A woman was left in tears as she prepared to say goodbye to her horse, but as it turned out, there was yet another twist as the horse had quite the surprise in store.
Earlier this year, Libby Partridge was close to selling one of her horses, 6-year-old Lilly. She told Newsweek that there was a “very serious buyer” who was due to visit the horse on April 1 and was likely to take Lilly home the next day.
It was a very difficult time for Partridge, 18, who cried over the thought of having to say goodbye to her beloved Lilly.
However, the buyer’s car broke down and prevented them from being able to meet the horse. That bought Partridge a few more days with Lilly, and they ended up being very eventful indeed.
On April 8, Partridge, from the UK, discovered that Lilly was in fact in foal, and she was likely to give birth within a matter of weeks.
If the sale had gone through, Partridge may have never even known that Lilly was expecting.
“I saw the dad, named Donkey, in a Facebook post and I knew we needed him,” Partridge said. “I was told that he was a castrated donkey, so I thought that’s perfect. He arrived and he very clearly wasn’t castrated.
She continued: “I thought because he’s quite old already, I wouldn’t put him through the stress of surgery. So, I kept him intact in a separate field far away from Lilly. All was well until I woke up one morning with Donkey in Lilly’s field.”
At the time, Partridge “thought nothing of it” and presumed that Donkey’s smaller stature would prove problematic. Horses are traditionally measured in hands, with one hand equaling approximately four inches. Lilly is almost 16 hands tall, whereas Donkey measures at 10 hands.
“I thought Donkey couldn’t reach, but oh boy, was I wrong,” Partridge said.
As it transpired, Lilly gave birth to a mule on April 21, much to Partridge’s amazement. She told Newsweek that was in “utter awe” when she saw the mule, who she has named Coco.
Partridge didn’t have any previous experience with a mule, so she wasn’t sure what to expect of the donkey and horse hybrid. But fortunately, Coco has a wonderful temperament it’s just like having a dog (a very large one at that).
Partridge shared a video on TikTok (@libbypartridge.equine) of the stunning turn of events, and the clip instantly went viral. In just a matter of days, the video has generated more than 5.9 million views and over 1.2 million likes on TikTok at the time of writing.
The footage shows Partridge crying her eyes out over the prospect of losing Lilly, only to be surprised with a new addition in the shape of Coco.
Donkey has now been castrated, and the adorable family trio lives together in a large field with Partridge’s other horses.
“The reaction online has been nothing but positive,” Partridge said. “I share a lot of my life online and have built such a kind and caring community. Coco is just like a big dog—all she wants is cuddles and attention. And Lilly is the kindest mare ever.”
Since the video went viral, internet users can’t get enough of Lilly and Donkey’s little secret, leading to more than 550 comments on the TikTok post so far.
One comment reads: “She’s like hang on, I’m duplicating.”
Another TikTok user wrote: “She said you weren’t getting rid of her that easily.”
Another person joked: “She said nice try your stuck with me forever.”
While one commenter added: “I bet you’re so glad you held on for that little bit longer.”
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