Donkey Basketball?!

Last week was the Valley High School Donkey Basketball game. I was strangely drawn to it, yet I was also repelled by the thought of watching poor donkeys being harassed by bratty teenagers. What finally decided me was the fact that Brynn was supposed to perform her clogging routine at half time. So she and I went.

We used to have donkey basketball at my high school, but what I want to know is, who in the world ever came up with donkey basketball? Why? Whatever possessed some unknown donkey farmer to want to subject his sweet little innocent donkeys to such a thing? Maybe I'll have to Google it.

Anyhoo... there were actually several short games - the seniors vs. the FFA, the local farmers and ranchers vs. the sheriff's department, the cool kids vs. the nerds - well not really, but I lost track after a while.

So even though I was worried about the poor donkeys, it turns out that they didn't seem all that traumatized by the whole thing. In fact, they never broke a sweat and definitely weren't bothered by the wild balls, the screaming commentator, or the hideously ear splitting buzzer. The were obviously pros.

Their feet were done in these cool little rubber slippers, they were in good flesh, and were obviously much better off than any of the severely neglected donkeys that have come into the Sanctuary since I've worked there.

I guess everybody ought to have a job.

Don't get me wrong, they had to be pretty good sports to put up with all that chaos, but donkeys are known for being stoic and tolerant. Believe me, there's a reason this is not "horse basketball" - horses would have killed or maimed at least 7 bratty teenagers, 4 audience members and hopefully a sheriff's deputy or two.

The most interesting thing to me was that during the whole 2 hours the donkeys were in the gym, not a single one of them pooped! And one thing I know for sure about members of the equine family - when they're nervous, they can really poop. So the only conclusion I could come to was that those donkey's were totally not worried.

I know I'm going on and on about this, but it was absolutely fascinating! The best part was watching the kids trying to get the donkey's to go where they wanted them to. One little feller even moseyed into the middle of the floor, planted his feet, closed his eyes and totally went to sleep! It was hilarious watching the girl who was riding him try to get him moving again - after that performance, I'm convinced that donkeys invented the concept of being "passive agressive."

So here's a lovely little clip in which we have bratty teenagers getting kicked at, run away with and dumped. Pretty cute clump of donkeys, huh.



So who won the game, you're wondering?

Definitely the donkeys.