Sending the Mule Home

Got the mini mule back to the neighbor's this morning.  My neighbor wasn't strong enough to muscle him down my driveway with the leadrope, so I took him.   It crossed my mind to put a chain on his halter but I didn't follow the prompting.  After he flew me like a kite and tossed me into the snowbank-filled ditch I decided to get a chain. 

Of course, we had to catch him first.  He had run straight back to my barn to Major and Samson.   I got a bucket of grain and attempted the lasso trick again, but he is so smart he remembered the first time and knew what I was up to.  He wouldn't let me swoop the leadrope over his head while it was in the bucket.  I had taught him about hand feeding while he was here in my stall, and so he would take the grain from my hand.  While he was nibbling out of one hand I grabbed his dangling lead rope with the other.  

He took off kicking like crazy, but I was standing by his side, had a good grip, and I could bend his neck around.  As quickly as I could I put the chain on his halter and that gave me sufficient leverage that I could keep him from taking off and running back to my barn. We got him to cross the creek between our properties, we slid up the muddy hill to the neighbor's other pen, and deposited the mini mule in with the mini donkeys.  After I let him loose he stood by me for a few moments and let me rub his shoulders before trotting off to greet his friends.   Hopefully the fencing is secure now and we can keep him from returning! 

 And his name is "Cassanova".   Even though he's a John (altered male), and I think he's much better suited as a "Napoleon".