Well, Jack-Jack was a beautiful addition to our paddocks. He was not warming up to our herd; and, then one afternoon, a fox ran right in front of me along the fence of his paddock after a Rooster and he did not care at all. I posted him for sale that day. We did not need a lawn ornament; particularly one that wasn't good with the goats. We took a loss on the sale when a large horse farm wanted him to be a pasture mate to their favorite horse. The farm owner was also a top trainer who planned to finish his training, show him, and use him in a starting riding program with small children. We wanted to be sure he went where he could develop his potential; and, were glad we found him a great home. We had bought a turkey; who was quite upset about the fox and seemed to keep them away from the main flock. He is completely fearless; and, will stand his ground with anything; although he does not do so in a very aggressive manner. His size alone seems to be why he is successful. We then added a pair of Roman Tufted Geese. Between the turkey and geese; the fox activity went down to almost nothing. We still have issues with people letting their pet dogs out to romp all day while they are at work; each time they have shown up, the Geese and the Turkey have raised a ruckus and scarred the dogs away. We had one fox show up a couple days ago in the predawn; but, it was chased off. Tried to track it down to shoot; however, lost it's tracks in our woods. Been ready every morning pre-dawn; since it is likely to come back again. For us, the poultry seems a better approach than any form of a guard donkey. I think it is important that with a donkey, they be raised with a mixed herd from birth. For Jack-Jack there was just too much new to sort out. Initially he was alarmed by everything; but, by the time the fox incident occurred, he had reached the point of accepting anything as normal. Since he was not integrated into the herd, he had no concept of us versus them. He was not a bad animal; he was just the wrong fit. If our situation had not been so immediate; he may have worked out in time; as we did not keep him very long. If a good home had not been immediately available, we would have kept him and continued working with him. He is a great little guy; and, it would have been ideal if he had worked out as planned.
