Miniature Service Horse Responsibilities

Courtesy of the Guide Horse Foundation

Most Guide Horse users are very responsible and always ensure that their guide is quiet and well-behaved.  Remember, the ADA places limits on all guide animals and it is the duty of the handler to comply with accepted duties for Guide Horses.

Some people have pushed the ADA designation to the limit and certain cases have set limits on the rights of miniature horse users.

Blind Horse Riders

The law requires a competent blind rider who does not constitute a safety hazard. A Nampa Idaho city council ruled against a blind girl who rode her horse to school. She was cited as a hazard because she would gallop her Guide Horse in city traffic and the council felt she caused a safety issue.

Disruptive Horses

Your Emotional Support Horse (ESH) may not cause any disruption or present any public health issue (not properly housebroken).

The new ESA airline regulations state specific rule for those who wish to take horses, pigs and monkeys in the passenger cabin of a commercial airliner: 

"The service animal cannot present a DIRECT threat to the safety or health of others or cause a SIGNIFICANT disruption to the airline service in the cabin. In addition, unusual service animals (snakes, reptiles, ferrets, and rodents) might be denied access under these rules if seen as posing unavoidable safety and/or public health concerns. Other unusual animals (miniature horses, pigs and monkeys) should be considered on a case-by-case basis."

Failure to provide a Service

In a 2003 case in Jasper Tennessee, Tiffany Masterson, lost her challenge to keep her horse in a subdivision despite her claim that she required the horse as a mobility aid. Neighbors testified that the girl would commonly play un-aided in the neighborhood and the court ruled that the girl did not require an assistance animal.