I'd like to say first of all that I am a horse owner, I am handicapped, I have handicapped family members, and I have owned and trained service animals.
There is a tendency recently, for people to attempt to have their personal preference in animals recognized as a companion/therapy animal. The result has been much confusion over terminology, and what it means to be a guide animal, a service animal, a therapy animal, or a companion animal.
There is a place for a properly trained animal..but many people are now trying to have their personal pets recognized as their necessary companion animal. There are many reasons for this, from an honest need, to someone wanting to scam the system and write off their pet expenses as 'service animal related'. Wouldn't we all love to be able to write off our horse expenses as our therapy for anxiety?
I have seen a woman with a sugar glider in baby clothes, the same with a baby monkey torn from the arms of its mother..both women used a power wheelchair (as do I), and both women insisted that their pets be allowed in a restaurant as service animals. They had no registration cards as such, no training, the animals were pets. But the business owners were afraid of looking mean, or of being sued, and allowed these pets inside. With no registration, no one knows what, if any, shots or other preventive measures had been taken, and neither was housebroken. We are seeing an increase in pigs, small exotics, reptiles, and birds being termed service, companion, and therapy animals.
Personally, I see it as an affront to the well trained service, companion, and guide dogs that undergo months of training. Their people also undergo training, and are carefully matched. Not every dog makes it through training, actually few do. As for horses, they are fine as personal therapists and friends..I love mine!! But I would not consider taking them into a public place and passing them off as a necessity to my well-being and safety.
