[nagdu] Minature Horse Article

Tue Apr 24 12:05:30 UTC 2012

Lyn,

Is the Woman's Day article  available on the internet anywhere?  I'd 
love to read it.  I know your friend in the article and admire her a 
lot.  I hope the article does her justice.

Julie

On 4/23/2012 7:28 PM, Lyn Gwizdak wrote:
> Hi Rebecca,
> I would imagine there was similar things said about dogs back in the 
> early days of guide dogs that we see today about the guide horses.
>
> Back in Morris Frank's time (1920s) people didn't bring dogs around 
> with them like people do today.  Our society is much more dog-friendly 
> now than it was then.  The society wasn't even disable-friendly as it 
> is today.  Back in Morris's time, blind people didn't get out and 
> around like now because they didn't even have the long white cane to 
> enable folks to travel independently.
>
> I think one of the problems that guide horses will have over guide 
> dogs is that dogs do live indoors - our homes -  and horses do not.  
> Horses are considered barn animals.  But, like guide dogs in Morris 
> Frank's time, guide horses will gain acceptance as people get familiar 
> with them.
>
> If anyone reads Woman's Day Magazine, the current issue - May 2012 - 
> there is an article about a good friend of mine who is training her 
> miniature horse, Angel, to be a guide.  My friend is in contact with 
> several guide horse users.  Read it if you can.
>
> Like guide dogs, I think the horses will have to prove themselves.
>
> Lyn and Landon
> ----- Original Message ----- From: "Pickrell, Rebecca M (TASC)" 
> <REBECCA.PICKRELL at tasc.com>
> To: "'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog 
> Users'" <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Friday, March 30, 2012 8:34 AM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Minature Horse Article
>
>
>>        Anybody know if the critisism raised about guide horses was 
>> also raised about guide dogs back in the day? I.E. Dogs live outside, 
>> they aren't house-broken, that sort of thing.
>> I don't recall seeing critisism of that flavor in my reading of the 
>> Seeing Eye.
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org [mailto:nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org] On 
>> Behalf Of Steven Johnson
>> Sent: Thursday, March 29, 2012 8:26 PM
>> To: 'NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog 
>> Users'; wagdu at nfbwis.org
>> Subject: [nagdu] Minature Horse Article
>>
>> A horse is a horse, of course.
>>
>> That's why business owners are getting nervous about a new federal
>> regulation requiring a particular breed of horse to be allowed into 
>> shops
>> and restaurants across the country.
>>
>> The Justice Department regulations were tailored for so-called "service"
>> horses -- miniature horses that, like service dogs, accompany the 
>> blind and
>> others with disabilities to help them get around.
>>
>> But the rules were a lawsuit waiting to happen, according to critics. 
>> And
>> sure enough, a suit was filed earlier this month in Los Angeles, by a 
>> man
>> who uses a wheelchair and keeps a miniature horse named Princess -- 
>> and who
>> claims a local GameStop and Marshalls refused him and his horse service.
>>
>>
>>
>> Related Slideshow
>>
>>
>>
>> Miniature horses -- pet, livestock or service animal?
>>
>>
>> Heard of seeing-eye dogs? There's an alternative. Miniature horses, 
>> while
>> commonly kept on farms, can also be used as "service" animals -- to 
>> help the
>> blind and disabled get around. A federal rule requiring businesses to 
>> let
>> them inside has stirred concern of lawsuits. The dispute doesn't 
>> distract
>> from their cuteness, though.
>>
>>
>>
>> The case, as well as the regulation, has drawn concern from at least one
>> lawmaker on Capitol Hill, as well as the National Restaurant 
>> Association.
>>
>> "I like horses. My daughter likes horses. But even in the Wild West, 
>> they
>> put them outside," said Angelo Amador, vice president of the restaurant
>> association.
>>
>> The organization has a few gripes. First, many business owners just 
>> don't
>> know about the rule, and are only familiar with dogs being a traditional
>> service animal. Amador said those that do know have concerns the animals
>> aren't housebroken.
>>
>> "You cannot train a horse ... housebreak them like you would do with 
>> a dog,"
>> he said.
>>
>> The owner could claim the horse is housebroken, but if that turns out 
>> not to
>> be the case then the business has a sanitation problem on its hands --
>> rather, its floor.
>>
>> "After the deed is done, you have a number of other issues in the
>> restaurant," Amador said. "It's kind of like damned if you do, and 
>> damned if
>> you don't."
>>
>> Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, cast the rule as a case of Washington 
>> overreach
>> -- hardly one to resist a pun, he accused the Justice Department of 
>> "making
>> more hay" for trial attorneys.
>>
>> "Do we really need to saddle businesses with more regulation? I say,
>> 'Naaayyy.' Every scenario in life does not need a rule or 
>> regulation," he
>> said in a statement to FoxNews.com.
>>
>> The regulations on service animals were first put out in September 
>> 2010, as
>> part of the Americans With Disabilities Act.
>>
>> The rules, which went into effect later, actually narrowed down what 
>> used to
>> be a broad definition for service animals. For most purposes, the 
>> Justice
>> Department decided to recognize only dogs -- but the department added an
>> exception for miniature horses after being "persuaded" regarding their
>> benefits to the disabled.
>>
>> The guidelines noted that the horses can be "viable alternatives" for 
>> people
>> who are allergic to dogs or whose religious beliefs do not allow them 
>> to be
>> around dogs.
>>
>> "Another consideration mentioned in favor of the use of miniature 
>> horses is
>> the longer life span," the guidelines said. They can provide 
>> "service" to
>> the disabled for more than 25 years, as opposed to roughly seven working
>> years for the typical dog. Plus the horses, despite their petite 
>> size, can
>> be stronger.
>>
>> That was the case for Jose Estrada, the plaintiff in the case filed this
>> month in Los Angeles court.
>>
>> His attorney, Morse Mehrban, told FoxNews.com that a dog "doesn't 
>> have the
>> sufficient strength to pull him in his wheelchair."
>>
>> So Estrada, a paraplegic, uses a 29-inch-high miniature horse named
>> Princess. According to the complaint, the two retail stores being sued
>> "refused to permit said animal" inside along with Estrada last month. 
>> The
>> suit says Princess "is housebroken" and would not "compromise" the 
>> safety of
>> those two stores.
>>
>> "Apparently, they don't understand that a miniature horse can be a 
>> service
>> animal," Mehrban said.
>>
>> Estrada is suing for "no less than" $4,000 in damages.
>>
>> The federal rules state that businesses should allow in the horses as 
>> long
>> as they're trained, considering such factors as the size of the horse,
>> whether it's under control, whether it's "housebroken," and whether its
>> presence would compromise "legitimate safety requirements."
>>
>> Amador says the horses cannot be housebroken.
>>
>> The Guide Horse Foundation, though, says on its website that the horses
>> "learn exactly the same behaviors as a guide dog," and that they 
>> "never bite
>> or kick except when attacked."
>>
>> The organization could not be reached for comment.
>>
>> The use of miniature horses as service animals, though, has created a 
>> bit of
>> a rift in the miniature horse community.
>>
>> The American Miniature Horse Association does not condone the use of
>> miniature horses for that purpose. Association President Harry Elder
>> applauded those who have received "ADA certification" to train 
>> animals but
>> questioned the use of miniature horses.
>>
>> "Although the American Miniature Horse is bred to be intelligent, 
>> curious,
>> gentle, sensible, willing to cooperate and easy to train, it remains 
>> in all
>> respects physically and instinctively a true horse. The American 
>> Miniature
>> Horse can be readily trained to be lead or driven but, in most cases, it
>> would not make a suitable replacement for an animal such as a guide 
>> dog," he
>> said in a statement.
>>
>> According to the group, there are 200,000 miniature horses registered 
>> with
>> the organization around the world, though it's unclear how many are 
>> used as
>> service animals in the U.S.
>>
>> Other retail groups are taking the Justice Department rule in stride 
>> and say
>> they're trying to follow it. Mallory Duncan, senior vice president 
>> with the
>> National Retail Federation, said the group is continuing to hold 
>> talks on
>> "how best to comply."
>>
>> "Retailers are sensitive to the many challenges confronting our 
>> customers
>> and work to reasonably accommodate all shoppers when and where 
>> appropriate,"
>> Duncan said. "Retailers must remain cognizant of the unique challenges
>> service animals present in the retail setting in order to best 
>> protect and
>> serve the general public."
>>
>>
>>
>>
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