We are a small family farm located in the beautiful Santa Ynez Valley about 30 miles north of Santa Barbara. Our donkey farm was originally The Ballard Apple farm with over 500 apple trees. We only have about 75 trees left with 12 different varieties of apples. Most of the land is now being used for our precious Mediterranean Miniature Donkeys.
We started with two little donkeys in 2002 and fell madly in love with these sweet equines. It is our mission to educate everyone possible on how wonderful, intelligent, funny and affectionate these mini donkeys are.
We are deeply committed to raising the very finest miniature donkeys possible. We have sought out proven bloodlines from all over the country and aim to breed the best possible miniature donkeys. All of our foals are imprinted at birth and cared for daily with loving individual attention. Mini donkeys are the sweetest, most affectionate equine pet you will ever find. They will steal you heart from your first donkey hug. We encourage our buyers to keep in touch and we are always available to answer questions. We love to “talk donkeys” so please come by for a visit. You don’t have to be a buyer; we love to share our donkeys!
IN THE NEWS!!
We are so glad to have had the opportunity to share our donkeys! We were guests on the Ellen Degeneres Show - pictures can be seen on our pictures page. And, we were also featured in the Santa Ynez Valley Journal.
The Marchi Family
2599 Baseline Avenue
Ballard, CA 93463