Firewood with the youngsters

[Donn Hewes]

Today I took George and Susie out to skid a few logs of firewood. They are both coming five and George the mule has been working a little more than a year, and Susie the Belgian a little less than a year. It is light work, but they wade through the snow, and they stand while I hook, and at the end day they better for it. If I keep them busy a few days a week in the winter, they will be that much better next summer. You can see a few pictures here. I promise some of the logs were a little bigger than this one, I just needed one to help open up a trail! Donn

[Plowboy]

Anything that you do with them no matter how light or heavy will keep them sharp and responsive for the times when you have an important job to do. Any work is better than no work for them. A friend of ours has oxen and in the winter he has very little work for them but each day he yokes them and hauls their manure out on a stoneboat. That frequent contact made for the best trained oxen I have seen around here. The same is true with all animals. I find that with 8 horses we sometimes play favorites and the ones that don’t get used as much aren’t quite as sharp as the one’s that work all the time. It was a good day in N.Y. to be in the woods. I had to work but need to start cutting locust posts for new fences on a section of my farm soon before spring weather changes my priorities.

[J-L]

Your George mule is a dead ringer for my LaFonda mule! If I lived closer I’d try and deal you out of him. I posted a picture of her and her team mate but she’s on the off side of the camera.
It was kind of funny, but my 11 year old boy saw your pictures over my shoulder and thought is was her at a glance.

[Author]

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