Guide horse

[littlebigspots]

http://www.timesunion.com/local/article/Her-assistant-her-guide-her-horse-3665174.php#media-36459

I had the privileged of meeting Mona Ramouni and Cali the day before they left for NY. Mona was extremely sweet and eager to answer all my questions about Cali and her training. She even let my son pet Cali, I know it's kind of a no no with guide dogs. So great to see a guide horse live in person being used.

 

[dreamcatcher]

Due to the controversy of this topic I have removed my posts.

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

I'm sure the woman was nice and the mini was sweet, but horses as guide animals is a HORRIBLE idea. Period. I'm all for promoting minis and how versatile they are, but this is ludicrous.

 

[LB27]

I think using miniature's as guide animals is great. It really shows people just how incredible they are and what they are capable of. Also, I think it's great because it's an alternative for those who are allergic to dogs (and it seems like more and more people have allergies these days). Same goes with using them as therapy animals.

 

[disneyhorse]

I am in the camp of "therapy animals YES, guide animals NO" for horses.

Horses are NOT similar to dogs in any sense of the word in terms of behavior and mental process.

 

[Jean_B]

A horse's first INSTINCT when faced with something that frightens them or even something that is slightly out of the norm is FLIGHT.....now.....picture a blind person being dragged away by a terrified horse, even if it is a little one. DUMB idea.

 

[StarRidgeAcres]

Therapy animal...AWESOME idea! Guide animal...someone, and probably the mini too, will get killed. I am of the opinion that someone who thinks minis make good guide animals either a) knows nothing about horses and their natural instincts or b) is hoping to make money on unsuspecting folks.

Horrible idea all around.

 

[LB27]

Good points. I was more thinking of how if a horse is desensitized to a variety of things right from the get go and they have a great temperament, that they seem to never spook, but yes, I suppose you never really know when something will catch them off guard. I'm still all for them as therapy animals though.

 

[targetsmom]

Have to agree with minis as therapy animals - AWESOME, minis as guide animals - BAD idea. I remember reading about one of the first minis used as a guide animal spooking into a glass door. Not sure what happened to the person they were guiding but I don't think it was a good experience. I have blind relatives (elderly now, but both blind for decades) and they were even in agreement that guide minis are a bad idea.. One question they asked was how would you take a mini into a restaurant?

 

[dreamcatcher]

Deleted

 

[JAX]

I could get on my

but instead will just say that i agree with the majority so far. Yes it is a wonderful sweet idea but....Therapy animal yes (they are always handled by trained handlers). Guide animal...

you have got to be kidding me! A horse is a prey animal, instinct is fight or flight. I do not care how well trained it is you cannot ever guarantee that it will not one day get scared and dart into traffic or stumble down stairs taking the handicapped with it. Glad to see I am not the only one who feels this way.

 

[Kaitlyn]

I am also in the anti guide horse camp. It is extremely dangerous, not to mention inconvenient. Not only could the horse spook (because no horse is 100% bombproof) and seriously injure or kill itself or its handler, but horses take up way more space than dogs. There is no curling under restaurant tables or hopping into taxis. How would one stay in a hotel? You would always have to live/stay somewhere with enough land for a pasture and travel in specifically outfitted vehicles.

Also that article has some very questionable resources... 40 years of service?! I don't even know any horses that have made it into their 40's, and even if they did they would be in no condition to be working. And 6 hours between bathroom breaks? My stalls beg to differ.

The fact that random people are training these so-called service animals also alarms me greatly,

 

[Marty]

The idea is insane. You know anyone personally that is blind? My mother was blind and there is no way in the world I would trust her in the hands of a horse! Ridiculous.

 

[Miniv]

Miniature Horses are WONDERFUL as therapy animals. They are being lead by their owner/handler and most minis have an intuitiveness about the sick, disabled. elderly. We've seen it first hand.

HOWEVER, horses are horses and their instinct is to act as a Prey animal -- fear and flight. No matter how much training they've had, instinct will kick in.

 

[minimomNC]

The problem with thinking its ok to use a horse as a guide animal is things won't go a little wrong. When it does go wrong, not if, when it does go wrong it will be very bad. Not only for the human but very much for the horse. There are just some things a horse shouldn't do, starve to death and be the only one responsable for a blind person.

 

[Jill]

I think, unfortunately, some people are going to learn the true nature of horses in a very hard manner. At this point, too many "know" horses from story books and Hollywood... and it's not hard to see why they'd think a miniature horse as a guide animal is a stellar idea.

 

[Jean A]

All it would take is a stranger with a spray can to spook a horse, or a child with a weird toy ..anything that no one thought to test for a sensitivity reaction. I would not want to be at the mercy of a frightened horse of any size. Or the insurance carrier for the person who is listed as the 'guide horse trainer'. I agree regarding therapy..what wonders horses can do for us all! But guide? No.

 

[ruffian]

I think using miniature's as guide animals is great. It really shows people just how incredible they are and what they are capable of. Also, I think it's great because it's an alternative for those who are allergic to dogs (and it seems like more and more people have allergies these days). Same goes with using them as therapy animals.

A horse is a prey animal - flight is their protection and first instinct. A dog is a hunter - their first instict is to investigate and see if they can eat it. I don't agree with horses as guide animals at all. If you've ever tried to hold on to a horse trying to get away from you - imagine how a blind person would feel when their "guide" horse takes off! Yes most are dwarfs and can't run much, but won't stop them from trying.

 

[Riverrose28]

A horse is just that a horse! They has the instincts of a horse! They are not dogs! Yes I'm disabled and have used a horse to help me get up from the ground when fallen, but on the farm, in their pen. Try taking a horse to DC., NOT!

 

[bevann]

Dumb idea!!!I find it very interesting that the person who trained this Mini horse had never done this before.I'm sure she has no idea what issues blind people deal with.I can't believe if she is a horse trainer that she would not be adamant about a horse being a flight animal.Wonder where she got the 40 year service figure?Just looking to make money and boy did that owner get took.I hope she did this for free for the woman.Wonder how the insurance companies view a Mini horse guide animal? I don't think they will ever replace guide dogs.I feel sorry for the woman who got the Mini and how disappointed she will be and how badly she will be injured when the big catastrophe happens