Training to the cart was easy. Just walked him around with the harness at first, then drag poles (PVC pipe works great, its cheap and if it breaks they don't get hurt and you aren't out the big $$) and then the cart.
"drove" him from the ground in the round pen (bridle, surcingle, over-check, crupper, long lines).
50# bag of feed in the cart, then 100#. After a couple of weeks we were off and about.
From there the training for riding is easy cause they are already use to thebridle, a cinch and going where you want them to go.
from the ground and to cart first. Tie a sack of grain on the saddle to get them use to the weight. Plus we always used blankets with tennis balls on the babies so they were never touchy about their legs. Because they were used to the "bouncing balls," the hanging human legs were no big deal.
I've never had an intact male donkey or horse bother the babies. The weanlings, sometimes, but the babies never. The only problem I ever had with an intact male anything was a Suffolk ram (I do NOT like Suffolk, btw <g>) and he would head butt the horses to get to their feed. He stopped when an old gelding picked him up and tossed him.
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