La Conner Weekly News - Your independent hometown award-winning newspaper

When you drive around Skagit County, you see lots of animals: horses, cows, goats and more. One small farm on Best Road that immediately caught my attention has a sign stating JF Miniature Donkeys.

The owners are Julie and Todd Jones and they gave me a tour of the property that enabled me to interact with many of the donkeys, who it turns out are very friendly, much more like pet dogs than horses or cows.

My question as a reporter was, "What do you do with all of these donkeys?" The answer was very, very heartwarming. These animals are mostly sold to families to create companionship for their challenged children. They are good companions from the time they are born.

The Jones met on horseback and share a common love of animals. They drove past a donkey farm in the late 1990s and since then have become the owners of the largest number of miniature donkeys in the Northwest.

When Julie Jones led me through the property, almost all of the donkeys approached me looking to make contact. I rubbed their necks and their backs as I do with my golden retrievers and they thoroughly enjoyed the attention. Unlike my golden retrievers, who hopefully live to be 14 years old, these donkeys have a life expectancy of 35 to 40 years.

The Jones were inspired by the Thurston County Juvenile Center, which hosts children with social challenges and disciplinary issues. Miniature donkeys were the perfect companions for kids with challenges. Animals were imported from Sudan and Sardinia starting in the 1920s.

Because of their size and affability, they were perfect matches for children of all sizes.

The donkeys are handy starting at a very young age, and they are led on ropes when they are just a few weeks old. They pick up where they left off in ongoing training sessions and they are much more social than horses, really enjoying their interaction with humans, especially young kids.

Lauren Waite, who raises moose and reindeer in Alaska, looked for the best miniature donkeys to adopt for several years and finally heard good things about the JF Ranch and adopted two in 2022, Yukon in January and Yeti in October. They were quick learners and are able to hop in and out of trailers and they are totally comfortable having people pet and brush them.

Waite said, "I love them," emphasizing "love," and she is very grateful to have them as companions.

If you have needy kids in need of companions in your family or you just want to enjoy some wonderful companionship yourselves, stop by JF Miniature Donkeys on Best Road and say hello.