# Donkeys vs Mules vs Horses for Work



## stevenson

Mules usually are hardier tougher than a horse. Usually have better hooves. Can thrive on lesser quality feed. I rode one in Yosemite parks, and it was great ! I have seen many people trail ride on them and they love them. Donkeys are usually small. 
I only own horses, i would love a donk or mule  .


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## SunnyDraco

Mules tend to be more usable than donkeys and more hardy than horses. The con for mule is that their mentality is closer to a donkey and you have to know how to work with them. Horses tend to be the most comfortable to ride however. To understand them better, get hands on experience first before making a decision. Also remember, that each donkey/mule/horse is an individual and won't be exactly like another of the same species/cross/breed.


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## smrobs

Truthfully, when looking for a work animal, I wouldn't look at donkeys. It can be difficult to find a good one that is an adequate size for anything useful. Unless you are a very small person, you'd likely need a mammoth donkey to be a decent riding animal. They are hard as heck to fit a saddle to and every one I've ever ridden had gaits that left a lot to be desired.

Mules vs horses, that's the age-old debate LOL. I've been around both in my life and I really prefer horses. We've had some truly great mules come and go through my barn. Still have one that we got as a 2 year old back in '89. We used mules for farm work and pleasure driving basically my entire life. I've ridden several and, while they were really nice riding animals....I still prefer my horses.

Horses are, in general, more user friendly. They are easier to figure out. Because they aren't as smart as mules (or rather, they just think differently), they are easier to get along with. If you can find a good mule that is already trained, you'll likely spend at least 50% more than a horse of comparable training/ability.

Of course, there are a lot of people in the world who adore mules and just tolerate horses. I respect that because mules truly are wonderful animals...they just don't suit my taste.

I'd strongly advise you to find somewhere that you can go and spend some time around mules to see if they might suit you. If you can find one to buy that's trained and in your budget, that's wonderful. If you only find green ones, then you'll definitely want to involve an experienced mule trainer. Broke ones work for just about anyone....but training one isn't for the inexperienced or the faint of heart.


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## WolfsongStorm

Based on the replies, I'd lean more towards starting with a horse (after a few more years of experience probably  ) and check out mules. Ideally I think I would like to have both. Donkeys are off my list now I think haha. I'll just have to locate someone/somewhere with mules in central Wisconsin.


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## smrobs

Good luck. If you can find a good one, they truly are worth their weight in gold because they _are_ more trustworthy than a horse.


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## Cherie

It appears that Wisconsin has an active Donkey and Mule Association. Here is a link to their website. Any of their events would be a good place to see and learn about donkeys and mules. Wisconsin Donkey & Mule Society, Inc. -

Minnesota seems to have an even bigger and more active group. Minnesota Donkey and Mule Club .

You definitely should learn more about mules and donkeys before getting one of either species. We love mules and raised and trained them for years, BUT, they are not for everyone. We had a Large Standard Spanish Catalonian Jack. He sired wonderful mules that rode like a good horse -- but then we bred him to good AQHA mares, some with AQHA show records. Way too many mules are sired by just any old Jack and the mares used are $300.00 junk reject mares from the local sale barn. These mules are not fit to ride or train. Breeding counts for as much or more in mules than it does in horses. 

Mules take more patience and understanding to train and take longer to train. Once they are trained, they live and last a lot longer, are seldom bothered with lameness or health issues and STAY trained much better than horses. 

On the other hand, a spoiled mule is seldom worth trying to rehabilitate as they are much less forgiving if they are not trained correctly to begin with. They sure do not let you make as many mistakes.


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