Name: Dorothy

    Type: Miniature Mule

    Color: Bay

    Markings: None 

    Sex: Mare

    Birthday: 12/31/2005

Dorothy is a member of our trio of “Golden Girls,” Blanche, Dorothy, and Rose. Saved at the last second from the meat truck, these three tiny mules have led everyone who has ever met them a merry dance!

When we got the call from a rescue in Texas that these three were simply too cute to meet a horrible fate, we stepped up and agreed to take them in if they could be saved.  

The three started out by causing a huge ruckus at the kill pen (we say, good for them!) by leaping out of a loaded trailer and escaping. They spied the open door of the rescue trailer and made a beeline for it, terrifying horses and people on the way. Legend has it that these three tiny mules scattered everyone in their path as they ran into the rescue trailer as if to say “Get us out of here!” 

Dorothy is the “security guard” of the trio and would place herself in position (hind end kicking apparatus aimed at whomever dared approach) to take on anyone with the misguided idea of catching them.

We enquired if anyone had been able to ascertain their age? Check them for pneumonia? The answer was no – they were snapping turtles in mule suits. So – we waited. They sailed through quarantine untouched by human hand but were exposed to strangles the day before coming to Red Bell Run. Back into quarantine they went. They slowly gained weight and got stronger. Being tough as nails, no strangles dared infect them. Finally, our vet deemed them safe to come to the farm. Blanche in the lead, the three launched off the trailer like a series of small rockets and took off into the far reaches of their paddock. Many months later, having taught us all the true meaning of patience, we came to an accommodation about the necessities of vet and farrier care. Dorothy and her pose now live happily at our Mini Woods barn with their friends. 

    Name: Newt

    Type: Miniature Mule

    Color: Brown

    Markings: None 

    Sex: Gelding

    Birthday: 12/30/2012

We had never seen a saddler little group of refugees – Newt, Bucky, and Pinto Bean. Newt was a little black mule who was completely unhandled, terrified, and clinging tightly to his best friend Bucky. All were covered with lice and hadn’t had a decent meal in recent memory judging from their condition. The owner had decided to dump them and they were bought by a man who provides tiger and lion sanctuaries with meat. The poor equines who are unlucky enough to be purchased for this purpose are shot and their bodies thrown to the big cats for food. 

We said NO!

Some kind-hearted ladies pitched in and purchased them, but they needed a place to go. Red Bell agreed to take them and began the process of getting vet care, quarantine and transport. Upon arrival, the little fellows were de-liced, received vet care and then began the process of teaching them that all people aren’t monsters and that their life was completely changed. It’s a long road that takes patience, understanding and of course, money.

Today they are happy members of the Red Bell Run herd!

Newt remains fast friends with Bucky in our Mini Woods barn. Newt has learned that people aren’t going to hurt him and while still shy, can now be handled and care provided without the terrible stress he experienced previously.

    Name: Clarissa

    Type: Somali Wild Ass?

    Color: Dun

    Markings: Zebra stripes on legs & dorsal stripe 

    Sex: Mare

    Birthday: 12/29/2013

Clarissa is the largest animal in a group of miniature mules, hinnies and horses that live at our Mini Woods barn. We believe she is actually a Somali Wild Ass! Her cry will curl your hair! It is not a brinny (bray + whinny), whinny (like a horse) or bray (like a donkey). 

This “war cry” has been known to induce grown men who are first responders to jump from their chairs and begin the hunt for an ax murderer on the property! She definitely has the “call of the wild” down pat! Clarissa is as beautiful as she is wild and we all love her immensely. She is definitely one-of-a-kind! Clarissa was rescued by a group in Oklahoma as a tiny equine with her best friend, a hinny named Zena. The two babies were left together at an auction lot – their mothers nowhere to be found. Without rescue by the Circle of Friends, neither would have survived very long. When Circle of Friends reached out to Red Bell Run, we were happy to take them in. We didn’t want to separate them as they were so young and closely bonded. While Zena stayed on the small side, Clarissa began growing and kept growing! After several years Clarissa can be handled (very carefully) to have farrier, dental and veterinary work done but we are always respectful of her wild side. We don’t encroach beyond her comfort level when we do have to handle her.

The Mini Woods area where Clarissa and her friends live is a modified “track system” that mimics the way they would live in the wild. Spending most of their day in an open, wooded area and track, movement is what keeps them healthy. Clarissa and her friends come back to their barns every evening for food and shelter. 

    Name: Blanche

    Type: Miniature Mule

    Color: Bay

    Markings: None 

    Sex: Mare

    Birthday: 12/26/2005

Blanche, named for her white nose, is the oldest member of our trio of “Golden Girls,” Blanche, Dorothy, and Rose. Saved at the last second from the meat truck, these three tiny mules have led everyone who has ever met them a merry dance! 

When we got the call from a rescue in Texas that these three were simply too cute to meet a horrible fate, we stepped up and agreed to take them in if they could be saved. The three started out by causing a huge ruckus at the kill pen (we say, good for them!) by leaping out of a loaded trailer and escaping. they spied the open door of the rescue trailer and made a beeline for it, terrifying horses and people on the way. Legend has it that these three tiny mules scattered everyone in their path as they ran into the rescue trailer as if to say “Get us out of here!” 

We quickly learned that Blanche was the leader of the bunch – where she went, Dorothy and Rose followed. We also learned that no one was going to get within twenty feet of them without Blanche heading for the hills, the other two in hot pursuit. Dorothy is the “security guard” of the trio and would place herself in position (hind end kicking apparatus aimed at whomever dared approach) to take on anyone with the misguided idea of catching them. Rose is the sweet one – just as her name implies. 

We enquired if anyone had been able to ascertain their age? Check them for pneumonia? The answer was no – they were snappng turtles in mule suits. So – we waited. They sailed through quarantine untouched by human hand but were exposed to strangles the day before coming to Red Bell Run. Back into quarantine they went. They slowly gained weight and got stronger. Being tough as nails, no strangles dared infect them. Finally, our vet deemed them safe to come to the farm. Blanche in the lead, the three launched off the trailer like a series of small rockets and took off into the far reaches of their paddock. Many months later, having taught us all the true meaning of patience, we came to an accommodation about the necessities of vet and farrier care. Blanche and her pose now live happily at our Mini Woods barn with their friends.