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My "Been There, Done That" Mule By Jennifer Schmuck Hennef, Germany
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When I was looking at ads for mules that were for sale, I
frequently came across the “been there, done that” mule. This
sounded to me like the kind of mule we should be looking for as a
mount for my husband Steph, a beginner rider. I assumed a mule that
has been there and done that would be a mule that would be laid back
in new situations, calmly travelling down the trail, used to
everyday situations...or so one would think. But that was before I
got my mule, Katie. Katie is a “been there, done that” mule. She’s been there once,
done that before and now she’s bored. Ride the same trail twice, and
her lower lip drops until it almost drags on the ground. She slows
down until Steph’s mule Larry has to push her from behind. Tapping
her with the end of a rein results in what appears to be an abused
and offended mule, suffering calmly (but very obviously) and I’m
glad we usually don’t meet anyone on the trail who would ask me what
I had done to her. Katie is not a seasoned trail mule (shhh, don’t
tell her I said that!) but I put some trail miles on her since she
came home to us and she is doing really well. You can probably imagine how trailriding looked like when we
didn’t have a trailer yet and had to go the same trail all the time.
Either Katie was shuffling along, setting new records in slow
walking and aging perceptibly in the course of minutes, or she was
looking out for something to make a fuss about (did you know there
could be anything from a mountain lion to pink elephants in even a
small bush?!), or she was watching for some entertainment in the
form of spooking, turning, eyes bulging…you get the picture. We
provided a reliable source of amusement for our neighbor Mr. Esch
who lives right beside the trail near our house. I was so relieved when we got the new trailer. After the trailer
loading problem was solved we finally could explore new trails. The
problem is a trail is only ever new once! I have to admit I’m probably just as easily bored by the same
trails as my mule. After having ridden all the trails we found in
that area, distraction presented itself in the form of my father,
who is 70 years old and loves hiking. He wanted to see where we
ride. He wanted us to take our dog, too, who usually has to stay
home because she is too excited to stay reliably beside the mules
when we ride. Lo and behold, with dog and dad in front, Katie
thought it a fun outing again. Phew! I even got some earflop out of
her. The next weekend my father was back home again, so we had to go
without him and I knew we would need a new area to ride. We had
found a parking spot for the trailer and set out to explore the
woods we had seen on the map, and which Michael, our friend with the
problematic perception of parking space, said was good for riding.
It turned out to be a rather depressing riding area. The woods were
very dark and eerie, it was mainly gravel roads, and as most trails
on the map turned out to not exist anymore we got lost and had to go
the same way back that we came. Which lead invariably to a complete
meltdown of my “been there, done that” mule, who just made it back
to the trailer, in complete disbelief that I really had made her
take the same trail back that we came. That evening Michael called and asked how the trail was. I said the woods were dark and sinister, and that neither we nor the mules liked it. “Oh ya,” he said, “the woods ain’t pretty in that area.” It was good we were talking on the phone, as I would have kicked him in the shin really hard otherwise. Of course the “been there, done that,” mule has also had her feet
done before. Now having her feet done is boring. It gets
considerably more interesting when throwing up the rope with her
nose while the hoof lady rasps away on her hooves. There would also
be the option of chewing on the lead rope, or destroying the end of
the rope by pawing on it (of course standing on only two feet, as
the hoof lady is working on one of the hindfeet at the same time).
If finished with all that and the feet are still not done yet, fall
asleep and let the hoof lady hold up the hoof if she can (ignore the
swearing that might interrupt your sleep). The “been there, done
that” mule also always likes to be helpful, as in finding the tools
the hoof lady might have mislaid. While the hoof lady rasps away on
the left front foot, the right hind leg can easily stretch out to
unexpected lengths and find the nippers she might have been looking
for. (Katie is not one to get distracted by angry yells, in case you
wondered). Now after making a lot of fun of my “been there done that” Katie,
you probably think she is a really spoiled annoying brat. You know,
partly you are right. If she’s bored she can really get on your
nerves. But she is the best mule ever for me. She has a great sense
of humor and a big heart. She trots into the trailer and is that
eager to go out and do things. She doesn’t know much about trail
obstacles and difficult terrain, but she always gives her best. She
would never offer to kick or buck. If something is difficult or
scary, she is always willing to give it a try. Of course, once a
danger is braved, well, you know, it gets boring… |
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