Comments on: Farm Animals That Kill

By: RUSHIL PURI

RUSHIL PURI — Sat, 15 Aug 2009 10:06:14 +0000

very very interesting

By: B Nelson

B Nelson — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 14:16:19 +0000

To vbowen78669
the bit about donkeys came from a 1987 News Article in the London Times.
You should note I mentioned I own a donkey, they are kept here by many people with the purpose of guarding livestock against feral dogs and coyotes. I know several people who use them to guard orchards. They will chase out the human invaders. A donkey will use its front feet to knock a bigger object down (human) and trample it, this is not generally seen in horses, except angry stallions. But even a jenny (female donkey) can act this way.
Donkeys are quicker to know if a person is a friend, somebody they know, or a stranger. They will treat their owner well, but will react to a stranger differently depending on their upbringing.
I have seen them many times kick without any warning. Also, they have the ability to cow-kick, which I didnt mention, but is something horses cannot do. And because they are more accurate, they can do more harm.
My article is writen not to scare people off these animals – I own a donkey who is AWESOME!!!! My article is to remind city people to treat these animals with respect – DO NOT drive down a road and think you can crawl into a corral just to get pictures!

By: vbowen78669

vbowen78669 — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 16:27:16 +0000

Sorry about the double posting. The site kept telling me to resubmit as there was an internal server error.

By: vbowen78669

vbowen78669 — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 16:25:13 +0000

The overall idea behind this article is a good one. As society gets more and more urban, I see too many people who think all animals are like stuffed animals and act very stupidly around animals.

However, I take extreme issue with, at the least, the donkey section.

Every year I wind up writing at least one author asking them to please provide any scientific evidence that donkey kicks kill more people than plane crashes. No-one has, to date, been able to provide such evidence, and so I am more than dismayed when people purporting to give the public scientific answers repeat this particular urban myth.

The fact is – there is no support for this myth BECAUSE it is a myth. Your paragraph also contains another donkey myth – that they kick without warning. Not at all true. The problem is that most people manhandle donkeys the way they do horses, and donkeys are most definitely NOT horses. But, like horses, they absolutely do give warnings like flattening their ears. Like horses, it may be lightning quick depending on the donkeys\\\\\\\’ prior experience. One that has been manhandled a lot is much more likely to kick – but only to people it suspects will be just as physically abusive.

I am a long-term student of equine behavior and cognition, with a particular emphasis on the longeared varieties (donkeys and mules). Horses are FAR more dangerous than donkeys, as they DO kick more readily than do donkeys. Donkeys (and mules) are energy savers by nature. Horses are not. Therefore, if there is a way to exit a situation without flailing their hooves around, donkeys will do so. Horses, on the other hand, survive by flailing their hooves around. Horses also have less accurate aim than does a donkey or mule.

So please, if you have proof of your statements about donkeys – or for that matter any of your statements – please provide it!

By: vbowen78669

vbowen78669 — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 16:24:33 +0000

The overall idea behind this article is a good one. As society gets more and more urban, I see too many people who think all animals are like stuffed animals and act very stupidly around animals.

However, I take extreme issue with, at the least, the donkey section.

The fact is – there is no support for this myth BECAUSE it is a myth. Your paragraph also contains another donkey myth – that they kick without warning. Not at all true. The problem is that most people manhandle donkeys the way they do horses, and donkeys are most definitely NOT horses. But, like horses, they absolutely do give warnings like flattening their ears. Like horses, it may be lightning quick depending on the donkeys’ prior experience. One that has been manhandled a lot is much more likely to kick – but only to people it suspects will be just as physically abusive.

So please, if you have proof of your statements about donkeys – or for that matter any of your statements – please provide it!

By: R J Evans

R J Evans — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 14:00:12 +0000

Cool article – I have blogged this at Webphemera.com…

When I was a kid I was on my Nain’s farm (Nain is Welsh for Grandmother and is pronounced like the number nine!) and I was waving her walking stick around in the farmyard. I inadvertantly hit one of her chickens and killed it instantly…

I still have nightmare about their revenge!

By: martie

martie — Sun, 26 Jul 2009 03:35:27 +0000

great article. You should have included Turkeys though. My husband had one as a pet and he would not let any stranger get out of their vehicle. We use to have to put him in the gargage when the kids came from craft day…because I was afraid he would hurt someone.

By: Lostash

Lostash — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 19:52:22 +0000

Thats it! I’m never visiting the farm again now!!!

By: Ravana

Ravana — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 15:13:52 +0000

I never expected this article.

By: Figgins

Figgins — Sat, 25 Jul 2009 14:27:13 +0000

Wonderful article, thanks.