Small Vermont donkey with big voice goes viral

SWANTON, Vt. (WCAX) - In Vermont, it’s normal to have farm animals as pets, from mini-goats to even a miniature donkey.

“We fell in love right away,” Ashley Kirk said.

Zachary Saine surprised his fiancée, Ashley Kirk, and brought a donkey home to Swanton two years ago.

“He is a wicked guard dog. Guard donkey I guess you could call him,” Saine said.

But they soon found out that at 37.5 inches, Nelson the mini donkey had something much bigger.

“No, not a mini voice, though,” Kirk said.

She posted a video of her calling to Nelson that features him responding with his mighty voice.

The piercingly loud video went viral!

“I’m still shocked,” Kirk said.

So, where did she learn to call to him like this?

“We own a shop and we are around a lot of guys all the time, and a big saying with the guys is, ‘Can I get an aw ya.’ I just tested it out with the donkey and he responded perfectly,” Kirk explained.

And if you thought Nelson was just a one-trick donkey, you’re wrong. He can also sing with music.

The video jokes about the neighbors being upset but the family says Nelson is loved by everyone.

And with tens of millions of views of the video online, they say it has been life-changing.

“I put it on TikTok not thinking it would go anywhere. Now, he is known worldwide,” Kirk said.

“I’m just kind of still in shock about it really,” Saine said.

They say Nelson enjoys the fame and singing out loud.

“That’s something he does when he is happy, as you can tell, he responds to it, not in a negative way. If he was upset, he would start kicking,” Kirk said.

So what’s next for Nelson? Click here to find out.

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