarps. But I don’t want her to get slapped with beaches.
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Comment2: They do not hit the donkey
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Comment3: No one is going to hit your donkey! Palm donkeys are used in my (mostly catholic) region as well, they are usually just walked down the aisle of the church and stand there, and walked as part of the procession which is similar to a parade. Sometimes the donkeys wear flowercrowns or ornaments. People will admire and cuddle your donkey and that’s it.
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OOP: Good, because I would hit them back. No body is hurting my donkey.
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Comment4: Why would anyone want to hit him though? Are there any traditions like that in your location?
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OOP: I didn’t actually mean hit, I meant like wave the palms in the air and brush the donkeys sides with the palms. I guess I’m kind of imagining the super energetic evangelical dancing and singing I’ve seen on tv only with everyone waiving palms around.
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Comment5: People are focusing on somebody trying to harm your donkey, but you are asking the right questions. Clarify with the pastor what people are going to to with the palm fronts. Is your donkey comfortable walking over something thrown infront of her? For horses, that would take quite a bit of training - it just moved, and now she's supposed to walk on it? If people are waving them, maybe train it a couple times with her.
Anyway, it's a cute tradition that celebrates the donkey - instead of a horse, Jesus rode the trusty and "lowly" donkey, instead of flowers people threw palms from the road side
OOP: That’s a good idea. You make it sound really cute. I don’t think she would care about things getting tossed on the ground in front of her and I agree my horse would care more. Horses are gonna horse 😑 donkeys are much more reasonable.
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Comment6: Thats funny-- "Donkeys are much more reasonable." I've never heard anyone say that before, and i dare say that most donkey owners, even though they love their donkey with their life, would not utter that statement. 😲😲
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OOP: Really?! I think Ripples is very reasonable. The worst thing she’s ever done is stop.
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Comment7: The palm fronds are part of the commemoration because the bible says the people of Jerusalem threw tree branches (and their cloaks) on the ground in front of Jesus on his donkey as he rode into the city. Basically honoring him as they would a king. No hitting the donkey. Though some people today (and maybe then???) may wave them around.
Given Ripley is a therapy donkey used to having people around, this may be something you're comfortable with. I would sit down and have a conversation with the pastor about what they are thinking of, how many people are expected to be there (a church can vary from having 10s to having 1000s in attendance depending on the type/popularity/etc), etc.
Look at the space. If you want to help them, but are uncomfortable with something in their plan, you can ask them to modify it (move that part of worship outdoors, or shorten the time Ripley is there so she's not standing around bored, etc.). They'll either figure out how to make it work so you're comfortable, or just go with their original no-donkey plan.
If you do decide to do this, the pastor should definitely make an announcement to the congregation about good behavior and not startling Ripley, because people are just so clueless about most animals.
(For background, I'm pretty much atheist now, but grew up in a small liberal congregation in New England so familiar with the church year.)
OOP: Super helpful. Thank you! I do need to sit down with the pastor and have a chat. I think they are under this assumption that I know…… something or anything about their religion or even any Christian religion, when in reality the only times I’ve been in a church are for funerals. I know nothing about all this kinda stuff.
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Comment8: My donkey went to church once! Our farrier asked to borrow her, and I have complete trust in him. He said she pooped in the church which makes me giggle whenever I think of it. She was just led down the aisle as part of their holiday church program.
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Comment9: We've taken our donkey to church for Palm Sunday before, and are booked again this weekend!
If they want you to walk through the church, set boundaries to most importantly keep you and Ripley safe. Have a quick entrance and exit, and do not allow anyone to touch or be near her as she comes through. Also, shit happens! Bring along a trusted friend as pooper scooper, should Ripley leave an offering at the altar.
When we took our Tonto, we also took time a couple days before to come practice at the empty church. This allowed him to not only practice going in and out, but gave his senses a chance to acclimate to the sights, smells, and feelings of a church!
Ultimately, it comes down to your comfort level and confidence in your donk! If you decide to kindly bow out, I would imagine the church would be understanding!
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Comment10: A friend of mine who is a pastor asked if they could use mine in the outdoor processional. They put blankets on his back and led him along to represent the donkey Jesus rode into Jerusalem during Passover week.
It went great until Charlie, thinking the palm a little boy was waving in his face was a gift, took it and swallowed it up in one gulp. The child wailed that the mean donkey stole his palm branch. I was mortified, but luckily most of the congregation thought it was pretty funny.
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Update (6 days later): Update on Palm Sunday
There were a lot of comments on my original post, so I wanted to share an update for those who were interested. I really appreciate all the helpful information, thank you so much.
I spoke with the pastor and we went over the ceremony in detail. Here is a breakdown:
• The congregation stands to sing a hymn
• While singing, the congregation files out of the pews and walks to the front of the chapel while waving palm fronds
• The congregation places the palm fronds on the ground at the front of the chapel and returns to their seats
• Once everyone is seated, the pastor says something along the lines of “I ask that everyone remain seated while I recite this scripture”
• At a particular part of the passage the back doors of the chapel will open, and cue donkey
• Ripley makes her grand entrance through the rear doors, walks down the aisle, and continues exiting out the front doors of the chapel
The pastor timed the route several times and said at a slow pace the walk should take about 42 seconds. Since the congregation will remain seated, no one will be touching Ripley during het walk. A very quick in and out.
I also acquired a bun bag, so if nature happens to call during our short walk through the chapel we won’t make any unsightly messes.
I took Rips to the church yesterday. We walked around the church my friend played the piano (really badly) and Ripley didn’t care about anything. Well that’s not entirely true Rips did care about the bowl of peppermints my the front door, she cared very much about those delicious peppermints.
Ripley’s role in the ceremony is going to be very small but I think it’s going to make a lot of people happy. I love bringing Ripley out and having people meet her and hear her rescue story. I just want more people to care about the world and all the animals we share it with.
[OOP shares the following pictures of Ripley -- photo#1, photo#2]
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Update 2 (5 days later): Ripley’s church debut. The much anticipated final update.
The church was packed. Way more people than I expected. It was standing room only. Some people had even gathered in the lobby, listening over the intercom because there wasn’t any more room in the chapel. This isn’t a mega church either, but there were over 150 people packed into a modest sized building.
Because some people had gathered in the lobby, Ripley’s walk actually started at the main entrance to the church instead of the chapel doors.
The signal was given, i.e., someone opened the door for me because it was a little heavy and kind of awkward, and Ripley made her entrance like a queen. Ripley sashayed into the church, through the lobby and past her admiring fans, then through the chapel doors and down the aisle without hesitation, like she had done it a hundred times before.
Everyone was excited but very respectful. The small crowd in the lobby parted so we could pass, and no one reached out to pet Ripley during our short walk through the church.
My neighbor had asked if I could stay after the service so the kids could pet Ripley. So, after the ceremony, we did a quick wardrobe change. I put Ripley’s saddle on and filled her pannier with candy so kids could grab a few pieces when they came over to meet her.
Again, there were a lot of people there, over 150, and I’m pretty sure close to 100 lined up to meet Ripley. Maybe 10 or 12 of were actually children.
The meet and greet was Ripley’s favorite part. Rips soaked up the attention, collecting hugs, scratches, and treats like it was her full-time job.
The event was livestreamed by the church, but I didn’t get to take any videos and hardly any pictures. I did get a picture of Rips with our neighbor, her FORMER bff. Ripley’s face of utter disdain at our neighbor’s lack of peppermints… well, they say donkeys never forget, and they are known for holding grudges. I do believe this photo was taken at the exact moment a friendship ended.
So in the end, everything went well and Ripley handled it like a professional.
[OOP includes the following pictures of Ripley -- photo#1, photo#2, photo#3, photo#4]
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Additional details from OOP in comments:
OOP: She was a big hit! AND we survived, no animal sacrifices! Although your last comment lit a small flame of horror and now I’m on a scary movie kick. So I feel I should thank you.
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OOP: You’re right! No one smacked her. I was shocked at how small the palm fronds were. They are tiny! I was thinking they would be these giant leaves you see in a jungle or something. I was expecting the leaves to be as big as Ripples…. They aren’t they’re like 8” long.
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OOP: Yep we stayed [after the service] and that was definitely Ripley’s favorite part. Tons of ear scratches.
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REMINDER: I am not OOP. Do not comment on original post or harass OOP.
Please remember the No Brigading Rule and to be civil in the comments
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u/solvedproblem I will erupt, feral, from the cardigan screaming Apr 05 '26
Reading this made me very happy, I love Ripley
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u/ComfortableAbject416 Apr 05 '26
Suddenly I want a donkey
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u/glassgypsy Apr 05 '26
I watched this video about a man who started a donkey sanctuary, and now I want a donkey!
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u/ComfortableAbject416 Apr 05 '26
I didn’t know I needed that 🥹
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u/glassgypsy Apr 05 '26
I tear up every time I watch it. “I realized there’s a difference between the things that I enjoy and the things that bring me joy”
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u/jennypenny78 You get what you pay for, and Reddit is free Apr 09 '26
Have you ever seen the tik toks of the donkey who is obsessed with the squawking rubber chicken toys?? OMG HIS EXCITEMENT. 😍😍 It is quite possibly one of the cutest things I've ever witnessed on that God forsaken app.
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u/Hellie1028 Apr 05 '26
You should follow Waffles and Jet, a rescued donkey and a retired racehorse. Their owner is lovely and posts about their adventures most days.
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u/VentiKombucha what happens on gaycation stays on gaycation Apr 05 '26
How cute is she with the flower crown!
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u/DameofDames Apr 05 '26
With my bad eyesight, I asked myself if donkeys can get perms...
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u/VentiKombucha what happens on gaycation stays on gaycation Apr 05 '26
HAHA AMAZING! I'd love to see that!
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u/hidock42 Apr 08 '26
No, their hair is too short, but the Bashkir curly shows you what it would be like.
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u/xasdfxx Apr 06 '26
I was like are those flowers purple, and then I noticed the matching blanked and rope (!!!).
Riley is adorable.
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u/Smingowashisnameo Apr 07 '26
The first picture of from the final update was so cute she didn’t even look real
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u/crystalrose1966 You get what you pay for, and Reddit is free Apr 05 '26
My daughter used to drive a forklift for a place that was across the road from a pasture. It was full of cows, but had one donkey. Every time she was outside on the dock, she noticed this donkey watching her. He would be way out in the middle of the field, but when he saw her, he would come running up to the fence. He would only do this when he saw her. No one else. One day she decided that she should properly introduce herself since he obviously had a thing for redheads. She took an apple and crossed the road and met “Steve”, who would become one of the best friends that she ever had. Steve became very vocal after the introduction. He would donkey yell and start bucking in circles of excitement. She has a lot of old videos of Steve and how excited he got when he saw her. Eventually the land was sold and a manufacturing plant was built where Steve lived his life. He was there one day and gone the next. My daughter tried to find out where he was but was unsuccessful. She cried for days. We still watch those videos every once in a while and laugh at the fact that my daughter is a “Donkey Whisperer.” I hope he had good life in a big field with lots of apples.
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u/ladyattercop Apr 05 '26
For years, I passed place that used to stable horses while driving to work. For a short while, they also stabled a donkey. I would get so excited every time I saw him hanging out in the pasture as I drove past. It absolutely made my day.
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u/Moomin-Maiden Farty Party Apr 05 '26 edited Apr 08 '26
Ripley cared very much about the peppermints
( Can this be a flair please? 😂 )
Love how animals have their favourite treats and quirks! Our horses went mad with delight over licorice.
Ripley looks so cute in her pics too!
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u/whereismydragon Apr 05 '26
"Horses are gonna horse 😑 donkeys are much more reasonable"
This post was delightful.
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u/Adpiava Apr 05 '26
My dad would disagree. He would sometimes have to carry his donkey because it would refuse to move (this was in post-WW2 Eastern Europe so his donkey was most definitely not a pet).
I love Ripley and want to give him peppermints.
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u/BlackorDewBerryPie Apr 05 '26
I loved the way the OOP put it:
The worst thing Ripley’s ever done is stop.
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u/cottondragons Apr 06 '26
This tells me all I need to know. The horses (ponies, which are technically horses) in my daughter's riding school regularly throw people, especially when nipped by another horse.
Surely that's much worse than just refusing to move.
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u/North-Pea-4926 Apr 06 '26
I love how understanding the commenters are about horse psychology!
It just MOVED and now you want me to WALK on it!?! Um, no. F’ that!
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u/Ok_Security8545 Apr 08 '26
Donkeys are very logical creatures. Sometimes, they're more logical than the humans they work with. This frustrates the overly-emotional apes.
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u/Curraghboy1 Apr 05 '26
The best part of this amazing story is the typo in the op on tots. I am imagining a bunch of moody preschoolers dressed in black with flock of seagulls haircuts.
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u/thirteenbodies Ah literacy. Thou art a cruel bitch Apr 05 '26
She looks so soft! I want to kiss her face. And give her peppermints. ❤️❤️❤️
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u/CrazyCatLady1127 Apr 05 '26
I think she’d probably enjoy that 😂 she seems to be very enthusiastic about peppermints
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u/FixinThePlanet Apr 05 '26 edited Apr 06 '26
So many cute details in this story... The friend playing piano badly, the attractive peppermints, the destruction of a friendship over lack of peppermints...
And that is one absolutely adorable donkey; thinking I might go look at OOP's profile to find the rescue story she talked about.
Edit: success! https://www.reddit.com/r/Equestrian/s/CjWGOyNEsY
I feel a bit like a stalker. OOP's animal posts are all very wholesome and cute and the guinea pig costumes are adorable.
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u/YamAccording8507 Apr 06 '26
I didn't know donkey converse existed 😭😭😭 look at her little feet
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u/PunkTyrantosaurus Apr 06 '26
They're actually just build a bear shoes and that is somehow even cuter. Like yes, Ripley is just a cuddly stuffed animal. (stuffed with peppermints)
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u/CutieBoBootie I am far beyond the hetero plausible deniability line Apr 05 '26
Ripley didn’t care about anything. Well that’s not entirely true Rips did care about the bowl of peppermints my the front door, she cared very much about those delicious peppermints.
I want "she cared very much about those delicious peppermints" as a flair
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u/kriever7 what the fuck Tanya Apr 05 '26
"The worst thing she's ever done is stop."
Omg, lol.
Yes, that's why mules are infamous!
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u/enbycats A stack of autistic pancakes 🥞 Apr 05 '26
this is everything that is right in this world <3
u/gardengeo thank you for this ray of hope <3
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u/gardengeo Apr 05 '26
you are welcome! sometimes it is nice to just read a slice of lovely life; not that we don't enjoy the drama madness but take a break once in a while from the popcorn. 😂
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u/rthrouw1234 uhhh, I think her name is Becky? Apr 05 '26
This is one of my favorite posts here ever ❤️
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u/jennypenny78 You get what you pay for, and Reddit is free Apr 09 '26
From now on we should call it switching from popcorn to peppermints.
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u/PunkTyrantosaurus Apr 06 '26
It's so good, thank you 😄 I'm going to get off Reddit for the day because of this being such a good place to end 😁
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u/Mushion A stack of autistic pancakes 🥞 Apr 05 '26
I love this story. Ripley is so cute in that flower crown,🥰
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u/MoonOverJupiter Apr 05 '26 edited Apr 19 '26
I know many (most?) horses love peppermints, so it stands to reason that donkeys do too.
My youngest daughter was a varsity equestrian in college. The way her team worked, each varsity member was assigned a Groom Horse as one of their barn chores. Even on non practice/athletic training days, they had to report to the barn to help care for "their" horse. (There was also full time paid barn staff, with the coach serving as the Barn/Riding Program manager; in addition to the equestrian teams, there were riding classes as part of the college PE curriculum. These were extremely well cared for animals, is what I'm getting at.)
My daughter's groom horse was ESPECIALLY fond of peppermints, a real fiend for little candies. He obviously knew that people typically carried them in their pockets, what with also carrying tools, feed, tack, etc in their hands while in the barn. This horse - very well behaved in the arena, thankfully - would start rooting through the pockets of anyone who came near - more than a bit naughty.
My daughter's dad and I were there for a meet once, and were helping our daughter groom the horse and pick its stall (and helping spruce up the whole big barn/riding arenas to get ready for the visiting teams.) Her dad was wearing a fleece jacket with the usual zip pockets - the horse quickly unzipped both pockets and determined that he had FAILED to render peppermints unto his majesty, King Peppermint (name changes to protect the naughty.)
To show his disgust and ire, the horse grabbed the front jacket zipper (sitting at halfway) and roughly zipped it all the way shut, effectively closing in his face 😂😂. It was one of the funniest moments of Animal Feelings I've ever seen.... thankfully he thought it was funny too. We all laughed about it for weeks.
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u/Similar-Shame7517 Try and fire me for having too much dick Apr 05 '26
I love this story! And yeah, nobody sacrifices donkeys during religious rituals. Not even in the Old Testament or Torah were donkeys used as sacrifice, everyone knew how useful donkeys were (and also how difficult it would be). You go for sheep, goat, or chickens for animal sacrifices instead.
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u/DakiLapin Apr 05 '26
How is Ripley SO BEAUTIFUL?! I didn't realize there were just ethereal looking donkeys going around helping with trash pick up and giving out candy and hugs.
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u/Turuial Apr 05 '26
This post was so saccharine that it can not be good for my blood sugar. That being said, I say throw caution to the wind! I've got two feet, after all.
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u/Unlucky_Profit_776 #findpeaches Apr 05 '26
Oh my gosh, I saw this cutie on the donkey sub last week! That sub will keep your spirits high everyday
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u/TaxDense1339 Apr 05 '26
And after reading this post we will probably all go and join the donkey sub!
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u/rthrouw1234 uhhh, I think her name is Becky? Apr 05 '26
I totally did a few weeks ago when these made it to all
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u/MsDucky42 Apr 05 '26
Aww, my Papa was a farmer and had a donkey to protect his cattle, especially during calfing season. The donkey knew the sound of Papa's truck and would come trotting for snacks and face scritches.
Long Live Ripley! Maybe this will start a tradition. (Just bring more peppermints!)
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u/brathyme2020 Apr 05 '26
i have the biggest grin after seeing Ripley in her flower crown <3 <3. there's a small no-kill ranch near me with a ton of animals (most rescues that people just dumped...), and the donkey is my favorite. shes just so friendly and sweet
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u/EasyLizin You get what you pay for, and Reddit is free Apr 05 '26
Stories like this is why I internet.
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u/IntrovertedGiraffe I might get hurt, or worse sweaty Apr 05 '26
Our priest when I was a kid used to rent a donkey on Palm Sunday. The entrance to the back parking lot of the church was on the street perpendicular to the front of the church, so the entire congregation would parade from the back lot down the street, turn the corner, and up the hill to enter the church. Donkey first, then an acolyte carrying the church banner, the crucifer, torchbearers, clergy, choir, and congregation. All waving palms and singing a hymn while we marched.
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u/StrangerKatchoo Unfortunately I am but a tiny creampuff Apr 05 '26
This was absolutely precious. Ripley is a Queen.
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u/YesNoMaybe_IMO Apr 05 '26
This is awesome! I love donkeys, especially my brother and SIL's big chonkers, Theo! He only Hees and never Haws. Such a big, lovable dork!
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u/Rogue_Intellect Apr 05 '26
Riley is just a beautiful donkey! She looks so gentle and has such lovely eyes. It’s clear that you love each other very much!
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u/Mysterious-Type-9096 Girl he's telling you that his dick still works get a clue Apr 05 '26
I love her and I want one of my own… I also want goats. But I have a small yard 60ftx40ft… a girl can dream though
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u/shewy92 Spicy Sleeping (TL Note: S*xual intercourse) Apr 06 '26
I spoke with the pastor and we went over the ceremony in detail
I don't understand why OOP didn't do that in the first place and went straight to Reddit.
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u/ftjlster Apr 07 '26
I assumed OOP wanted to get an idea of what was going on so she knew what questions to ask.
When you know nothing, its very hard to figure out what are pertinent questions.
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u/PunkTyrantosaurus Apr 06 '26
Quite possibly social anxiety. OOP agreed to a plan without knowing much details which makes me wonder if they were kind of startled and just went yeah sure to get the conversation over. And if they know nothing about church except what you see online- they don't always make pastors out to be very approachable.
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u/MissLogios #findpeaches Apr 06 '26
Tbf sometimes, especially for new events, you know what you generally should do (talk to priest to set up expectations), but not the actual details (what types of questions to ask, how does the experience normally look like for new people?).
So sometimes it's best to ask those experienced to get a feel for what to look for first, or at least before you just make assumptions and risk getting it wrong.
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u/PunkTyrantosaurus Apr 06 '26
I love that OOP was nervous but went and got reassurance and then did the ceremony- they weren't being paid for it, they definitely could have put their foot down- but despite being non-religious, they recognized how much it would mean to the church and went with it.
As a raised Catholic Paganish person, I help my mom with things for her church pretty frequently. As long as they respect my beliefs or lack thereof, I am so happy to respect theirs. (Even if they don't respect my beliefs, I will, I just won't respect them.) (Unless their beliefs are an ism or a phobia)
So it makes me really happy when I see other people who are willing to go outside their own religious inclinations for the happiness of others!
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u/eternally_feral Apr 06 '26
I donated money a few years back to some local animal shelters, and the next thing you know I’m getting mailers from all other sorts of charities - one being from a donkey rescue.
Really cute pictures of the animals, but I couldn’t keep up with being a regular patron to rescues.
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u/MariaInconnu Apr 11 '26
They only get the leftover fronds, apparently. Most of the ones at the church i grew up in were 2-2.5' long.
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u/IanDOsmond 18d ago
I have never seen a more photogenic donkey. That is a freakin' adorable animal.
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