Waffles (and Maple) were part of a joint rescue operation. I was contacted by an out of state rescue in an effort to save them from going to auction. The story I got when I arrived was ...The couple who owned them have an adult son who has a disability. The couple had just recently purchased a beautiful boarding facility in California. They went on vacation and when they returned, their son had traded his mom's pet goats for these two mules.

Now, what transpired after that is anyone's guess, but I can almost guarantee you they were not treated kindly. They were moved to a part of the ranch where they could not be seen by anyone. They were being fed just scraps of tree branches.

 

The stable owner was afraid of them and it was clear they hated him. He could not touch them or catch them. He tried to give them away just prior to us getting them, but could not get them loaded in a trailer. (LOL).  I got them loaded in about 5 minutes. I am certain that Waffles had probably kicked him a few times...and for good reason.

They would not come to anyone when they first got here.  Maple has always been sweet but really stand-offish when she first arrived here.  Waffles is the dominant of the two and chases Maple off for attention.  They pretend they have not been handled, but I am sure they have been.

 

I got lead ropes on them once and was just going to leave them on for a bit so we could catch them and make progress faster...but, smart as they are, they both got them off! They have been together in the same corral since they arrived. We recently separated them, but they are still in adjoining corrals.  

 

They both like scratches and pets, but until very recently (April 2018) both still refused to have a lead rope put on them. We have a new volunteer (Teresa) who has taken a liking to Waffles. It appears Waffles likes Teresa too.   Look at the video of Teresa leading Waffles in the corral. Baby steps now, but I'm sure we will see a lot of progress very quickly. Thank you Teresa.  

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Of course, we really don't know their whole story, so we will give them whatever time they need.

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I could really use a sponsor. Maybe that would be incentive for me to improve enough to impress my potential future forever family.