We will try to provide you with a price range for mules.
May 2024 You should know that mules have always been sold more expensive than horses because of their longer lifespan, their ease of maintenance and their sobriety.
At the breeders
This is the simplest, because the price is fixed. Examples :
Mullets at weaning
Poitevine mules: depending on origin, color and model From €2,500 to €4,000
Mini mules From €2,500 / €3,500, but the price can quickly increase depending on color, origins, breeding reputation and customer perception.
American mules (Quarter, Appaloosa) Between €4,500 and €5,000
Buying a mule from a breeder still offers a certain security. Of course, it is expensive, but:
Parents are selected for their behavior and genetics.
The little one is already domesticated, polished, tied up, rides in a van, gives his feet and the breeder knows him well.
You also have the opportunity to see your siblings and take part in official competitions.
For mules, beginnings are decisive in their future life. Well started, they become quite easy animals, for a mule!
Young adults
Just cleared, you add 1,500 to 2,000 e to the purchase price. Be careful to work with a professional who knows mules, don't skimp on this step.
Confirmed adults
Poitevine mules are not easily found for sale in France, 3/4 go to work in Spain and Italy. Between €6,000 and €10,000
Mini mules No breaking but well educated. From €3,000 to €4,000
Unstuck American mules mounted Between €5,000 and €10,000
The ONCs
It’s vague… What’s certain is that unbound, unworked, young or adult, it’s not worth much. The ancients said that an uneducated mule is worthless. However, we can be more positive by starting from the principle that sometimes nature does things well through meadow cocktails, and that there are very beautiful and good elements.
We can start by talking about the price of the knife, the price asked by horse dealers, but there too, the prices are fanciful and at the customer's discretion. To give you an idea of the price, here is the price at the horse fair at the Mauriac dial market (15) in January 2024
It is impossible to find the price of mule meat in France, what we learned is that their slaughter circuit is the same as horses, therefore not many specialized slaughterhouses in France and that when we call them and they answer that they have not had any mules to slaughter or very very rarely, one piece of information on the other hand, mule meat is more similar to donkey meat: blacker, different flavor, it is not horsemeat. On the other hand, a horse butcher, on around ten calls, told us that he had them from time to time, there is a clientele for that, the shelf price is the same as the horse. It should be noted that, in Italy, mule meat is sold at approximately the same price as donkey meat in France, which may call into question the notion of French mules crossing the border for the knife, which certainly does not prevent not some arrangements...
With these benchmarks, you have the approximate price of an unworked adult mule, depending on the size and weight this will give you an overview.
For the challenge, two mules of +/- 1.50 m were purchased for 1500 e, one from a horse dealer and one at a fair, which gives a price of a little more than 3 e per kg live, again the Beauty factor comes into play, they are very beautiful and were therefore sold to individuals, that drives up the price...They were worth it
Once worked and/or broken, you can always add €1,500 to €2,000, plus experience. This can easily result in a mule costing €4,000/5,000 or even more depending on its level of work, its conformation, its coat. There are some really cool ones that go far.
A small non-ridable mule, but well worked on the pack or in the carriage, costs around €1,500/2,500, always depending on its level of dressage, its physique, its coat.
!!! Attention !!! to the adult mule of unknown origin found in a shelter: its value is zero. On the other hand, the adoption price is justified, the shelter took care of it and this generated costs. But even if there are great animals, you take the risk of having a complicated, potentially dangerous animal and, if you don't have the mentality, the time and the necessary knowledge, she will go back to the shelter. This is an other story…
To conclude
One point is decisive, whatever the origin of the mule: it is she who will choose you. Even the most terrible, dangerous, wild mule can find her soul mate, but she will choose you, not you.
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