Any little brother or sister out there might immediately relate to this simply adorable story. As younger, smaller children, how many times have we yearned to join the ‘big kids’?
Here’s one mule that decided not to leave the ‘big kids’ much of a choice.
At only 39 inches tall, Cassidy is well, a bit ‘short’ of being a wild mustang. Pun intended.
Cassidy is a mule, in fact, a very small mule — also known as “miny hinny’ which is a mix between a mini horse and a mini donkey.
But why should that have any impact on who he chooses to befriend?
Cassidy lives on the Skydog Ranch, a 5,000 acre wide sanctuary in Oregon, USA, mainly housing mustangs.
After being rescued from a kill pen, where unwanted horses donkeys and mules are sent when no one wants them anymore, he was brought to the sanctuary. Once there, carers tried to place him with their donkey herd several times.
But to no avail. This mule wanted to hang out with the wild mustangs instead.
“He just goes under the fence and back to his wild mustang herd,” Clare Staples, founder of Skydog Ranch, told The Dodo.
“The moment he arrived he didn’t want to hang out with donkeys but full-size horses,” Clare adds. “And the horses seemed pretty curious about the mini hinny as soon as he arrived, too.”
And this mini-hinny has certainly made an impact at the sanctuary. He even has two mare ‘girlfriends’ he believes are his and courts them during the day.
Despite his little legs, he somehow manages to keep up with the much larger and stronger wild horses he has befriended.
And, well, they don’t mind too much at all.
Who said size matters, right?
What a brave little guy! Share if you agree Cassidy is the sweetest little mini-hinny!
