Abingdon Donkey Lodge

03/16/2025

Nothing could have prepared me for the pain I felt all over again when I received Target’s mane and tail in the mail today. And yet, there was so much kindness inside too—from the way the vet students had so lovingly washed and braided his hair to the card signed by everyone who helped us when we got to Virginia Tech. Rest in peace, my forever friend. I will remember you every day for as long as i live.

02/28/2025

This is one of the hardest things I’ve ever had to write. We lost Target today—and it happened so quickly. I am still in shock—and completely heartbroken. I rushed him to Virginia Texh this morning where they did exploratory surgery to find a massive impaction. They had never seen anything like it—and he was given a grave prognosis, even if they could have cleared it. His small intestines were also compromised, and because of this, it’s unlikely he would have had motility even if the impaction were removed. To know Target was to love him, and his personality was as ginormous as he was. I am so thankful I had two years with him. I am also ever-thankful for my friend Sarah who came to VT to be with us while Jane held down the fort at home with our other animals. Sarah took this last picture of us together, and I will always treasure it.

10/08/2024

Many of you have asked how to donate to the flood relief fund here in Southwest Virginia:

Photo Credit: Senator Todd Pillion Communities across Southwest Virginia depend on United Way of Southwest Virginia to quickly mobilize to meet immediate needs and assist in long-term recovery after disaster strikes. United Way of Southwest Virginia has the capacity, experience, and working relat...

09/28/2024

We are okay and our animals are okay. Everyone we know in Alvarado is unharmed, at least physically. But our community was hard-hit by the hurricane, and it’s going to take many months to recover. So many of you have reached out, and we’re so appreciative. We have no electricity, no Internet, and no phone service. We’ve had to travel 10 miles just to be able to use our cell phones. Water did not get in our house, but it did almost everyone else’s.

08/18/2024

Love this so much! Donkeys are so overlooked and misunderstood.

Originally from Africa, donkeys (or burros, in Spanish) have been in North America for centuries. They were work animals that helped build the West, and toda...

08/05/2024

Let there be light… We’ve never had lights in the barn before, but we got them installed just in time for school to start back tomorrow. Talk about a gamechamger! Even Target approves!

07/16/2024

Equine nutritionist Martha Faraday once told me that miracles of healing require three things:

1) the being in need of healing has to have a powerful drive to live

2) everyone involved has to be completely committed and doing their absolute best; and

3) someone, and preferably everyone, has to hold the belief that anything is possible despite the odds.

The first picture below is from September of 2023, the day Kat arrived on our farm. She was soon diagnosed with EPM, which was once a death sentence for equines. The second picture is from July of 2024, not even 10 months later. Kat is truly our miracle horse.

We are especially grateful to the Tarpan Horse Conservation Program for their support and belief that anything is possible. It’s been a team effort—with our vet, Jenna Moore, our trainer, Audrey Boone, our farrier, Grace Mehlferber, our equine nutritionist, Martha Faraday, and many other friends and neighbors.

06/30/2024

Though you can’t see them all in this video, there are eight donkeys crammed into the barn to avoid getting wet from the storm. They remind me of middle school students; everyone is a different size, with Ruth Ann, the youngest, towering over them all.

06/14/2024

Little Debbie is the cutest!

06/10/2024

Another day, another abscess. (This is actually the same one as before that we don’t think healed properly.) Target was way better behaved than we expected as Grace and I soaked his foot and put on another bandage. He’ll have to have hoof soaks and bandage changes daily for probably around a week.

06/06/2024

Target is a lot like Pig-Pen, carrying dust everywhere he goes. This is why.

05/26/2024

Sometimes a picture needs no words…