Ever wondered how donkeys show affection?
Donkeys are very affectionate creatures. They show affection in several ways such as they could stand close to you, they could come to you for a cuddle, and they could present their backside to you as a sign of how comfortable they are with you.
In this article, we will explore ways donkeys show affection and how to bond with your donkey.
How do donkeys show affection
Though the body language of donkeys is hard to read, but when they are showing you affection, you would know. Below are some telltale ways donkeys show affection:
1. They like to cuddle
Donkeys show affection by leaning into you for cuddling.
If you don’t cuddle them, they might rub their head against your hand or your body.
If you see a donkey doing this, then that donkey definitely likes you and is showing it.
2. They will stand close to you
Donkeys rarely like standing by things or people they do not like.
If a donkey walks toward you and stands by you, then that donkey really likes you and is showing it.
When a donkey stands by you, they are seeking your attention and that donkey is affectionately telling you to pay attention to it.
3. Seeks you out for comfort
A donkey would come to you to seek comfort. It would do this by coming to you and leaning toward you.
This is the donkey telling you, “hey, I need to be comforted.”
This is a huge sign and show of affection because the donkey would never seek out comfort from someone or something they are not affectionate toward or have bonded with.
How do you bond with a donkey?
This is a very important question because before a donkey shows affection towards you, you must have a bond with that donkey.
So it is important to know how to bond with a donkey.
We already know that donkeys build very strong bonds with people, and these bonds can last a lifetime.
Here are some suggestions of how to build a bond With a donkey:
1. Feed them regularly:
Everything alive needs sustenance; donkeys are no different.
If you can regularly feed your donkey, it will bond more with you.
Of course, you do not expect a hungry donkey to bond with you.
In your bid to keep your donkeys healthy, you should feed them regularly; an extra advantage to this is that they will bond with you.
After all, Who doesn’t love someone that feeds them?
Beyond just feeding your donkeys regularly, you should seek to establish a schedule of feeding them.
This way, you build trust, and there’s nothing that builds a bond like trust.
If your donkeys are sure that you feed them at a particular time and you stick to that schedule, they build a bond with you faster and better.
Always seek to maintain that schedule.
2. Work with Routines:
As stated above with the feeding schedule, You should always seek to maintain a routine with your donkeys if you want them to bond with you.
This project stability, and your donkeys would be able to trust you better.
If you work with your donkeys haphazardly, there would be no establishment of trust because your donkeys would not know what would happen next.
Just like with your fellow humans, being predictable and sticking to a routine can be a great sign of being trustworthy; when people know what to expect from you, they can easily trust you.
Donkeys too have this trait.
So if you want to bond with a donkey, better a stable routine in your dealings with that donkey is a good place to start.
3. Groom your Donkey:
Grooming your donkey is a very good way to get your donkey to bond with you.
Acts of grooming are acts of affection, so you grooming your donkey would be interpreted by your donkey as you showing affection to them, and donkeys tend to reciprocate affection.
Just be sure to be stable in your grooming of them, do not do it haphazardly, and do not be temperamental with your donkeys.
The key is stable grooming regularly.
4. Bathe your donkey:
Bathing your donkey is a very good way to bond with them; you would get to spend more time with your donkey.
This gives time for you and your donkey to bond.
It is advisable that you be gentle when you bathe your donkey, do it with care and attention.
If you do not bathe your donkey well, This act of bonding could backfire.
5. Train your donkey:
Training your donkey is a good way to bond with him.
By doing this they get to turn out the way you want them to, you get to spend a lot of time with your donkey.
Training a donkey involves the use of treats, and we know donkeys love treats so they would bond with you better.
We advise that if you want to bond with your donkey, you train them. If your training works,
You get to have bonded with your donkey, and you get a well-trained donkey; it is a win, win for everyone.
6. Talk to your donkey:
Talking to your donkey is a very good way of bonding with your donkey.
Though your donkey may not understand the exact meaning of the things you say but the simple act of talking to them can create an opportunity for you and your donkey to bond.
Because of how empathetic donkeys are, they can understand the message you are trying to pass even though they do not understand the meaning of the words you’re saying.
This exercise of bonding would be helpful to you and your donkeys.
7. Be calm:
Being calm is a sign of stability.
When you sound calm, you project an availability for bonding.
A way to bond with a donkey is to be calm; if you are erratic around donkeys, they will not bond with you.
There is a need for calmness and peace to permeate you before a donkey would want to bond with you.
If you are noisy, abrasive, and jittery, you would not seem good to the donkey. So, one of the tips of bonding with a donkey is being calm.
8. Be firm with them
While you are calm with your donkey, we also advise that you be firm.
Be gentle but be firm, be calm but be firm.
Even though donkeys are smart, they still need some level of firmness in your dealings with them because they’re still animals.
If you are not firm with your donkey, you might project weakness, and this would encourage your donkey to be unruly.
Firmness here does not mean cruelty, we do not mean that you should smack and flog your donkey, but from time to time, you might need to be firm when riding them, when training them, or grooming them.
Even maintaining a strict feeding schedule and routine is a form of firmness.
9. Don’t give them too many treats:
Of course, donkeys like treats, and if you like your donkey, you most likely would have to give them treats.
You might need to give them treats while training them and sometimes a reward for good behavior, but you should not give them too many treats as this would be detrimental to their behavior around you.
You might end up spoiling them and undoing all the training you have given to them if you give them too many treats.
They would come to always expect treats from you, and when you don’t give them, they will behave badly.
So the keys to bonding with donkeys are stability and care.
Conclusion
Donkeys will show you affection in several ways, you might not have known the ways they show affection before, but now you should and know how to bond with donkeys.
