A giant dog has found friendship with a herd of donkeys.
Olaf the Great Dane is delighted to finally have mates that are big enough for him to play with.
The three-year-old pup has been living with eight donkeys after struggling to make dog friends because of his size.
Owners Hillary Hogg, a 54-year-old dietitian, and husband Chris, 54, finally got the dog they wanted after a 20-year wait.
They were delighted when Olaf immediately took to the miniature donkeys on their farm in Cornwall.
The cheeky dog tries to get his new family to play fetch with the donkeys, greets them every morning, and has taken a special liking to a donkey called Beaker.
The duo spends their afternoons lying down and relaxing in the sun.
Hillary said: ‘Olaf is such a lovely dog, he’s quite sombre which is a surprise for his breed, but he does have his mad moments where you can hear the ground shifting as he races around the house.
‘Olaf presumes that everybody loves him and because we live on a small holding he’s always on the field with us.’
The donkeys are equally infatuated with Olaf.
Hilary added: ‘Donkeys are quite chilled and because Olaf is too, they’re curious about each other.
‘Olaf is used to animals being smaller than him so he just finds it bizarre that there are animals bigger than him.
‘He comes out in the morning with me to muck out the donkeys, and say hello to all of them, he brings his toys and pops them next to them to try and play fetch – which they haven’t quite done yet.
‘But Olaf is hopeful that will happen someday soon.’
Olaf does get very jealous when his owners pet the donkeys and tries his hardest to get in on the cuddles.
He has lived with the donkeys for three years and is always trying to get the donkeys involved in playtime.
‘The herd has accepted him into the group,’ says Hilary. ‘They like being around him and they don’t worry or kick out.
‘But they do let him know when they’ve had enough, when they want to go and do donkey things together, they will somehow let him know he needs to go away.
‘Which is when he runs over to the goats.’
But Hilary says she doesn’t leave the animals alone together as they can be quite unpredictable at times.
She said: ‘It’s great that they are such good friends, and we love that the donkeys accept Olaf as one of their own.
‘But you can never be too careful, and it is important to keep a close eye in case play gets confused for fighting.
‘For now, he’s one of their own.’
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source https://metro.co.uk/2020/01/28/great-dane-too-big-to-be-pals-with-other-dogs-is-best-mates-with-a-herd-of-donkeys-12136731/
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