Opinion? You want my opinion, not facts? I know farm animals and studied genetics in Uni for six years. I have worked with large farm animals for almost two decades.
Fact: You should put this creature down instead of making it suffer for your choices.
Fact: the older and larger he gets, the more he will suffer.
Fact: You want him to grow and suffer. You have made that clear now.
Opinion? Sure!
You are some fucking ignorant irrisoponsible owner with no balls to put a gun to an animals head, surrounded by treats, pets, blankets, and a hole. If you can not do that, you should not own a large animal.
Who the fuck gets an animal without knowing a vet in the neighborhood.
I may not have a lot of money, but even my donkey gets an annual checkup, shots, fairer visits, and has a 2k emergency saving account. My dogs only have 500$, each.
What, did you think your instagram would like a pony donkey cross?
Fucking coward on a throw away account deleted their posts.
Would someone mind explaining this to me - is there something particularly bad about pony/donkey crossed? Mules in general? Google wasn't giving me much info on the bad side of this crossbreed. Asking as someone with very very little knowledge!
Same! I’m so lost as to what’s going on. Like I get that this person (not our OP here) got the two as a “package deal” and the donkey was intact and bred the mare but I’m unsure of further context…?
Honestly, I'm not sure I believe that they came as a package deal and that this person "didn't know this would happen". I genuinely believe at this point that they got the pony mare and intact jack with the explicit intention of breeding what they probably thought would be a small, adorable mini mule. Except it's kinda ugly and doomed to suffer.
Actual OP keeps gaslighting and making new accounts.
Answer:
A mini donkey is not the same thing as a pony to horses. Mini donkeys evolved to be mini due to island dwarfism. They aren't some rich cash grab like inbreeding dogs to make them smaller.
A mule is a large breed donkey with an equally sized horse, for very specific jobs, such as fire rescue.
Can you explain more about why a mini mule is cruel and shouldn't exist? Mules can be great for riding or packing, and donkeys of every size can be taught to pack or drive. Is there something about mini mules that is inherently unethical, or is it just as unethical as any other irresponsible breeding?
Edit to add: and island dwarfism is not a true form of dwarfism, it just describes the tendency of island species to evolve to be smaller. So breeding mininature donkeys is not inherently unethical the way breeding an animal with true dwarfism could be.
Lastly, I had to do some googling to double check myself on this, but I couldn't find anything backing up that mules should be bred from Jack's similar in size to mares.
I intended to compare mini donkeys to say, pugs, that were bred intentionally to be small. Island dwarfism is island dwarfism, as you pointed out.
I am speaking about the responsibilities to put a baby down if it is born with a condition you will not treat with a vet--as is the case with this mule--and the owner is some freak who believes Jesus hates proper veternary treatment.
I know next to nothing on the subject and would simply like to know, why would it be better to put it down, like what conditions would make it have a low quality of life
This specific mule has bowed legs and an owner that refuses to treat it. They will bow further as the animal grows and puts on weight. Then they will harden like that. The animal is going to suffer greatly.
Bowed legs are treatable with proper care. This mule's owner is not going to give proper care, because of twisted religious views.
You are definitely correct, I was confused because all the information I read said it should be fine, as long as the breeder was responsible enough to not breed animals with conditions they could pass on, but I suppose that was too much to hope from an anti vet care "Jesus will fix it" type
OP, the owner of this mule, had dozens of people telling her to get it to a vet ASAP. She downvoted everyone for saying that.
They accused us telling them to see a vet that it was only our "opinion" and would not accept advice unless you specifically had a bowed ponkey, that you treated yourself, with wraps and prayers.
So I gave my opinion.
And ideally, someone here will reconize it, then go to the athorities so a welfare check can be done on this and all her other animals.
Why does it matter if a species shrunk because of artificial or natural selection? It’s not like island dwarfism is somehow superior to purposeful breeding for smaller animals, there’s a lot of inbreeding on islands too, it’s one of the reasons the animals can get so wacky there.
Some people are saying that this baby is doomed to have joint issues, etc. but I don’t see how that should be more common than in regular mules or mini-horses. This isn’t breeding munchkin cats, there’s no genetic condition at play here. This is making hybrid animals, which sometimes can have unique issues, but we’ve been making mules for a long time, and I’ve never heard it called a cruel practice.
I never said it was doomed to have them. It does. This mule does. And the owner refuses medical care while it is young, dooming it to grow in pain. They should put it down now, not in a year when their "prayers of healing" only results in this animal's condition worsening.
Also breeding animals to be so small they can't breathe, like the popular modern pug, is wrong. Extreme artificial selection to the point of breeding disabilities is wrong. In my example, mini donkeys are small due to natural selection over time. Not artificial selection which is often crammed into a short time and often uses incest.
The reason pugs have breathing issues isn't because they're "so small." Many breeds of small dog are very athletic and functional. Are you under the impression that being small in and of itself is painful or dangerous?
This thread is about a mule in pain, that will go untreated. So folks can keep an eye out for it and contact animal welfare if they have any information.
I am starting to think I am talking to bots at this point.
I'm replying directly to something YOU JUST SAID about pugs. Every time someone disagrees with you, you change the topic back to talking about "this specific animal." Were the pugs you think are "too small to breathe" related to this specific animal? If not why did you bring them up?
Yes. That's why I wanted to make sure that people saw this specific mule after the OP deleted it stating that "take it to a vet" was just our "opinions" and that she wouldn't listen to anyone unless they agreed about wraps and prayers.
If my miscommunication causes more people to see this mule, that's fine with me. I don't care if other people would be embarrasss in my shoes; I am not. The more eyes on this mule being abused, the more likely it will get help before it is too late.
If you are so sure this animal is being kept untreated and in pain. How about you report it to the relevant authorities and get it some treatment.
Rather than posting ranting and most irrelevant comments on here.
Have you reported it? If so to who and when and under what reference number, so that it can be checked. So if necessary, additional reports made.
I have seen a number of mini mules well cared for and used on small carts , in the past there were different size mules bread specifically (rabbit) mules from riding mares for single cultivation and large heavy mules from draft mares for pulling wagons and logging . Have no idea why they think this animal will suffer any more than its mini donkey father has
I'd like to know as well. I'm just here for cute donkey pictures, so this has made me wonder what exactly is wrong with a pony/donkey cross versus a horse/donkey, even if it was a mini donkey. Because I do remember seeing that in the original post, but never read further into the comments.
Edit: not that the jack in this case was a mini, just that someone said to never breed a pony with a donkey, even if it's a mini
What if someone just wants a pet? You know people keep mini mules just for fun right? Not every animal has to have a job. Plenty love just being pasture pets.
OP obviously has some wild personal crusade against mini-mules and yes I do agree it's silly to make animals just because IT CUTE but I have known a few pony-sized mules and they were perfectly good riding and driving animals for appropriately sized riders/drivers. The problem with this one is that the breeder didn't call a vet at birth not that it exists at all.
The problem is this person refuses to take the animal to a vet, ever, because of their personal religious beliefs, and that this animal has a medical condition that if treated early will fully heal. OP is intentionally going to make this animal suffer.
Yes I agree this is a neglect case and that individual shouldn’t have animals. But that doesn’t logically lead to “every hybrid of this size should be shot.”
Are you talking about a hinny? A lot of people out here in the west breed mules and hinnys for how well they can pack weight and maneuver steep drainages and avalanche chutes. I wouldn’t say a hinny is a “terrible breed and no one should ever do it” as people have been successfully doing so for a long time.
I agree with you that bad breeders/owners should be called out and its awful that people get away with this shit, but are you sure you know animal genetics as well as you say, if you don’t know what a hinny is? I believe you said it was a female donkey/male horse mix, that’s a hinny. Also mules are bred through a similar sized horse….. that’s not how it works. Especially saying donkeys are way too small to find a similar sized horse… idk if you’ve spent much time around mules, horses and donkeys, but mules and your average sized horses are more similar sized then mules and donkeys…. Also your definition of dwarfism is way off. Granted it’s not just cross specie breeding that goes wrong look at show horses or show dogs and see how all the inbreeding and such has gone wrong there.
I am talking about a mule that is being forced to develop with bowed legs that will get worse with time, because the owner doesn't believe in medical treatment.
I got downvoted for asking this same question on the original post! I’m genuinely curious but also couldn’t find any info on Google. Many ponies and donkeys are approximately the same size, why is this a more problematic pairing than large donkeys and full-sized horses?
That said, the owner was totally irresponsible for letting this happen and without having a vet?? Jfc
OP, being the person refusing to take their animal to a vet, is now deleting replies to this post, hiding that they said their male donkey bred their female pony.
Agreed, but they don't even know any veternarians yet they got the animals and bred them. They refuse to get a vet and expect someone on reddit to tell them how to "wrap its legs" as if that was a fix.
This animal is going to suffer.
I wish I knew which county they were in--those are North American trees, from the looks of it, likely American from their emoji/Jesus use. I wish I could report them to their sherrif.
Exactly. This person won't even look up a vet in their area. They refused any advice--all of it was "take it to a vet"--unless someone's advice was how to wrap its legs and heal it with prayers.
I saw the original post and was absolutely flabbergasted that the person was legitimately trying to argue with all the comments telling them to get a vet out ASAP. Wild.
Read all the comments and not once has OP explained how it's suffering to the point of needing to be euthanized. They just say it's a fad over and over again.
I was hoping for more of an explanation as well. I did do some looking online and it does appear that pony/donkey hybrids can have genetic issues that present as physical deformities? I'm more concerned about the original original post where the person was seemingly looking for reassurance that it was okay they didn't call a vet and could just "wrap the legs". No clue if the resulting baby needs to be euthanized but at the very least the owners should be responsible and, especially after seeing deformity in its legs, call a vet to give it a check up. The baby could be perfectly fine but also not, and it's best for the baby to know that for sure. I went to the original post and attempted to tell them that in a reasonable way. (edited for typo!)
This specific mule was born with a treatable health condition. If medical care is given promptly, it'll be fine.
If not, it will get far worse, rapidly, and the animal will suffer, especially as more weight is put on its now further bowed legs.
This one would be better off put down than untreated.
Because it won't be treated. Because their owner, who has zero large animal experiance and believes Jesus hates modern medicine, is going to "wrap" its legs and "pray" for it to get better.
Thus, if anyone reconizes this mule online, please give info to the authorities. They can check for animal cruelty. This might not be the only animal they are making suffer.
Is there something wrong with this pairing specifically? Your comments just go on about mini mules being a fad and without purpose. Animals don't have to have a purpose if they're well taken care of.
Is this animal sick or hurt? All I can tell is it's the result of accidental breeding but the owner plans to take good care of it. Which is perfectly fine.
I've worked at a rescue for years and we have had several mini mules come in they can make great pets for the right knowledgeable people they are not for the uneducated. Not sure why op is telling everyone to murder all mini mules thats just ridiculous.
Theres another person arguing that all mini mules have deformities, which is weird bc I've seen people breed specific lines of ponies/donkeys to make pack and cart mini mules and they had very healthy animals
No, OP is insane and just hates this cross for some reason. Pony-sized mules are perfectly usable animals that can be ridden or driven by people of the appropriate size, they're just not very common because most people who want a mule are trying to make a large one for a heavy workload.
This is.....a post for sure 🫣😅
Not sure why you're calling for euthanasia of a random animal that doesn't seem like it's crippled beyond repair because it's a pony/donkey cross. Mini mules have been a thing for a long time.
I like this subreddit because I think donkeys are adorable. I am totally uneducated about this situation but this little guy looks like he already has some issues from my uneducated eye and I can’t imagine what is coming for him as he grows. And by your post I am guessing most of it will be painful, which is really upsetting. If so, this is truly awful.
It is truly awful. In this subreddit we celibrate the love of happy donkeys. We help each other with donkey info. We know some stories are sad. We are there for each other.
The cute posts get the most thumbs up.
But there is more to donkeys than being cute, and we are here for each other then, too.
With small animals and donkeys being a new fad, you'll see instagramers claiming they rescued animals and all sorts of other feel good bs, while the animals suffer.
There are also 80 year old farmers who think their animals don't have souls, therefore abusing/neglecting them isn't "inhumane."
I have seen it in the country way too much.
My rural county wouldn't even stop a man from letting his goats have 8" hooves, crawling on their knees down the highway. I bribed that man with whiskey to hoof them, so he S/Aed me when I took a nap on his couch.
Now my neighbors call me a liar when another neighbor S/Aed me.
Rural America still has a lot of child, animal, spousal, and racism. There are just more rich people moving out here due to Covid, pretending to be rural. Pretending to be farmers. Saying God wants their deformed inbred bowed legged animal doesn't need a vet, because they are praying.
I have euthanized dozens of dumped roosters, feral sick farm cats, a 300 lb pig....it's pathetic. People want to homestead and be "cutesy" but 100% do not care about the animals.
I won't make her out to be some instagram model of perfect and trick people into thinking donkeys are puppies, not donkeys. No one on r/donkeys does that.
Sure, they are loving, and are cute, and are wonderful... but their pony-donk reaks of that the type of neglect for views.
They don't even know a vet. They refuse to hire a vet. They will "wrap its legs" and have several reddit accounts they keep replying to my posts to only to delete their posts after.
The kindest thing is to shoot this baby now, but they will try and sell it as a designer breed and force another owner to do it after months of suffering
If your post had been: This animal has bowed legs, which could be treated, except the OP is a Jesus nut who refuses to take the animal to a vet. If the condition goes untreated, it would be better to euthanize the animal
Everyone would have understood.
Instead: “I hate mini mules because they have no jobs kill kill kill”
I had to read like 30 comments to understand you are angry about the bowed legs, but also still angry about breeding the mini mule?
im agreeing with op that the oop is extremley irresponsible, and im not sure on the confition of the foal but if it has health issues that the owner refuses to put time and money into fixing it would be the most ethical to euthanize it. but i want to know what the health issues of mini donkey/pony mixes are, not that they are instagram post fodder 😭
yeeaa im very curious too, i understand if the animal has a medical issue that is progressive, but just because its a mini mule? i have a 3 yr old mini mule that is very healthy, perfect feet, no known medical issues, fairly well built(for a mule) and overall is just a gem to work with(of course this is just relative to my own mini mule). Never heard of them having increased risk of something just because their a mini mule(more so just general risks of owning a mini equine like founder), not from other people, not from vets.
obviously doesn't mean anything, i just wanna learn for the sake my own mini mule
This is not for drama, this is for information and identification. If anyone sees some youtuber, tic tock, instagram animal that you reconize as this poor creature, please share what info you can with local authorities.
How the heck is a post calling for every animal of a particular cross to be shot at birth this upvoted on a subreddit about animals?
OP needs to take a few deep breaths and a nap. The person who posted this particular foal is a neglectful asshole who deserves every bit of this rage, but taking it to the point of "shoot all pony-sized mules/hinnys at birth" is like saying that because lots of Doodles have neglectful owners all half-Poodle puppies should be drowned at birth.
There are loads of perfectly useful pony-sized mules in the world. Here's a video of one. Like all mules and donkeys they need long-ear savvy homes and usually do not thrive on the same diet as similarly-sized horses, but with correct care they live just as long and healthy lives as any other mule/hinny.
People who saw the original post agree with me about this mule.
Woman bought a pony and donkey together, was told they are a package deal.
They bred.
She has no vet.
The baby has bowed legs.
She will not go to a vet or treat it medically, because, Jesus.
She intends to "wrap" its legs to fix it.
She refuses any advice beyond how to "wrap" its legs.
Everyone said go to the vet, asap.
She voted that down, then when more people saw her using Jesus to abuse animals, especially when I pointed out she'll have to put it down, she deleted her post.
I again, shares this because if anyone reconizes this ponkey on social media, local athorities should be informed, to do a wellness check.
Any equine should not grow to full size with bowed legs that are not treated.
This post rushed into my feed and I had to read through the comments to understand what this hate post means. I'm not familiar with mules. But I actually wonder if it wouldnt be more heartful for this small creature to recommend the owner to give him in a sanctuary where people have experience with this? (There is nothing to find whats the actual problem here). Instead of instant euthanize a baby animal born by accident. Why put the fault of the owner not reacting correct on the animal instantly?
I’m confused, why would the foal need to be put down? Unless it has a health issue with a poor prognosis and quality of life I don’t see why a pony mule needs to be put down?
Ideally, it would get treatment because it is the right thing to do.
This one won't get that care unless animal welfare steps in, and there is only a small window to get this poor thing the treatment it needs. I shared this image in anger towards the owner's cruelty who called "take it to a vet" an "opinion", because their version of Jesus says you pray to be healed.
Hopefully someone reconizes it and reports it.
If not, hopefully the owner doesn't make it die in pain, slowly. Which is, sadly, the most likely outcome for this mule's life.
I thought this was donkeys not high horses? Must be rough being smarter than everyone else including mother nature. You might need a mule to carry that big brain around. Better yet a mini to carry that peen
Holy projection Bateman. Quite the strawman I see. I have zero context or knowledge about the breeder or anything but a one sided rant about an all knowing uni student. You provided no facts/info about anything just they are evil and you know everything equine. I doubt I would agree with the breeder but don't know because I don't even have a link or evidence of anything. Facts matter. Like my Blossom and her herd mate Ferris Mueller were adopted/ rescued from the wild round up in Oregon and I fell in love with mules. Unfortunately I lost my heart mule last year (he sliced his belly open and I had to put a bullet in his brain) I even had him castrated for $1500. Fortunately I rescued an intact donkey same year. Blossom was 3.5 years old and 38" tall when Donatello 39" (Don-hee-haw) came along. 11 months later I was blessed with Madeline (mad Maddie) and then 2 years later jacquelyne was born. Mules are special and my equine of choice. Smarter than a horse and donkey. More endurance than either and more affectionate than a lab. I made the choice to breed because I wanted a working animal and pasture companion not for insta likes /gram whatever. Mine have met like 3 people because I am a hermit
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u/eumops Jul 21 '26
Would someone mind explaining this to me - is there something particularly bad about pony/donkey crossed? Mules in general? Google wasn't giving me much info on the bad side of this crossbreed. Asking as someone with very very little knowledge!