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We're having a heat wave!  Thirteen days straight with triple digit temperatures here in Texas when
this little guy made his debut!  We couldn't resist; the name just fit ..................

Introducing Hickory Hills Heat Wave

DOB:  08/03/10
Sire:  Quarter Moon Ticker Tape
30 1/2" - red
Dam:  Asspirin Acres Pink Champagne
32" - light red
 

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Monday, August 2, 2010 - Oh my; it was hot, hot, hot in Springfield, but we still had a great time showing at the Ozark Empire Fair!  The temperature was 106, and I kid you not, I think you could have fried an egg on the sidewalks, but that didn't stop us from having a good time!  Our little donkey guys and girls did another good job for us, and we brought home some top honors!  Zydeco won the Two and Older Jack Class, was named Grand Champion Jack and was Reserve Model Donkey!  She Zahm won the Two and Older Jennet Class and was Reserve Champion Jennet; little Pilgrim did a good job in the Yearling Jack Class and placed second and last, but certainly not least ................ Mac won the Color Class! 

Emily, our oldest granddaughter, made the trip with us, and ended up making her debut in the show ring!  She showed a jenny for some donkey friends of ours, and then showed Pilgrim in the Grand/Reserve Champion Jack Class. 

Mac didn't come back to Texas with us; his new owners, Hazlewood Minis, met us at the show and took him back to Alabama!  I'm going to miss that little guy; his loud spots and fancy little trot can really turn heads!  Good luck to Mac and Steve and Lynda; I know he will make some beautiful spotted babies for you!

Congratulations to Cedar Valley Farm (Steve and Cheryl Klund) and their granddaughters!  Hickory Hills Red Hot Chili Pepper was named Grand Champion Gelding at the Springfield show, and we were as excited as they were to see the old boy back in the show ring!  He looked fantastic and seems to be enjoying his new home and new friends.  His best girlfriend is Duchess; it seems that when Chili arrived in Missouri to live with Steve and Cheryl, Duchess had just been weaned and needed a best friend and some TLC ......... those of you who remember Chili know that he was just the one to step in and comfort Duchess! 

Sweet Caroline and Harv waiting on the judge!		Harv trying to keep Zydeco awake!
Good Job, Mac!	Mac and She Zahm smiling for the camera!	She Zahm standing pretty!
Pilgrim is a tired little boy!	Emily and Papaw!	Emily working to stand Pilgrim up for the judge!
Zydeco - Grand Champion Jack	Harv telling Mac 'good-by & good luck' before he left for his new home!	Chili and his best girl!

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Sunday, July 18, 2010 - Yikes!  It was almost as hot in Tennessee last week as it is here in Texas!  Thank goodness, our stalls at the Great Celebration are shaded by a huge oak tree!  We had a lot of visitors during our stay, but I wonder how many really wanted to visit with us and how many just wanted to sit under our shade tree!  :) 

Shelbyville Update:  We had a great time, and our little donkeys once worked hard to do a good job for the judge!  She Zahm won the yearling jenny class and then went on to be named Junior Grand Champion; Dana Rathburn brought Rusty Nail back to defend his 2009 title, and he and Harv won the two year old jack class and grabbed Reserve Champion Jack honors this year!  Way to go She Zahm and Rusty! 

Zydeco came home with a second in the yearling jacks at halter class, and Mac took home third in the two year old ACOSA jacks at halter class.  Stuart brought home another halter ribbon, but I think his biggest award was knowing that this was his last show, and he will get to stay home and entertain jennys. 

This was Little Second Hand Rose's first time away from home, and as she bravely tip-toed towards the judge, the photographer took her picture, and when the camera flash went off, Rosie jumped sky high, and never had more than two feet on the ground the rest of the class.  She brought home a fourth place ribbon, but the judge never was able to see how simply perfect she really is because she was prancing and dancing the whole time she was in the arena!  Poor Harv, his day started out busy, busy, but he has patience, and he and Rosie were both smiling when they left the arena ................. I don't know who was more glad to see the class end, Harv or Rosie!

Mac - What a fun little guy to show!	She Zahm - Square up and look pretty; here comes the judge!	Stuart - Can you tell that he doesn't really want to be here?
Second Hand Rose - Just trying to hide her face in Harv's jacket so she doesn't have to look!	They all worked hard!	Zydeco - with Harv's finger on the controls!
Show your teeth - Rusty!	Rusty - Standing for the judge!	Rusty and Harv - what a great time they had showing together again; thanks Dana for bringing your boy back to Shelbyville to defend his 'crown!'

And for those of you that always ask  - 'Why don't you show?'

Zydeco; notice the ears?  He is looking Harv in the eye with his ears up and alert! 
In the second picture, I had to show him in the Champion/Reserve Class (Harv has She Zahm);
ears back and eyes looking for his daddy; he played me like a fiddle!

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Saturday, July 3, 2010 - and hot, hot, hot!  Summer is definitely here, and our temps are in the 100's!

In addition to the seven spring babies, we have four scheduled for early summer, and three have already made their grand entrance!  Anna Bella was first on June 10 with Arabella (out of Stuart Little), then the very next day, Lexie presented us with a tiny little ball of cotton that we named Charmin' (as is please don't squeeze the Charmin) and finally yesterday, July 2, Josephine finally decided to go ahead and have hers; another little Stuart girl that we are calling Jessie!  And finally Gabrielle (bred to Ticker Tape); she was bred the week of July 3, 2009, and had gotten huge, but she kept us waiting on pins and needles until July 16 before she had her baby!

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Show Update:  We are busy getting ready for our trip to Shelbyville, TN to show in their Great Celebration Donkey and Mule Show on July 9, 2010.  We will be taking five; Stuart, Mac, Zydeco, She Zahm and little Second Hand Rose.

Rosie will be making her debut in the NMDA foal class and has been working hard to learn how to stand still; she has mastered walking/trotting, but standing still has been a challenge!  :)

Texas Shoot Out Results (June 12, 2010):  I apologize for not getting our results at the TSO here in Bryan/College Station published sooner, but having only three weeks between the Shoot Out and Shelbyville wasn't long enough to get rested up and re-group.  As Harv says ............... 'we are getting older, and the donkeys we are showing are getting younger!'

Our little donkeys worked hard and did a fantastic job for us at the Shoot Out; we took nine donkeys and brought home 12 ribbons .................... way to go!  Thanks so much to Beth Burgess and Steve Wilhelm who helped us show when we had more than one animal in a class, and kudos to Sheri Strauss who came down from Kansas to pick up Texas Tea and Sammy; she was our 'official stall mucker!'  Thanks guys for your friendship and your hard work in making this show fun!

Grand Champion

Produce of Dam
CF Hannibele

** from left to right - Hickory Hills Pilgrim's Pride with Steve Wilhelm
and Hickory Hills McCormick Gin with Harv;

I'm sorry, but we didn't get the name of the young presenter, but isn't he a cute one!

 

Good job, Shawnee!                                            Shawnee Princess and Steve   hurrying to get their ribbon!	Sweet Caroline and Harv picking up the 'blue!'
Harv's working hard to keep Zydeco's ears up!	And I think he's begging She Zahm to stand pretty!        This little gal was born in South Texas, moved to Georgia,    and came back to Texas this year to get some experience              in the show ring, and she doing a great job!
Fun!  Fun!  Fun!	Texas Tea and Beth talking eye to eye!

   I apologize for not having additional pictures to post; it was a great show, but from where I was standing in the holding area, all of my pictures have a glare from the sun coming through the openings on the other side of the arena!  The photographer is preparing a CD of photos, and I will share those when I get them!
                       

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Thursday, June 3, 2010 - and it's raining!  The first moisture that we've had in several weeks; we are already nearing drought conditions!

Time flies ................ it has been over a month since I sat down and updated our website, but today is a great day to stay inside and watch it rain!  We've been busy, busy, busy!  We've had five new babies, clipped nine (yes, nine; getting older doesn't always mean getting wiser) donkeys for the show in June, purchased a field of hay ('on the hoof' - it still needs to be baled), sold several donkeys to fantastic new homes, fenced in five additional acres for our brood jennys, and in our spare time, we had time to pasture visit and grab a few donkey hugs!  :)

The Texas Shoot Out Donkey and Mule Show is in Bryan/College Station on June 11, 12 and 13 - we are taking Caroline, Stuart, Mac, Zydeco and Pilgrim, plus She Zahm for the Hazlewoods from Georgia and Yosemite Sam and Texas Tea for the Strauss' in Kansas!  We have all of them 'roughed out' and now with two weeks to go, we will start putting the finishing touches on them!  Here's a few pictures of those that will be showing for the first time with their new haircuts!
 

Zydeco

Sammy

Texas Tea

Pilgrim

Shawnee Princess

We had a bit of extra time, so we went ahead and clipped a couple of the weanlings!  Oh my gosh; they look so different .............. all grown up!

Ashlee - before Ashlee - after

Second Hand Rose - before   Second Hand Rose - after

I snapped a few pictures while we were pasture visiting and handing out donkey hugs!  Life is great!

Raisin isn't so sure about his new friend!	Pissy works the night shift guarding the hay!	Pile of donkeys babies soaking up some sun!	Louie helping with the wash!	Hello Kitty!
Two pretty girls!	Sitting pretty!	J.R. Tusi posing!	Louie doing what he does best!	Charlotte!

And here's our oldest granddaughter; she's a sweetheart and in her first year of college and still finds time to come for a visit to the donkey farm when her car needs an inspection sticker or license renewal .......... or the fuel tank is sitting 'one little bitty mark' before empty!  Like any typical teenager, when she's here, she sleeps all day and texts all night!

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Thanks for a fantastic 2009!
 

The memories are great, and we smiled all the way!  Many thanks to our donkeys and to Steve Wilhelm, Beth Burgess and Kim Stegall who helped us show them when we didn't have enough hands, to the new owners who let us keep their donkeys to show and to all of our friends who encouraged us along the way! 
Thanks so much!

San Antonio Rodeo and Livestock Show - February, 2009

Raspberry - First - Yearling Jennets at Halter

Gypsy - Second - Two Year Old Jennets at Halter

Chili - Second Three and Older Geldings at Halter

Rusty - First - Two Year Old Jacks at Halter

Raspberry - Jr. Champion Miniature Donkey

Gypsy - Reserve Champion Miniature Jennet

Chili - Reserve Champion Miniature Gelding

Chili - Non-Driving High-Point Miniature Donkey Champion

Red Alert - First - Get of Sire (Raspberry, Gypsy and Rusty)

Shelbyville - July, 2009

Rusty - First - NMDA Yearling Jacks at Halter

Raspberry - Second - NMDA Yearling Jennets at Halter

Chili - Second - NMDA Geldings to Halter, Three and Over

Mac - Third - ACOSA Two and Younger Jacks at Halter

Rusty - Reserve NMDA Jr. Champion
Chili - Reserve NMDA Champion Gelding

Oklahoma State Fair - September, 2009
Rusty - First - Yearling Miniature Donkeys

Gypsy - First - Two and Older Miniature Jennets

Chili - Second - Two and Older Geldings

Mac - Second - Color Class - any age, any sex

Rusty - Grand Champion/Best of Breed

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Our farm is located in Leon County, just west of I-45N between Madisonville and Centerville. As donkey collectors, we have acquired seven outstanding breeding jacks, a herd of quality brood jennets, delightful yearlings, very sociable weanlings and a captivating nursery.  We breed for conformation, disposition, size and color. 

In August, 2002, our collection changed dramatically; actually, we doubled the size of our herd overnight.  James and Geri Peterson sold Small Wonders Ranch and offered us the opportunity to purchase their fantastic little donkeys. Since that time, we have been very busy building barns and loving on donkeys, digging water lines and loving donkeys, hauling hay and yes, loving on donkeys!  Life is great! 

We begin imprinting as soon as those little hooves hit the ground, and when they are a few weeks old, our babies  start "donkey" school ........... learning to walk, stop and stand quietly while wearing their new halters.  Of course the best part is sharing donkey hugs at the end of each and every training session!   
 

We are dedicated to the production of quality miniature donkeys for breeding, showing or to enjoy as a special family pet.  When you are in our area of Texas, please stop by; visitors are always welcome!
 

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Our "Home Page was getting so large that some folks with dial-up internet service were having trouble downloading the pictures, so I have moved the older stories/pictures to a separate page.  Just click here on Dazee, the donkey, and you will go to our second page, or you can go directly to the bottom of this page and click our For Sale Page or one of our other pages!  We hope you enjoy visiting our website as much as we enjoy putting it together; as you can surely tell, we love sharing pictures of our wonderful little creatures with the long ears!

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We are proud to be members of the following donkey organizations:

NMDA - The National Miniature Donkey Association
www.nmdaasset.com  

ADMS - The American Donkey and Mule Society
www.lovelongears.com 

ACOSA - American Council of Spotted Asses
www.spottedass.com 

GCDMA - Gulf Coast Donkey and Mule Association
www.gcdma.org

SDMS - Southwestern Donkey and Mule Society
www.southwesterndonkeymulesociety.com

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Welcome 
Donkey hugs can change your life forever! 

Rachel doesn't mind sharing Baby Phoebe!

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Last Updated August 31, 2010

 Copyright © 2002 - 2010 / Hickory Hill Donkey Farm - All Rights Reserved

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