From Jack to Jack Rabbit 

Years ago, I had a good ole boy tell me, "If you want to put your jack to the mare, you better have all your work done up".  I didn't know anything about mules at that time or much about donkeys either.  I had just inherited a herd of four miniature jennets from a friend who died of cancer and purchased a young 32" jack to service them.  I was big time into pygmy goats then and the little donkeys were just another exhibit at my farm park.

 This little jack sure was different from the stud ponies I had always dealt with.  He wasn't just a reluctant breeder - he seemed sadly lacking in any libido at all.  I had neither the time or knowledge to fool with him so I was forced to rely on the "Merry Christmas" approach to breeding.  This is, you turn the jack in with the jennets and when one starts to bag up, Merry Christmas!  You're gonna have a foal!  I found out over the years from spending many nights in the barn on foal watch that little "J.R." was a private kind of fellow and did most of his breeding after dark.

 The farm park finally went broke and after selling all the more exotic livestock, I decided that out of all the livestock I had ever fooled with I liked the donkeys the best.  Soon there were more donkeys here, lots more, and lots bigger.  I was doing a brisk trade in livestock guardian type donkeys along with the minis when I decided I needed a big jack too, one to service the better quality bigger jennets I was dealing with.  Not just any jack would do.  I wanted a spotted jack.  Black and white of course, trained to ride, drive, be a ready breeder and affordable!

 Well, I sure must have been a VERY GOOD GIRL.  There he was in the next Brayer my black and white broke to death, ready breeding jack.  Two phone calls and two big checks later (one to the owner, one to the shipper) and he was mine.  Then I was suffering all the angst one has after they have bought sight unseen, an expensive animal from 3,000 miles away and were awaiting delivery.  My big jack arrived and since he is to remain anonymous for this article he will here to fore be referred to as "Fat Boy"  Fat Boy was sure as purty as his pictures but there was one little thing I was still worried about.  Fat Boy had been trained to be a mule maker.  He had only bred mares.  Fat Boy hadn't heard another donkey bray since he left his mama.  Would he breed jennets?  I sure hoped so.

 Fat Boy had been on the road six days.  You could see he was road weary and a little weak in the knees.  Walking into the farm over the bridge, Fat Boy spied all those jennets and stopped dead in his tracks!  I could actually see him get pumped. Up came the head, up came the tail, out came the chest and he let loose with a resounding bray that made the hills ring.  Fat Boy now had a twinkle in his eye, a spring to his step and was clearly ready to whisper sweet nothings in any or all of those long ears pointed in his direction.

 "Well, Fat Boy", I said, "that's what you're here for so if you feel up to it, I'll be glad to accommodate you".

 I tied Fat Boy to a tree, went and got the closest of several jawing jennets and tied her to another tree.  At that point things were still pretty primitive in the breeding facilities department around here.  I turned to get Fat Boy and low and behold there he was running out and ready to breed.  At that moment I still wasn't rightfully convinced about this ready breeder stuff since J.R. had often played the "now you see it, now you don't" game when I tried to hand or paddock breed him off and on over the years.  Only a short ten minutes later, a tired but satisfied Fat Boy was settled in his paddock surveying his new domain.

 Over the next few months Fat Boy never let me down.  He would breed a mare or jennet any time, any place, in private or in front of an audience in under ten minutes. He was easy to handle and always a gentleman.  My knowledge had been steadily increasing about this breeding stuff.  I now knew some jacks were naturally ready breeders and the rest could be trained to be.  I wasn't exactly sure how one accomplished this and am not much of a trainer anyhow.

 How Fat Boy evolved from my jennet jack to mule maker in the shipped semen business is a whole 'nother story but the next thing I knew we were in Missouri.  There Fat Boy was introduced to the A.V. or artificial vagina.  He took to that like a duck to water.  Fat Boy liked his work!  By the time we returned home breeding season was about over.  We practiced a few times with the A.V. and "Big Mel", who got the job of jump jennet, then settled in for the winter.

 Breeding season rolled around and started out quite smoothly.  By now we had an indoor area adjacent to Fat Boy's stall to collect in and a stout safe breeding pit for live cover.  All was going great guns until one day Fat Boy decided he wasn't going to breed the A.V.  There were jennets and a visiting mare in heat and he would much rather see to them personally, thank you very much, than collect on Mel who wasn't in heat.

 Now our routine at that time was:  check phone at 11:00 a.m. to see if we had to ship, if so, I hit the barn at 12:00 p.m. to collect, was back at the house by 12:15 p.m. to process and pack the collection to be picked up by Fed Ex by 1:00 p.m.  Not a lot of time for a change in plans.  Working at a trot, I turned Mel out, set up a jennet that was in heat, refilled the now cool A.V., got the Fat Boy and there we stood, and stood and stood.  Fat Boy looked at me as if to say, "I'm not breeding that A.V.  I want the real thing"!  He didn't breed that day.  It was the A.V. or nothing and he chose nothing.  I missed my shipment and felt like a smacked you know what myself when I had to call the mare owner.

 This would not do.  Time to call for help!  Luckily in the mule and donkey industry help is only a phone call away.  I called a friend who also collects her jack and with her advice put together a little plan to remind Fat Boy what his job was and who he worked for.

 Now we get around to that "Don't put the jack to the mare until you have all your work done up" statement.  I know that's making a few of you smile now but it's not funny when it's happening.  I've talked to lots of you with reluctant breeders, even gotten a few of your breedings but it doesn't have to be that way.  With a few props and a little time you can change your jack's mind and behavior.

 You need a mare or jennet in heat, also some urine from a mare or jennet in heat (collect this in advance and freeze in film canisters) a stall mat and a safe place to leave your reluctant breeder tied for an hour or more, preferably in sight of the mare or jennet he is to service, and don't forget your watch. Put your stall mat where your jack will be tied so he can't paw a big hole in frustration.  Pawing, stall weaving and other repetitive behaviors releases endorphins.  They will make your jack feel good and, like any other drug, are addictive.  So pawing out a big hole can be just as satisfying as breeding!

 Tie your jack at "his place", bring out the mare or jennet and let your jack watch you set her up.  Breeding hobbles are a necessity for you and your jack's safety.  Get your jack and check your watch, you are now "on the clock".  Let your jack approach the mare or jennet's left side and sniff hip, tail, and hocks.  No more.  No practice jumps, no teeth.  Then back him up a few feet and check your watch.  At the end of ten minutes if he isn't ready to breed, back to his spot he goes which should have its own rope.  Tie him up short leaving his stud chain over his nose and breeding rope tied around his neck.  No hay, no water, no grain.  The only thing he should get is sprayed for flies in season.  (He needs to be worried about the mare or jennet not the flies eating his legs.) 

Unhobble his intended, make her comfortable, then leave the area for at least an hour.  Go have a cup of coffee, do some paperwork, answer your e-mail.  You can get rid of your frustration.  He can't.  After an hour repeat the process.  If you have not achieved a breeding in ten minutes, back to his spot he goes.

 This time put some of that urine on the post or whatever he's tied to (a heady reminder of exactly what you want) and leave for an hour and fifteen minutes this time.  At that point my Fat Boy was run out and ready before I even had my jump jennet hobbled.

 From then on I have only had to threaten Fat Boy with being put up at the first sign of reluctance and he is ready.  Fat Boy was a well trained jack and only had to be "reminded" about what his job was.  The real test would be my little J.R. who at that time was nine years old and had never bred in hand.  That little Puritan was still basically a night time breeder.

 Times, they are a changing for J.R.  My little test case was in for a surprise the next time one of his ladies came into heat!  J.R. was a hard case. It took three "time outs" for him to breed in hand in a timely fashion.  I've also subjected two friend's jacks to this time out treatment and it worked slick as a nickel on both of them.

 At the last West Virginia Donkey and Mule Show, Brent Blazer, owner of the indomitable riding and driving mule, "Max", shared with me this little gem of ole timer wisdom passed on to him.  He brings his jack out to sniff the mare or jennet then puts him back in his stall with a mirror.  The jack looks at himself for a few minutes and then comes out ready to breed.  Go figure!

 Now, Fat Boy is fascinated with mirrors and his reflection, so I can't wait for another jack to try this on!  I'm sure there are as many ways to train a jack as there are people who stand them, but for those of you, like me, who didn't have a clue, here's a place to start.  Happy Breeding.

                     From the other side of the mountain,
                                                                                     Leslie

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