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I broke Gato to ride as a two year old and very
quickly realized his athletic abilities would be this jack’s
strongest skills. Gato was registered with NASMA on April 15th 2000
as ND0015. We started showing with the Mid States Mule and Donkey
association, then graduated to the Houston Livestock show and the
NASMA circuit. At the time NASMA had many shows that did not provide
separate performance classes for donkeys. Therefore, for example,
you could compete donkeys in the Open Western Pleasure class if
there was no Donkey Western Pleasure class provided. To my
knowledge, no prior NASMA donkey had attempted to take advantage of
this “loophole” and Gato was hugely successful. At the 2000
Oldtimer’s Mule and Donkey Celebration in New York, Gato won the
Open Western Pattern Pleasure class excelling over the likes of Ryan
Cottingim on “A Touch of Class” and Donna Wilburn on “D.K.W. Coal’’.
In 2001 Gato was first in Dressage over mules at the
NASMA Congress in Springfield Illinois and went on later that year
to take Reserve Champion in the Open Division at New York being the
only donkey against many of the top show mules. Gato obtained his
first of two High Point NASMA donkey titles in 2001.
At the 2002 NASMA general meeting held at Springfield Illinois, item
B. Splitting of classes under General Show Rules was passed as a
rule change. This provision states “At no time may mules and donkeys
compete in the same approved NASMA event”. In 2004 the exception was
passed that states “except in 10 and under classes.” In as much as
these changes curtailed Gato’s sparring with mules in the show ring,
the long term benefits have been a proliferation of donkey specific
classes and divisions.
Gato was retired from the show ring in 2003 and gelded in 2005. He
came out of retirement in 2006 and obtained his second end of year
NASMA High Point Donkey title. Outside of NASMA, Gato competed in
local area open horse shows winning Championships and Reserve
Championships against our horse cousins.
In 2010 and 2011 I had the extreme pleasure of
watching my daughter Kat show Gato in the NASMA Open and Youth
divisions. | 
