Bleeding the Mules

Big L · Mar 15, 2018

Saw a friend today that mentioned a practice of "Bleeding the Mules" in winter that her grandparents did. The theory was that the loss of a controlled amount of blood determined by the size of the animal and the subsequent manufacture of replacement blood by the mule's body would put the mule in better shape for the work of the coming farm season. My grandparents farmed with mules until I was about 9; I don't remember any such practice on their farm, but I probably was not aware of what all happened. Just wondering if anybody remembers anything about such a practice??

Big L :cheers:

Old Winchesters · Mar 15, 2018

I've heard tales about "blood letting" in ancient times and in third world countries in humans for the same reason.

trad bow · Mar 15, 2018

I grew up in the sho nuff country back in the sixties and our only neighbor was an old black gentleman that did that every winter in February. He saved the blood for his wife’s roses. He taught me how to plow mules when I was ten years old. He thought that was funny. Black man having white boy plow for him was halarious to him. He was in his ninties at the time.

NCHillbilly · Mar 16, 2018

Never heard of it. I grew up on a horse-and-mule-powered tobacco farm, and everybody around had (and still have several) mules. That's a new thing to me-pretty interesting.

Hillbilly stalker · Mar 16, 2018

I grew up way back in the mountains of WV. My paw paw was a "Mule man", I never heard of such a thing. A ol mules gotta good memory, he would probally find a way to pay ya back for cutting him tho. lol !

Nicodemus · Mar 16, 2018

That`s a new one on me.

Barbers and doctors used to bleed people way back when for supposedly good health.

specialk · Mar 16, 2018

NCHillbilly said:
Never heard of it. I grew up on a horse-and-mule-powered tobacco farm, and everybody around had (and still have several) mules. That's a new thing to me-pretty interesting.

same here.....knew a guy that had coon hunting mules.....mules were trained to go to the treeing hound...my folks would never lay a blade to an animal to let blood flow to make it a ''little'' better for the next year.....

trad bow · Mar 16, 2018

I went today and visited with the sons of some of the old black gentleman I grew up with asking them if they remembered that happening and why. They said it was a carry over from the slave days and truthfully had more to do with their African religion which maybe explains things somewhat. I am 60 and the guys I talked to today are in their late eighties and a couple still own mules but don’t practice that and they all said it stopped when their fathers and grandfathers passed away.

Big L · Mar 16, 2018

The lady I talked with has about 10 years on me; practice might have faded out by time I came along or might have been practiced by a few or regionally. From what I remember of my limited experience with the mules, I tend to agree with Stalker: payback is heck! From what I remember of my grandpa's mules, they would "Pay me back" when I hadn't even done anything to them!

Redbow · Mar 18, 2018

Never heard of bleeding Mules either and I grew up on the farm tending and working with them. Ever so often we did trim their hooves and mane and filed the sharp edges off their teeth. One old Mule we had was mean and we had to tie her up and throw her down to do any kind of maintenance on her, she would hurt you if given the chance..

Bleeding the Mules

Big L

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Old Winchesters

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trad bow

wooden stick slinging driveler

NCHillbilly

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Hillbilly stalker

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Nicodemus

The Recluse

specialk

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trad bow

wooden stick slinging driveler

Big L

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Redbow

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