Kota has been a remarkable teacher to me about mules. I had never worked with them before meeting her. I do believe that while getting to know her I think I have deduced that mules somewhere along the line where bred with ninjas. She is the most agile equine that I have ever worked with, both mentally and physically. Every time that we work together I gain new levels of knowledge about working with equines in general. Trust is a foundation that is inherent to any successful relationship, especially with horses, and even more pronounced in ninja mules. In truth, I was wanting to rescue a mule and start working with them. But I couldn’t find any that were in slaughter or that needed immediate rescue from a bad situation. I met Kota when I was working for a very respected local rancher. To get to one of my work sites I had to cut through a field that she was being kept in. I made the honest remark to him when we met at his gate that Kota was the most beautiful mule that I had ever seen. I made a passing remark to him that if he ever wanted to sell her that I would buy her. He told me that the mule belonged to a family member and that he would tell her about my interest in her mule. I thought, even though Kota was in no need of rescue I felt that she would love to adventure with me. At any rate, I didn’t think that the remark would honestly grow into anything. In the beginning of 2016 I received a call. Well my bluff was called so to speak. So, I decided to take Kota on as her guardian, and hope that she would take me on as her student.
Mules, anyone who has worked with them know that they are another world, entirely. Its almost as if you can watch donkey versus horse matches in their minds. They are truly amazing companions, and I am blessed every time I get to say hi to Kota. I have only been on her back on my property and for only short periods of time. Most of our work has been on the ground working with particular focus on building on our relationship. She has been a real treat to work with even through the turbulent times. I think she respects the fact that I acknowledge that most of the communication error is mine, and in turn is willing to continue to try. We have come a long way. Kota has been wanting to go into the field so bad. When I leave with other horses she starts gauging the fence height to see if she thinks that she could jump it. We weren’t ready to go into the field in 2016 but we plan on working together quite as bit in 2017. I look forward to having her out working I think that it will enrich her life dramatically, and she’ll realize what the other horses have been doing this whole time.