Guide...Horse?

[Gob]

As a blind Muslim woman, Mona Ramouni has had to make do without a guide dog her whole life.


The 28-year-old's strictly religious parents would not allow a dog in the house, considering the animal unclean. But then Miss Ramouni stumbled across a website article about miniature guide horses in April 2008. 'It was something that I never thought about for myself,' she said.



The psychology student used three years of savings from her job at a Braille proofreading company to pay for a horse to be trained to act as her guide. Since welcoming three-year-old guide horse Cali into her Dearborn, Michigan, home last year, Miss Ramouni has seen her life turned around.

Cali measures about 2ft 6in tall and has been taught to stand still indoors. She also helps Miss Ramouni get out of vehicles and move through crowds. Her proud mistress said: 'She is an awesome little horse. What I really want is to be able to take her places neither of us would have been able to go without each other. 'Before Cali, I had given up. I got to the point where I thought, 'I'm going to get nothing out of my life'. Cali has given me the confidence back I used to have as a kid.'

Born three months premature, Miss Ramouni lost her sight shortly after birth. Among the challenges she had to overcome in order for Cali to stay at her home were getting a permit to place a large shed in her family's garden and to find a farrier to look after the horse's hooves.

Her friends warned her it would be a difficult thing to do. But Miss Ramouni said: 'The more everybody told me "No, don't do it," the more I wanted to do it,' she said. 'I got to a point in my life where I thought... "Why should I settle for something less than I can have?"



'There have been so many obstacles. People said 'You'll never find a vet. You'll never find a farrier." I found them all.'
She added: 'More than even the independence, I found that Cali showed me that there are possibilities.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article ... z15CuBHoUT

Setting aside the reasons for having a guide horse rather than dog, isn't it fantastic that the animal can be trained to fill this role?

[The Hen]

When I was working on implementing the Domestic Animals Act 2000 in the ACT, I purposely built in provisions for 'Assistance Animals' for just such an issue. Having an animal recognised officially as an "Assistance Animal", will allow it the same rights as an "Assistance Dog".

I had heard about an Assistance Monkey. If, for some reason, a person's incapacity means they need a different animal from a dog, I was not going to make their life more complicated by having their animal not given the same access rights to all areas as any guide dog can do.

[loCAtek]

Oh, horses have great memories and train well. [We really should say 'memory like a horse', not an elephant.] Not necessarily intelligent, as in capable of independent leaps of cognition, but easy to condition. It's why they're such great burden and travel animals. I could see adapting them to guide animals, they'll follow instruction absolutely.

Hen, I can recall a US man carrying an assistance squirrel, that greatly helped his recovery.

[SisterMaryFellatio]

She also helps Miss Ramouni get out of vehicles and move through crowds. Her proud mistress said: 'She is an awesome little horse. What I really want is to be able to take her places neither of u


OUT OF VEHICLES.....SHES BLIND!!!

[Sean]

Doesn't mean she has to walk everywhere...


*edited for typo...

[Guinevere]

She also helps Miss Ramouni get out of vehicles and move through crowds. Her proud mistress said: 'She is an awesome little horse. What I really want is to be able to take her places neither of u


OUT OF VEHICLES.....SHES BLIND!!!

Isn't this the quote you want to highlight:

But then Miss Ramouni stumbled across a website article about miniature guide horses

(I assume she has some sort of computer that reads websites, but stumbled seems to be an unfortunate word choice).

[Sean]

Well she did stumble across it...

Wouldn't have happened if she had old Trigger with her at the PC.

[@meric@nwom@n]

Horses are actually better suited for this work than dogs based on lifespan. The larger dog breeds used for service have short life spans. A horse may live 40 years.

[oldr_n_wsr]

The 28-year-old's strictly religious parents would not allow a dog in the house, considering the animal unclean.

Dog unclean, horse clean?
Anyone having to pick up either ones "piles" might diasagree with that.

[loCAtek]

I was wondering about that too, not even police horses can be 'house-broken'.



Slight tangent, I'm very interested in going to see this;



Correction, after finding this video, I AM going to go see this; it's showing in SF through December.

It was a choice between Cavalia, and Micheal Jackson- The Immortal. You see how easy that was?

[oldr_n_wsr]

Why would anyone want to go see something by Michael Jackson?

[loCAtek]

Well, it was Cirque du Soleil, I usually love those. it did surprise me that they would sell out like that.

[loCAtek]

A recent article with longer video, about the Show in San Francisco.