At Missouri Mule Co., we raise a select few mule foals a year, out of our proven band of top quality gaited mares and by our two gaited jacks. From the instant they figure out how to use their wobbly little legs, they learn that humans are a reliable source of comfort, safety, and affection.  Our methods go beyond mere imprinting, and provide a consistent foundation of positive interaction thier 1st 5 months that produces respectful, trusting youngsters who are ready to learn from the moment they are weaned.  

How do we do it?  Well, we’ll tell you - it’s no secret!
Phase 1:
When our youngsters are born, we bring them and their mare mommas inside into our special broodmare stalls, where they can be handled daily. “Daily” doesn’t mean just a pat on the head once.  It means we really get in there and handle them. Pick up feet, rub ears, hug them around their body, accustom them to a little bit of restraint and begin to teach them how to yield to pressure. We keep them up close for 30-45 days to be sure they are super tame and acclimated to humans before we turn them out.  
Phase 2:
After that all-critical first month or two, the babies are turned out with their mommas to grow up and learn how to be mules.  We have lush, spacious pastures with natural obstacles and playmates their own age so the youngsters learn confidence in their own decisionmaking, how to be a respectful part of a herd, and how to negotiate tricky footing.  These are the lessons that their mothers, their herd, and mother nature teach best!
Phase 3:
Weaning is another critical stage in our youngster’s development.  We bring them back in to wean, and separate them from their mothers.  This is a great time to exploit their natural desire for comfort and safety in the absence of their dams.  They feel like they are dying for someone to love them, and we’re there for them - to handle them, set boundaries, and prove to them once and for all that humans are the source of all comfort, safety, and love that they’ll ever need.  

We feel that if you start with the right raw materials - quality youngsters from proven producers of gait and temperament - and bring them up the right way, almost anyone can raise a youngster from weaning until it’s time to start them under saddle.

In the past, we’ve raised these colts up ourselves, to finish for our program.  But now we realize our customers that want to start their own youngsters would love the opportunity to pick out their own mule foals even earlier than we’d anticipated.  But, it makes sense - choose the baby of your dreams, and then spend a couple years doing groundwork and building the trust.  By the time they’re ready to ride, our clients can finish them themselves, or send them to us for finishing.  

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