[nagdu] Minature Horse Article
Lyn Gwizdak
linda.gwizdak at cox.net
Tue Apr 24 22:38:05 UTC 2012
Oh, I see the picture didn't come through the e-mail. Well, I described it
anyway.
Lyn and landon
----- Original Message -----
From: "Lyn Gwizdak" <linda.gwizdak at cox.net>
To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
<nagdu at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2012 1:44 PM
Subject: Re: [nagdu] Minature Horse Article
> Hi Julie and everyone,
> Below, I pasted the Woman's Day article about my friend, Renata diPietro
> and her mini horse, Angel who she is training to be a guide. The article
> is from the current May 2012 issue of Woman's Day magazine.
>
> Yes, I know Renata has been in contact with you, Julie. renata and I have
> been good friends sinse 1991 when she lived here in San Diego.
>
> In the article is a photo I will describe for the folks who can't see it.
> Angel is a beautiful all-white mini horse and she is wearing a royal blue
> halter. Renata, with hair almost as white as Angel's, is hugging the
> horse. The photo is a tight head shot of the two of them.
>
> What was interesting is that the article's author is named Melody. Renata
> has a young white German shepherd named Melody!
>
> Hope your screen readers can read the article.
>
> Enjoy,
>
> Lyn and Landon
>
> Small Wonder
>
>
>
> Instead of choosing a guide dog, a blind woman puts her trust in a
> surprising choice - and it has transformed her life. // BY MELODY
> WARNICK //
>
>
>
>
>
> When Renata di Pietro walks into a store near her home in Cleveland,
> GA, jaws drop, cameras click and strangers want to talk. "It's like the
> paparazzi are after me," she says, laughing.
>
> The classically trained singer, who is legally blind, is used to an
> audience, but these days the main attraction is her miniature guide horse,
> Angel. Just 28 inches tall - not much bigger than a Great Dane - Angel has
> been trained, like a Seeing Eye dog, to help Renata navigate her way
> around town.
>
> For years, Renata relied on guide dogs, but ultimately, she found it
> heartbreaking: A dog's working life is short - just six to 10 years before
> it either ages out of service or dies. "It's very painful, because you
> love each one with all your heart," says Renata. The time it took to
> adjust to a new dog took a toll, too.
>
> In 2007, on the hunt for another dog, Renata thought about a friend who
> had a mini horse as her guide. They're rare: Experts estimate that there
> are just a dozen or so of them at work in the United States. Renata knew
> from her friend that mini horses are calm, strong and typically live for
> 30 years or more. The first horse she tried proved difficult to work with.
> Then Renata paid a breeder $3,000 for Angel (many mini horses are
> available for $1,000 or less), and hired trainers she found through word
> of mouth to help ready the horse for service. She also paid $350 for a
> special harness, but the rest of Angel's upkeep is pretty manageable: $20
> a month for hay and feed, $20 every six to eight weeks for hoof trimming,
> and vet bills comparable to those for dogs.
>
> That's not to say there aren't challenges to working with a guide horse.
> "With a dog you give a leash correction and say, 'No.' But that type of
> correction makes a horse fearful and unwilling to work," says Renata, who
> had to learn new techniques from the pros. And while she and her husband,
> Carl, already had 1 3/4 acres of fenced property, complete with an unused
> stable where Angel lives, they quickly learned that constantly mucking it
> out is hard work. Then there was the poop problem when Angel was indoors.
> "For months before Angel was housebroken, my nickname was Scooper Man,"
> says Carl.
>
> The one challenge Renata anticipated - her guide horse being denied
> access - has not come up. (Thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act,
> guide horses are generally legally allowed to go anywhere guide dogs can.)
> "The first day I took my horse to a store, a police officer ran up to me.
> I thought, Prepare yourself, Renata. But he just said, 'Can I take a
> picture?'"
>
> In the three years together, Renata has come to rely on Angel for much
> more than sight. "She's my own personal war horse. We're fighting a battle
> for my independence."
>
>
>
> MELODY WARNICK is a writer in Austin, Texas.
>
>
>
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Julie J." <julielj at neb.rr.com>
> To: "NAGDU Mailing List,the National Association of Guide Dog Users"
> <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, April 24, 2012 5:05 AM
> Subject: Re: [nagdu] Minature Horse Article
>
>
>> 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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>>>
>>>
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>>
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