I’m writing this article, Donkey for sale Tennessee because I get asked at least once a month, “where can I find a donkey in Tennessee?”
Makes sense… I’m a donkey trainer in TN. I should know, right? Most people think I’ll give them names of breeders. I actually don’t know many breeders and I especially don’t know many breeders I would recommend!
There’s like, maybe one!
You can go to an equine auction and I explain how to do that in my book “Rescue Donkeys: How to rescue a donkey from the kill pen”
That’s going to be the least expensive way to go, but I understand that may intimidate many people. You also may not live by an equine auction. I’ll list a few that always have donkeys though.. just in case!
There are a couple of online options to check into and finally there are donkey rescues in Tennessee, too.
Donkey For Sale Tennessee
There are a few places where sellers can list donkey for sale.
Equine Now: One of the better places to find a trained donkey! This site isn’t just for TN but lots of donkeys go up for sale in neighboring states and are worth a look, especially if you are looking for a trained donkey!
Craiglist: Most of the donkeys listed on CL aren’t going to be trained. If you’re ok with that it’s a good place to check.
Horse Clicks: It’s like equine now. People with trained donkeys or breeders tend to list here.
Facebook: I hate to mention FB because there are SO many scams on that platform. NEVER send money to someone selling a donkey on FB unless you know first hand that is a real person and it’s not someone impersonating someone else. I’ve had my pic with my donkeys stolen and used for fake sales ads more times than I can count. If you choose to look for a donkey on FB use extreme caution.
Horse Sale Tennessee
Tennessee horse auctions, as mentioned above, usually have donkeys. They tend to be donkeys that need rescuing from the slaughter pipeline. If they aren’t bid on, they go to the next auction or Mexico. If no one bids at any auction they end up slaughtered for their hide and meat… Its a hideous road to Mexico. The ride is usually worse than the slaughter itself. A sad end for many donkeys… If you can rescue, pls do!
The 3 Tennessee horse auctions I’ve been to are:
Knoxville Horse Auction
Athens Horse Auction
Triple W Horse Auction
Contact the auctions to get the latest schedule for sales events. I want to mention that if you rescue a jack donkey Horse Humane Rescue has a gelding program that will help you pay for it!!
Donkey Rescue Tennessee
There are only 3 Equine rescues I know of in TN that have donkeys regularly. The top 2 are in middle TN. The last listed is in East TN.
East TN Mini Horse and Donkey Rescue
East TN rescue is the only one I know does do some training with their donkeys. Not sure about the other 2.
Now What?
You’ve got your donkey… hopefully you’ve done plenty of research!! I’m here to help if you have more questions, need training help, feeding or care advice or want to schedule an a donkey handling lesson right here on my farm! Link here for more info on that: Hire a Donkey Trainer {Training Donkeys}
Check out my donkey books, courses and custom donkey tack in my shop: DL Shop
And there is always my Donkey Training Membership Group on Patreon if you want a really deep dive into everything DONKEY!!
If not already, do sign up for my Donkey Lovers List too!