Who hunts with a jack ass?

[375HHM]

My family (New Mexico ranchers/farmers) were all horse-people. I remember my grandfather talking about how he preferred horses. However, he mostly worked cattle or trained cutting horses.

Lately, it seems like mules are becoming all the rage for hunting. But I'm curious what people think about a donkey, either a larger one you can ride or just as a pack animal? I haven't ridden since I was 12 years old or so, and I'm just thinking about it since I want to get into more back-country hunts. But I'd love to hear everyone's thoughts on here!

Yay, or Neigh for Donkeys. Would you prefer a mule over a donkey?

[Oldguy]

Glad you cleared this up for me. I was expecting guys talking about their "Jack Ass" hunting parners.

[ghosthunter]

Back in my 20s I had a trail horse and for a time a pack donkey. But it didn’t work well because the horses stride was quicker than the donkey. Thus you were dragging him every where. On one trip his neck swelled from being pulled.

Now if you led him and walked he did well. They are great watch dogs.

I gave him to a friend who had a cattle ranch. They used him to teach their show cattle to lead. They clipped a led to a cow and to donkey. The donkey drug the cow every where.
Eventually the cow learned to walk on a led.

Donkeys have been used as pack stock for  hundreds of years, they are just slow.

[Southpole]

Glad you cleared this up for me. I was expecting guys talking about their "Jack Ass" hunting parners.

[300rum]

My suggestion is to just stick with a mule, they have the best of both the horse and the Donk.  Easier to find quality fitting tack too and you can sell it pretty easy.  Just look for a mule who likes people. 

[Machias]

I had a really nice mammoth donkey that was broke to ride, pack and pull a cart.  He loved being with you, so leading him into the back country was easy enough.  He would not have done well as a pack animal behind a horse.

[375HHM]

My suggestion is to just stick with a mule, they have the best of both the horse and the Donk.  Easier to find quality fitting tack too and you can sell it pretty easy.  Just look for a mule who likes people.

That sounds like a good plan. I'm still a few years away from buying one, or even being able to take care of one. But I'd like to keep my pulse on prices and where a good mule can be picked up at. It seems like they're pretty expensive, like a good horse. From what I remember as a kid, mules were a lot cheaper than horses 20 years ago. It doesn't seem that way anymore.

[375HHM]

I had a really nice mammoth donkey that was broke to ride, pack and pull a cart.  He loved being with you, so leading him into the back country was easy enough.  He would not have done well as a pack animal behind a horse.

Did he need to be around another donkey or mule, or was he okay being alone? How did he compare to mules?

[Boss .300 winmag]

Used to have one in my camp, I left because of him.🤣

[300rum]

If its a riding mule, you are going to pay for it.  A pack mule can be had pretty inexpensive.  If a guy is a "backpacker" type, a smaller or even mini-mule would do whatever you need to do, carry your pack, carry out an animal, make things much more comfortable then an ultralight backpack setup.  They could also be hauled in a small trailer or even the back of a smaller pickup. 

My suggestion is to just stick with a mule, they have the best of both the horse and the Donk.  Easier to find quality fitting tack too and you can sell it pretty easy.  Just look for a mule who likes people.

That sounds like a good plan. I'm still a few years away from buying one, or even being able to take care of one. But I'd like to keep my pulse on prices and where a good mule can be picked up at. It seems like they're pretty expensive, like a good horse. From what I remember as a kid, mules were a lot cheaper than horses 20 years ago. It doesn't seem that way anymore.