Boy, While reading the Holy Bible through again I started noticing all the Donkeys references....God's plan I am sure. I was to about Leviticus and went back to Genius and started rereading and recording each one of the donkey references I found. I did find it amazing that Abraham loaded up his donkey when he was off to sacrifice his only son Issac and knowing that the Lord Jesus had ridden into Jerusalem for the last supper, just before the crucification, God's only son (John 3:16).

You can read the story of Christ coming into Jerusalem riding on a donkey in Zechariah 9:9, Matthew 21:1-11, Mark 11:1-11, Luke 19:20-44, John 12:12-19. It must be important for us to read if you can find it in four of the gospels, and the old testament.

Notice it says "gentle and riding on a donkey". In my Bible study on Donkeys, Horses and Mules, I found that folks that rode donkeys were not necessarily poor and many of the same folks owned horses and or mules. It was a humble, sometimes submissive means of transportation; read I Samuel 25. In fact the term "got off her ass and did something" probably came from this passage....Abigail got off her donkey and...".

I found it a miracle in itself that Jesus rode a young jack, that had never been ridden before, into a parade type atmosphere as people crowded and were setting palm tree leaves, coats and jackets down before unbroken colt jack. Ever try to train a donkey to walk over things. <grin> If not, give it a try, go for manholes or water.

Make no mistake, when the Lord of lords, King of king comes again it will be on a White Horse and it will not be "gentle and riding..." Revelation 19:11 & 14.

There are many stories in the Holy Bible that include donkeys. One Donkey actually talked in human words (Numbers 22:21-34). I can only think of one other animal in the Bible that talked in human terms, a raven.

I would like to encourage you to do a "read through" in your Holy Bible, if you do not have an NIV version (New International Version) I would encourage the average reader to get one, the King James Version is a bit hard for the average reader to "stay with" and to understand. Wal-Mart and other discount stores sell NIV version Bibles for under $10.00. Not only will you read about donkeys, horses, and mules, but also all types of other animals, adventures, wars, sex scandals, kingdoms, and glories. You will find many "old sayings" came from the Bible such as "Get your house in order", "skin of my teeth", "can a leopard change it's spots?", and "hung like a horse" (only it was really "hung like a donkey"). There is talk of make up and tattoos way back in the early books of the Old Testament, we are also told in Ecclesiastes 1:9 "....there is nothing new under the sun.". The Holy Bible is an exciting book......and you may say that there is a test in the end...and I mean the end. <grin>

We love our donkeys and have set up this website to get the news out that donkeys make great mounts and drive well. Donkeys were made for packing. They are also wonderful pets, good guardian animals, and just plain funny to watch and observe in your "yard". They eat less then horses or ponies and you will love the ears! Have a look at the other pages on this site. I highlight the donkeys we own, they each have their own pages, here.

Donkeys are wonderful to ride and drive. They are easy to train, many are naturally gaited, and most do not spook the same way a horse will. I have pages set up for Riding and for Driving & Carting, I hope you will visit. I also wrote kind of a blog with photos of how we trained Abby, our Large Standard Donkey to drive. We did a lot of ground work, then used a U-Pole, taught her to pull a sled, then put her to cart. I hope you will visit our Abby Leans To Drive Page and enjoy the photos maybe take the time to read how we have trained.

Yes, even these days people do pack with donkeys. They just make great packing companions. Please use correct equipment when you pack with your donkey, and do not over pack them. Yes. They can carry quite a bit of weight, but should they in this day, be made to? Make sure that your equipment for packing fits the animal you are using it on. Horse Packing Equipment will be to large for most donkeys. Again, I have a page on this site set up for Packing you might enjoy visiting.

Donkeys can and do learn any type of trick that a horse can perform. If you keep the tricks you ask your equine to perform within their means, that is, not ask them to perform something they can not physically perform, you will have such a good time training a donkey....and the donkey will love the attention and treats it will receive for the tasks it will learn. And for those of you who do not understand donkeys.....never use punishment to teach behavior in any training of a donkey.

Donkeys are built different then horses. A horse harness would be too large for most donkeys. Donkey withers are very different then a horse or pony's withers. So what does one use for donkeys. Many times you can use the same tack as a large pony, you will want to have a saddle sized for your donkey before you buy any new saddle. Use breeches and cruppers on the back of your saddles, and breast collars will help your saddle stay in place also. For more information on Donkey Tack, please visit our page here called Equine Product Review as well as our sister site www.EquineEquipmentReview.com