# Introducing my 3 month old billy to my mini donkey



## Budlady (Apr 8, 2011)

About a week ago we tryed to introduce my baby billy goat to my mini donkey Nester.
well it was a flop  , Nester got very agressive he was trying to chase little Bilbo and we had to interviene because i was afraid Nester would hurt Bilbo, i thought about this alot could it be because Bilbo smells like a dog? Bilbo sleeps out in my back yard and plays with my chihuahuas that i let out there during the day lol he also sleeps in the old dog house out there because when i got him he was a bottle baby and stayed in the house during the cold weather, if i give Bilbo a bath and make him smell diffrent will that help with the introduction ? i realy want them to be friends because Bilbo is getting to big for the back yard and needs room to run. :/ i dont want a disaster on my hands and suggestions would be helpful


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## Budlady (Apr 8, 2011)

Thanks for all the replies


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## ksalvagno (Apr 8, 2011)

Donkeys are tricky. They may or may not like other animals. I have heard a lot of stories about guard donkeys killing what they are supposed to guard. Your donkey just plain old may not like him. I don't have a donkey so unfortunately, I don't have any suggestions to try.

Good luck with it.


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## patandchickens (Apr 8, 2011)

Well I suppose you could try it, couldn't *hurt* with sufficient supervision, I guess. Maybe. She said doubtfully.

But honestly, my experience with donkeys is that they are very individualistic and have strong 'original' opinions, each his own. And not always real susceptible to persuading otherwise.

I'm with ksalvagno - it is quite possible that he simply does not like goats, at least not small goats; or that he is not a sufficiently good vertebrate taxonomist to really grasp (or care about) the difference between "dog" and "baby goat". 

In which case you may be somewhat up a creek, there, and need a plan B for living arrangements. 

At least for now. It is not inconcievable that when the goat is larger, "play" may be on somewhat more equal terms and they may be able to negotiate a truce. I am not sure I'd try it, personally, putting together just *two* animals who are not getting along... but, some would, and _sometimes_ it can work out ok. With luck. If the goat doesn't have horns and the donkey doesn't seem too homicidally inclined. Er, goaticidally inclined. 

Best of luck,

Pat


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## dcphotos (Mar 31, 2012)

I have a miniature donkey and a goat. We got the donkey first and the goat so he would have a friend. At first he was very aggressive, charged her and all that. We separated them and let then hang a little at a time. About a week into it, we went outside and sneaked around the back yard to the pasture, saw the donkey nuzzling the goat. As soon as he saw us everything changed and it was back to aggression. But now it's almost two years later and they are best friends. He never shows aggression towards her but we have to let him out of the pasture without her sometimes because she is clingy and seems to pester him. We often feed him when she isn't looking also as she will take his food.


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