The Farmette

28/12/2025

The Farmette has wonderful, bonded groups of donkeys available for adoption in Pipersville, PA! These donkeys have been through enough in life, and their strong friendships are part of what makes them so special. We never separate bonded donkeys. Donkeys can provide company for horses but horse company is not enough to make most donkeys happy. For that reason, we require adopted donkeys to have donkey buddies. Some donkeys, goats, sheep, etc. do not get along well and donkeys should be kept separate from other animals. Some of our kindest, most gentle donkeys came to us because they injured (or worse) one of these animals.

Every single donkey has the biggest heart and most loving personality. They deserve homes where they’ll be cherished, cared for, and doted on forever.

Before falling in love with their photos, please review The Farmette’s adoption requirements here: https://www.thefarmette.org/do-you-adopt-out. Contact us to confirm that you are within our adoption range prior to spending time completing an adoption application, sending us photos and making the required video. The Farmette requires a specific type of fencing, adequate shelter, and a dry lot. You can find more information about all of that on our website.

If you have any questions, feel free to email us at [email protected].

27/12/2025

Not much snow here this morning but enough ice to create some challenges. The paddocks resemble ice skating rinks in places and after a short, thankfully slow excursion to see what had happened to their field overnight, the animals are wisely staying in or very close to the barns, but so far so good. Hope everyone else with farm animals is making out okay this morning.

Unfortunately, this weather mess ruined our Sponsor Visit Day today but we're rescheduled for an extra one next Saturday and hoping for better conditions! Stay safe, everyone. All of you up north of here got hit way harder!

26/12/2025

“I heard that yesterday was Christmas. I got no carrot cake. No cheesy carrots. Not even a raw carrot. I’d like someone to tell me where to go to file a formal complaint.”

25/12/2025

Merry Christmas!

24/12/2025

Merry Christmas Eve from senior donkey Bea, out on a little stroll to check out the neighbors’ pretty lights.

24/12/2025

There’s no mistaking what Henrietta wants! She’s our “bilingual” donkey with her rooster-like crow! Looking for a last-minute gift idea? Henrietta needs a sponsor or a half sponsor for 6 months or a year. There’s information about our sponsorship program on our website if you’re interested. .

23/12/2025

We usually highlight how much donkeys are like dogs: they want to be with you, they follow you around, they love people, and so on. Many of them are also like cats in that they don't care if their "bed" is completely made before they get in your way and claim it!!!

22/12/2025

Words matter:

Spanish has lots of creative idiomatic expressions but, like English with its phrases such as “Stubborn like a donkey,” “Do the donkey’s work” and the frequent, pejorative use of “jackass” in jokes and insults, Spanish (along with many other languages) also has a long list of sayings that cast donkeys in a very negative light.

Más vale dichoso en b***o que infeliz a caballo.
Better to be happy on a donkey than unhappy on a horse implying that a horse is thought to be better than a donkey.

El b***o puede fingir ser caballo, pero tarde o temprano rebuzna.
A donkey might pretend to be a horse but sooner or later it brays suggesting that someone’s true nature will eventually show itself and expressing that idea by reference to the donkey’s supposedly negative sound.

Ser un b***o.
To be a donkey, a phrase used to imply that someone is ignorant, stupid, or stubborn, traits inaccurately ascribed to donkeys.

Un b***o llamando orejón a un conejo.
A donkey calling a rabbit big-eared, a phrase used for criticizing someone for a fault that they themselves possess, as if a donkey’s gorgeous long ears are somehow undesirable.

Mi b***o sabe más que tú.
My donkey knows more than you suggesting that someone is so stupid that even an allegedly dumb donkey is smarter.

What a shame that intelligent, beautiful creatures are so frequently maligned in languages all over the world and that they have been so misunderstood for years. Maybe we could start changing those perceptions with some new expressions and ideas that carry positive implications:

“Cautious like a donkey.”

“Do the donkey’s work – the hard part!”

Use “jackass” only as a word for describing male donkeys.

“Better to be happy on a donkey.” Period.

“A donkey might pretend to be a horse but sooner or later it brays -- and then you know for sure that you have a wonderful donkey!”

“You’re like a donkey: super smart!”

“A donkey calling a rabbit big-eared” could be used for complimenting someone whose similar traits you admire.

“My donkey knows more than you” and can therefore teach you a lot about trust, kindness, dependability, patience and determination.

Resilient, steadfast, humble, intelligent, loyal, protective, comical, endearing and affectionate: let’s hope that someday the amazing qualities that loving donkey owners know their donkeys possess will carry linguistic weight in popular speech because more and more people discover what they have been missing out on. Maybe people can learn to be “smart and kind like a donkey”!

20/12/2025

This picture was obviously taken a few days ago while the snow was still on the ground. The donkey's name is Lottie. She arrived here fearful and hesitant, certainly not initiating human contact and preferring to stand back (way back!) and watch us rather than interact.

Not now! With those of us who see her daily, she has lost almost all of that fear. Without the distractions that often come with "treat training," Lottie has made excellent progress in just a few months. She seeks out attention and, on her own terms, even welcomes hugs around that soft, fluffy neck. She allows our farrier to do his work without too much dancing around and she's developing the confidence that she needs to know she's safe not just with us but when others are around. Never once has she thrown a kick at us or in any way acted even the slightest bit aggressive despite her many fears. It's hard to understand how the horrible stereotypes about donkeys have developed (e.g., stubborn, violent, stupid, erratic, mean, etc.). Years of interactions with hundreds of donkeys make me think that those stereotypes reflect more on the people who believe them and the treatment they provide than the donkeys themselves. They are truly amazing, kind animals and Lottie is a perfect example.

Hope. Healing. Happiness. That's the typical pattern that we see in donkeys. Take your time with rescues. Go at their pace. Increase what you're asking of them just a baby step at a time. Celebrate small victories. Hang in there. They are so worth it!

Lottie is a large standard and with the ever-increasing desire most people have for mini donkeys, wonderful donkeys like Lottie are ignored. Their personalities are just as sweet as minis. They are often even more gentle than their shorter counterparts. And hugs often don't require bending over as far!

19/12/2025

19/12/2025

Hannah is waiting for outdoor service! We've explained to her that because of the incoming heavy rain, the outdoor cafe is closed. She hasn't given up yet! The inside hay racks are all ready and waiting! Sorry, Hannah. You can't get good service anywhere these days!

17/12/2025

Clean stalls and full bellies don't happen without significant human effort, especially when there are a bunch of donkeys to care for! Thinking about volunteering with us? Please stop thinking about it and email us with your interest and availability. Winter is a particularly challenging time of year for animal care and we need more help.

We have both AM and PM shifts open on various weekdays and weekends. A barn cleaning shift takes about 90 minutes depending on weather, etc. No previous experience needed and the only skill required is the ability to push (or learn to push!) a wheelbarrow. We'll teach you the rest.

We require volunteers to commit to at least one shift weekly. It's fun to do it with a friend or family member. Children 16 and over are also welcome but must be accompanied by a parent at all times and must be willing to share equally in the work.

If you're interested in working with us (Pipersville, PA), please PM or email us at [email protected] The best friends are often made when you work together and share a mission. And the donkey company is fabulous! Thank you!

(We don't currently need people to volunteer to groom donkeys. Many of our barn cleaning volunteers enjoy doing that once the barn work is done. And then the donkeys go roll in the dirt and smile at them!)