I thought the training was coming along fine. We had worked the team hard the first day, but just for about one hour, then gave them a half hour rest, then another forty-five minutes. The team was seven year old john and a six year old molly. Both stepped out eagerly when I spoke to them, I didn't force them to work harder than I thought they wanted to. On the second day I hooked them on opposite sides. The team pulled the loader tire in a fifty yard loop at the walk, then the six- year-old staggered and dropped to the ground. Next thing I know she's stone dead. She'd bumped into a post at the hitching rail so there's a possibility her windpipe might have gotten crushed but it was only at a walk! Heart failure seems the most likely cause, I guess. My question to you experienced teamsters is Did I work the mule too hard? She was out of shape from lack of use this winter but I thought we kept the workouts short enough. Would a mule hurt herself trying to keep up with a stronger teammate? Can't afford an autopsy so I'll never know for sure but I need some experienced advice right about now. Thanks,
ed

dont think you worked them to hard. heart failure seems the logical explanition. I've worked soft mules draging the road with roadgrader until they were sweating lather before they walked. only then gave them a break. they hadent been worked for 3 years. I feel sorry for you now, you need another mule. There like potato chips you cant have just one.

Sorry to hear of your loss , brother. I'm no vet, but with the sudden collapse and death , would seem like heart failure. Doesn't sound like you worked her that hard.

I would pretty much guess it was heart failure even though she was young, why I don't know. I have known of several horses over the years and of a few mules that heart failure done. I had a horse drop over dead from heart failure one time in a trailer, just lucky it was a stock trailer,maybe my driving gave him a heart attack. A fellow I used to work for was riding a 4 year old gelding one day and it died from a heart attack while he was loping. Just folded up and was dead before he hit the ground. It is tough to lose one but just remember you can't lose them if you don't own them.

So sorry you lost a mule like that. It has to be a shock to you.

Heart failure or annurism are sure possible. stuff happens like that. I know of a trainer who hired a vet to do a pre sale vet exam on a horse she had just spent 90 days training including some rigorous work. Vet could hear a murmer so they brought the horse in for ultrasound of the heart. Turns out the whole thing was in there upside down and backwards! AND in the wrong side. Vet recommended retiring the horse. To my knowlege it is still alive. I knew another person who had a paint stallion that dropped over dead at 3 to heart failure. he also had some kind of defect no one had detected.

Upsetting I'm sure. Wondering if there was something you did to cause this is natural. But sometimes these things just happen.

Anytime you have livestock, you're going to have deadstock at times.

I have seen 3 diffrent horses die of heart attacks. I was teenager when we lost the first one, he was a 6 old gelding my dad had traded for a few weeks prior. We had riiden him everyday for a week and he was good mannered and quite but this particular day he was real nervous and flighty, he broke out into a sweat immediately and 30 minutes of riding later he fell over kicked a couple times and died. The other 2 horse died the same way. Acting nervous and profuse sweating were the only clear warningwe had.

I dont think you could ever work a mule to the point it would fall over dead.. They would probably stop, turn around and say something like OK I've got to stop and rest for awhile because you're goin to kill me if I keep this up! LOL

had a white john mule some time back..about 15 years old..in real good shape pulled a wagon..plowed ..worked double or single..moved good and loose..went to the barn and fed him his morning grain went to the big barn to clean the boarding horse stalls..went back to let him out and he was dead as a hammer..still had grain in his mouth he was chewing..didn't even kick the shavings..heart attack i guess..stall door wasnt real big..how to get him out of it..i waited till he got rigormortus..had a friend drive the tractor..put a chain around his neck and got his front feet and rolled him up on his back then pulled him right out..heart attack can get anything anytime...cathy and i were giving a dog demo to the n.c. gilby association..i was walkinbg across the field and i had a pain in my chest..hurt so bad i layed down in the field..i was in good physical shape..felt good..then boom..it knocked me down..dr. wood..a long time friend who is a medical examiner retired told me sometimes a heart just quits beating..

Thanks, folks, for giving me some perspective on this. Time to quit wondering why and move on. Meat's in the freezer and the hide's salted. I'm open to any tanning advice.
ed

Not being one to want to waste anything, I've tanned a few hides, but mostly smaller ones. Deer is about right for a size that I can handle by myself. But, for a bigger hide, I'd cut it into sections so it would be easier to work. I have a reprinted book called The Harness Maker's Manual, which shows (in cowhide), which parts are best for what. Don't know anything about the strength of mule hides and how it could best be used. And, now I'm contradicting myself because my history with my own equines that have died is to completely waste the carcass by burying it. I'm just not tough (or hungry) enough to cut them up. We have some active tanners on the forum and I look forward to their responses.

streach it..scrape it..rub alum and salt into it real good..it will tan

Most of the old timers used to just put dead horses and mules in the hog pen. Sure didn't take long for the sows to clean up a horse.

Remember like it was yesterday when my very first horse that was my very own died.

Called the mink farm down the road.

Not that fussy, but will not eat anything that didn't die with some help.

Dale, no hogs but my chickens have been eating elk all winter, Now mule is on the menu, theirs and mine. Tacos tonight.
ed