Is she a large Jenny, a large Hinny or a small Mule???? PIX

[SACREDWINDWALKER]

I know nothing about donkeys, mules or jennys other than I have ridden the festus style (typical bay mule) and he was a foxtrotter 14HH.....I would like to know exactly what this long-eared creature is....I say she's a small mule, my husband says large Henny....what is she? We both agree that she does have a horse type rear end....and that her ears aren't as long as most. I didn't measure her but she's not a miniature and she's not 15HH, she's about 13.3HH? at a guess....we named her Bridgett......and she's supposedly 10 years old, broke to ride and drive? The previous owner said at his private auction that none had been fooled with for 2-3 years....we caught her, led her out through the alley and she practically loaded my husband....she's gentle but a little pushing when trying to lead her, she wants to walk fast and we had to put our back into her chest some to slow down her walk....she's hard to catch (or at least I can't catch her like my husband can) but once she's caught, you can pet her forehead and such....

[instigatorkate]

I vote small mule!

[texgirl]

I vote mule too. She has an awful lot of mane and tail for a donkey...

[jkponies]

Yep, mule! She's cute, with a pretty little head--I wonder if her momma was an Arab!

[SACREDWINDWALKER]

We got her last Saturday and we really don't know what to do with her....we will probably sell her later on but she needed a home for now.....we have heard not to feed grain because of founder.....but we are only giving her 2 cups a day because she sees every horse out there getting fed.....and we just don't feel right not feeding her some good stuff......what do you think?

Also, she doesn't really sound like the neighbors mule does......she brays, but it's more of a bark and whistle...can't explain it....

[cindyf]

I'm going to say Hinny. I looked up on some mule sites and found this: The rarer Hinnies are often said to be more horselike than the mule, but more often it is impossible to tell them apart. Hinnies may tend to be slightly smaller, simply because of the fact that most donkeys are smaller than horses.

[gypsy]

She isn't a donkey-her ears are too short. I think she is a small mule-they are much more common than hinnies.

[jkponies]

Just wanted to add, I've never actually seen a hinny, so I guess I couldn't rule that out, especially if her bray doesn't sound like a mule's!
As to the grain, if you just give her a tiny bit, you can throw some chopped carrots in her bucket, too. She won't be able to eat it quite as fast as grain alone, and they make a good sound when you toss them in the bucket so they really think they're getting something! (This trick works great on my pony, who LOVES his food, but definitely doesn't need grain!)

[Mule Fool]

Definitely a mule, or possibly a hinny. She's got a nice eye. She'll probably be your friend in short order if you're feeding her.

[SACREDWINDWALKER]

MuleFool.....she does seem very nice when we have ahold of her....she stays right with us but acts scared when we don't have ahold of her and I'm turned facing her but if I walk off, she follows me and if I turn around she's trotting away.

jkponies....good idea on the carrots...I have small carrots in my fridge right now...I'm going to go give her some....

[Mvernese]

I have to ask what the heck is a "Hinny"?

[SACREDWINDWALKER]

I think a henny is a stallion horse with a mare Jenny? Long-eared lovers...am I correct????

[Pixiefly]

correct! and my guess is also for Hinny

[cascy]

It's really hard to tell from a picture. She's either a hinney or a smaller mule (not umcommon, not all mules reach "normal" horse height)...

According to several "old timers" i've talked to, they say a hinney will act even more donkey like and tend to be more herd bound then mules because of being raised by a jenny instead of by a horse. Could be true, might not be... I've also heard that hinney have the smaller ears and tend to be more built like a jenny (they say the dam throws more to a foal then stallion, so I guess that's where the "more like a jenny" thing come in)...

She's looks sweet though, if you spend much time at all with her she should really open up to you. As the old saying goes, you either get a REALLY good mule, or one so horrible it's pure evil... Since she's already warming up to ya, I bet she'll be pretty nice

[cascy]

Wanted to add: My guess is she looks more like the hinney's I've seen then mule, but she very well could be either...

[SACREDWINDWALKER]

Thanks, you'all....I went out and tried to hand feed her some baby carrots, she looked at me with great interest but would not come up to me at all.....so I tossed them down on the pile of hay....she still just stood there....I walked away 5-6 feet and she went and inhaled them all and walked off and looked off into the pasture where the horses are...

My husband decides to try to catch her right before dark....she didn't want no parts of it....you could tell she was listening to him as he began running her in a roundpen with just him kissing at her....she kept a swift gait and an ear on him......5 minutes later.....he tried again to walk up to her....she took off like her a@@ was on fire...so he ran her again and said. "she sure does act like a horse." After about the 4th trip around the roundpen (20 minutes later) he walked up to her real slow-like and rubbed her forehead and under her jaw...then just out of the blue she decided it was enough and ran off in circles again....he tried again, and was able to pet her on the face and under the jaw but when he went for the neck and shoulders, she peeled out...My husband said handled my a@@! The previous owner said she had been ridden & taught to drive years ago....but she acted like she didn't remember human directions....so it must have been longer than 2 years I suspect....

[Mule360]

Definitely not a donkey. I'm leaning toward a small mule instead of a hinny. She's a cutie - love the star and mane. If she's already letting your husband rub her head, you guys are doing great!

[Chic]

My vote is a hinny. I think you're doing great with her! Keep up the good work!

[Mule Fool]

When you're working her in the round pen For awhile I would not try to walk up to her, I would work more on drawing her. It will be best if SHE makes the decision to move towards you or your husband. At first just being in the round pen with her is alot of pressure. At first I would make my goal just getting her to look at me and then remove all pressure by walking away. There are a couple really good videos on this process. One is "Rachel the troubled Mule" by Jerry Tindall. The other is "Catching the Hard to Catch Mule" by Brad Cameron. I think you would find either one really helpful. if you think you might want to check those out, let me know and I can get you ordering information. Good Luck with her. I think she will come around but but just be real aware of how much pressure the mere fact of you being there puts on her, try to build her confidence by working with her curiosity to draw her to you.

[Bandit]

I always thought a good indicator that it was a hinny was that the ears were smaller like a horse. Is that an old wives tale? Based on that though, my vote would be a hinny.