Jackson was first. Since Lori was Jackson’s owner before he came to Stillwater, she new exactly what to expect.

This is making me S..l..e..e..p..y.

I'm tired from all this shoe stuff...I think I'll just rest my head on Lori

Now Susie-Q on the other hand was the big unknown……no one knew if she had ever had shoes on. But we were getting ready to find out.

The “clean out”..with a “Hoof pick” went well .

The trimming went well. Mules hooves are different than horses. The heels of the hoof need to be higher than a horse in most cases. More like the donkey side of the equation.

Then came the shoes. All the banging on the anvil forming the shoes for a perfect fit to Suisie’s foot…made her a little nervous. With some reasuring “scratching” from Dalton she soon settled down and was a gem for 3 of the 4 shoes.

 The last and final shoe on her hind foot….took Lori more time than normal…..for some reason Susie just didn’t want that last shoe on!  Lori is extremely patient and eventually…the 4th shoe was attached.

Susie-Q has been using her new shoes and doing well in her trail adventures with Dalton.

He was bound and determined to find a mule of his own!

After searching far and wide- Missouri – Iowa- Montana- Idaho – he finds a 16 hand molly mule in Walla Walla. At least it is still in the state, barely. Armed with directions from Map Quest and our GPS we head off for Walla Walla one morning. 4 hours and 55 minutes later we arrive at Cindy’s Ranch. We are greeted by baby puppies, baby mules and this very big red mule- Susie-Q.
After a few hours of discussion, a ride around the arena- Susie-Q was loaded into the trailer and we were headed back to Sultan, 4 hours and 55 minutes
away. With a quick stop at the Fly’n J Truck stop for fuel , food and changing drivers we were back on the road headed home.

Now this is the time….when you start second guessing yourself….the drive home….why is this person really selling this mule?…..what’s wrong with her that I didn’t find?….did the owner “ace” her up to make her gentle?….the thoughts run rampid….then you finally tell yourself…Well she is mine now and She Is What She Is!

What a girl Susie-Q turned out to be! She was everything Cindy told us she was….kind..gentle…willing…big hearted and best of all she likes Dalton! Unlike horses..mules choose their owners…and once they choose them..you had better not go anywhere without them, or you will see the biggest temper tantrum in the world. Nothing like seeing a 1,000 lb mule pitching a fit.

I am sure that there will be many Dalton and Susie-Q adventures to come.