[nagdu] Minature Horse Article

Tami Kinney tamara.8024 at comcast.net
Wed Apr 25 21:18:43 UTC 2012 

Lyn,

You described it well that I got the picture! Thanks. I love the white 
horse with the white haired trainer. How cool!

On 04/24/2012 03:38 PM, Lyn Gwizdak wrote:
> 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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