[NAGDU] found a guide horse trainer

Fri May 24 19:03:13 UTC 2024

Looks like all my work paid off. I found a very enthusiastic guide horse
trainer!!
Holly Fisher:
"Hello Josh,
I appreciate you reaching out to me, expressing your interest in miniature
guide horses.
I've had a life long infatuation with all animals, especially horses. I
started taking riding lessons at the age of 7. The more I learned about
horses, the more I wanted to be with them. In my teenage years I trained my
young horse & started competing in horse shows. Then I began training
horses locally. In 2006 I graduated from horseshoeing school & currently I
am still working as a Farrier. I love my job. I still feel like I need to
be more involved. But in what ways?  I have a deep desire to share my love
of horses with like minded individuals.
Around 2018 I stumbled upon the Guide Horse Foundation's website. I was
blown away at the idea of using mini horses as guides.  I instantly knew I
wanted to follow the guide horse foundations lead and I would train guide
horses too.
I researched different types of miniature horses. It didn't take long to
realize bet best choice is Falabella horses. They originated in Argentina.
Falabellas are perfect in every way for guide work. I started looking
online in hope of purchasing a few of these Falabella's to begin clicker
training for service work. I was shocked to find that the price range to
buy a 1 year old, untrained Falabella is between $5,000-$12,000. Yikes! I
was a bit discouraged about buying these mini horses, but I continued
practicing clicker training with my full sized horses.
Fast forward a few years, in March 2024 I was checking out the new foals
for sale on a website named 'Toyland's Falabella International'. Since
2018, I have visited this website many times. During this visit I decided
to sign the websites guestbook. I wrote a few sentences expressing my
wishes to buy a few Falabella horses & clicker train them for guide work.
This is the only time I wrote about my dream online, outside of my small
circle of friends.
So imagine my astonishment & excitement when you reached out to me about a
guide horse.  The more I thought about it, the more I felt like this is a
sign, from a higher power, encouraging me to get the ball rolling  pursuing
my dream to train miniature guide horses.
I thought it was a long shot... but I emailed the women who owns Toylands
Falabella horses. She is one of the largest breeders in the United States &
just happens to live in the same state as me, Illinois. It's only a 3.5
hour drive away. In my email I explained my dream & described my
qualifications. She sent me back an enthusiastic email. Long story short,
she wants me to come to her place & meet me. She wants to discuss ideas &
start training her Falabellas for service work. I'm going to visit her in
about 1 week. I'll let you know exactly what day I go visit & how our
meeting goes.
Thank you so much for contacting me. Without your thoughtful action, none
of this would be happening right now. I think you should be the 1st person
to receive our 1st trained guide horse."
Alexandra Kurland:
"Hi Josh,
This could be an exciting partnership.  You may yet get your dream guide
horse.
Panda’s mother was a Falabella.  I suspect she got her small size from her
mother.
Good luck with this.
Alexandra"
Holly Fisher:
"Yes, consistency is key, especially when working with horses. I believe
consistency is the closest thing horses have understanding of that can be
related to honesty. Horses don't, and can't lie, but if a human or a horse
in their herd is inconsistent it means they can't be relied on to make
decisions for them.
I sent an email to Alexandra Kurlin recently. I'm excited to hear what she
has to say or any pointers she may give as we continue on our guide horse
journey.   I'm curious with the size perimeters should be considering when
choosing a suitable training horse prospect.
I have a client that has some very nice miniature horses. I inquired about
ones offered for sale. She has 1 that might be suitable  for guide work.
She stands 32" in height, weighs about 125 pounds. She is 2 years old &
loves people. And to describe her looks... she is almost too cute. Her coat
is a reddish brown with a blonde main & tail. My client is supposed to get
back with me tonight with a price. This 2 year old should be more
affordable than a purebred Falabella miniature.
I'm still trying to coordinate a date to go visit the Falabella farm. We
have been chatting & will have sometime set in stone soon."
Holly Fisher:
"I think you are on the right track.  I'm excited to be moving forward with
training a guide horse for you. After we find a horse & training
progresses, would you be able to come to Illinois periodically and do some
hands on work to get acquainted with your guide in training?"

On Fri, May 24, 2024 at 2:49 PM Debbie Malone via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
wrote:

> Just an FYI. The service dog denials are getting worse. I had the same
> scenario happen just a week later.  I was also denied directly when I
> wanted to go with my significant other to his appointment. They said I
> couldn't go because I had a service dog. It is really bad when the transit
> authority is perpetuating the problem and actually denying access because
> of the service dog. Just saying...
>
> *Sent with Right Inbox <https://www.rightinbox.com/?utm_source=signature>*
>
>
> <
> https://inboxwhenready.org/?utm_campaign=signature&utm_medium=email&utm_source=signature
> >
> I'm using Inbox When Ready
> <
> https://inboxwhenready.org/?utm_campaign=signature&utm_medium=email&utm_source=signature
> >
> to protect my focus.
>
> On Sun, May 5, 2024 at 8:50 AM Diane Graves via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> wrote:
>
> > I hear you Debbie. It is an outrage to have to decide whether to take a
> > dog to your time sensitive appointment or leave them home, because you
> > don't know what the rideshare drivers are going to try to pull. It is
> even
> > worse, to make this ongoing problem a consideration when deciding whether
> > to train with a successor dog or not.
> >
> > Although the rideshare companies would claim otherwise, I simply don't
> > believe that they have a strong zero tolerance policy for violations of
> the
> > law when it comes to guide dogs/service animals. They would say that they
> > are doing all they can, but I do not believe it.
> >
> > For example, I was recently enrolled at a university which had a very
> > strict progressive policy against cheating and plagiarism. If you were
> > caught once, you would receive an F on the assignment; twice, you failed
> > the entire course; three times and you were expelled from the
> university. I
> > don't think the rideshare companies have such a policy in place.
> >
> > When attempting to make travel arrangements with a family member or
> > friend, I try to be considerate. If they don't want a dog in their
> vehicle,
> > I can either honor that or choose not to ride with them. However, When a
> > driver makes the decision to provide a public service and drive their
> > personal vehicle for a rideshare company, they forfeit their right to
> make
> > the call, and they should be required to comply with the law. We
> shouldn't
> > be forced to deal with this.
> >
> >
> > Robin (Diane) Graves
> > rdgraves2007 at gmail.com
> > 317-238-9262
> >
> > “TGIF: TODAY GOD IS FIRST.’—OS Hillman
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: NAGDU <nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Debbie Malone via
> > NAGDU
> > Sent: Sunday, May 5, 2024 7:31 AM
> > To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users <
> > nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> > Cc: Debbie Malone <dmalone510 at gmail.com>
> > Subject: Re: [NAGDU] Rideshare denials
> >
> > I do the same thing. I report to Uber, NFB, and our RTA (MBTA/the
> > RIDE)since many of my rides are contracted through them. I am going out
> to
> > the DOJ complaints in the next day or so. Any advice?
> >
> > I am so outraged that even those contracted rides are denied. The other
> > day the paratransit service didn't have enough vans to take me on my
> > scheduled trip. The tried to get me an Uber but were refused by every
> > driver. They were telling the drivers that I had a service dog and
> allowed
> > each driver to deny the ride. They had to delay a regular van driver's
> > lunch to take me to my appointment. I am so outraged that I am looking
> into
> > a protest at the state house and/or media coverage. I am too through.
> >
> > *Sent with Right Inbox <https://www.rightinbox.com/?utm_source=signature
> >*
> >
> >
> > On Sat, May 4, 2024 at 4:14 PM Suzette May via NAGDU <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> > wrote:
> >
> > > What Lyft told me is that if you message the driver that you have a
> > > guide dog or the driver is close enough to see that you have a guide
> > > dog and the ride is canceled at any point after that, it is considered
> > > a service dog denial. So I report those.  I also screenshot my text
> > > message when it says the driver has seen the message, along with the
> > > driver information screen as soon as possible. I also report it on the
> > > NFB form and the DOJ form every time.  If I can, I start videoing when
> > the driver is one minute away.
> > > I'm averaging about 1 in 3 guide dog denials.  I've had several that
> > > were blatant, to my face denials. That was before I started videoing.
> > >
> > > *Suzette May*
> > > *PS139.13 at gmail.com <PS139.13 at gmail.com>*
> > > *512-564-0152*
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > On Thu, May 2, 2024 at 12:34 PM Raul Gallegos - NAGDU via NAGDU <
> > > nagdu at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> > >
> > > > Hello Vanessa. While there is no direct evidence that you have been
> > > > denied, I personally would still report it as such, especially if
> > > > you
> > > have
> > > > voluntarily sent the driver a text that identifies you as a blind
> > > > person traveling with a guide dog.
> > > > I hope this helps.
> > > >
> > > > --
> > > > Raul Gallegos, President
> > > > National Association of Guide Dog Users
> > > > (346) 439-7444 • rgallegos at nagdu.org www.nfb.org • www.nagdu.org
> > > > Subscribe to the NAGDU public calendar Facebook Group • Email list •
> > > > Mastodon “You can live the life you want. Blindness is not what
> > > > holds you back.”
> > > >
> > > > -----Original Message-----
> > > > From: NAGDU <nagdu-bounces at nfbnet.org> On Behalf Of Vanessa Lowery
> > > > via NAGDU
> > > > Sent: Thursday, May 2, 2024 12:22 PM
> > > > To: NAGDU Mailing List, the National Association of Guide Dog Users
> > > > < nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> > > > Cc: Vanessa Lowery <val4dogs at gmail.com>
> > > > Subject: Re: [NAGDU] Rideshare denials
> > > >
> > > > I have a question. To give an example, let's say that I have
> > > > selected
> > > Uber
> > > > and have messaged the driver stating that I will be traveling with a
> > > > service dog and will be placing a towel on the floor of the vehicle
> > > before
> > > > the dog enters. You continue to wait as the countdown for the
> > > > drivers arrival continues. The driver gets two or three minutes out,
> > > > and then the next thing you know, You've been switched to another
> > > > ride. But before
> > > that
> > > > happens, you've gotten a text response back from the driver that
> > > > just
> > > says,
> > > > "OK.". You assume that the OK means that the driver has no issues
> > > > with
> > > the
> > > > presence of the service dog. But then, you are suddenly switched to
> > > another
> > > > driver. Is that considered a denial? And if not, at a minimum,
> > > > should we
> > > go
> > > > to the tracking link that the NFB has and report that. And if so,
> > > > what is it categorized to be? I have had that happen a few times
> > lately.
> > > > Vanessa and the zoo
> > > > Sent from my iPhone
> > > >
> > > > > On May 2, 2024, at 7:21 AM, Debbie Malone via NAGDU
> > > > > <nagdu at nfbnet.org>
> > > > wrote:
> > > > >
> > > > > Hi all,
> > > > > Is NFB still collecting data regarding Uber andLyft service animal
> > > > denials?
> > > > > If so where do we report the incidents? Thanks.
> > > > >
> > > > > --
> > > > > *Debbie Malone*
> > > > >
> > > > > *National Federation of the Blind of Massachusetts*
> > > > >
> > > > > *Affiliate Second Vice President*
> > > > >
> > > > > *At-Large Chapter President*
> > > > >
> > > > > *National Federation of the Blind, National Writers Division Vice
> > > > > President* *InclusionEducation.com
> > > > > <https://inclusioneducation.com/>*
> > > > > Amazon Author Page <https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B07RVCRR5R>
> > > > >
> > > > > *Sent with Right Inbox
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> >
> > --
> > *Debbie Malone*
> >
> > *National Federation of the Blind of Massachusetts*
> >
> > *Affiliate Second Vice President*
> >
> > *At-Large Chapter President*
> >
> > *National Federation of the Blind, National Writers Division Vice
> > President* *InclusionEducation.com <https://inclusioneducation.com/>*
> > Amazon Author Page <https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B07RVCRR5R>
> > _______________________________________________
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> >
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>
>
> --
> *Debbie Malone*
>
> *National Federation of the Blind of Massachusetts*
>
> *Affiliate Second Vice President*
>
> *At-Large Chapter President*
>
> *National Federation of the Blind, National Writers Division Vice
> President*
> *InclusionEducation.com <https://inclusioneducation.com/>*
> Amazon Author Page <https://www.amazon.com/~/e/B07RVCRR5R>
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>