25/09/2024
You know, I’m not sure I ever talked about the direction I’m taking things and the nonprofit I started on this page.
Seems like a bit of an oversight lol.
My original plan with this property was to board a couple of horses and use my own horses to do lessons/summer camp type activities.
However, I decided to jump in feet first with a friend and start a unique, first of its kind nonprofit.
We are breeding, raising, training, and matching people with miniature service horses. These are horses who guide the blind, pull wheelchairs, alert to oncoming medical events, help people balance, and many other tasks.
Miniature service horses are not a new concept, however, there are no programs dedicated to training them. Our goal is to place these horses with people at no cost, as the price tag is quite a bit more than most people can afford. In order to do this, we’re going to need a lot of support.
If you would be willing to follow our page, interact with our posts, invite friends to like the page, and maybe even donate, it would mean so much!
About the Cali Corp.
Our mission:
To match people with disabilities with highly skilled, task trained miniature horses to help them live their lives to the fullest.
What are service horses?
Much like service dogs, a service horse is a miniature horse that has been specially trained to perform one or more tasks that mitigate their handler’s disability.
Can horses be legal service animals?
Yes. Miniature horses are the only federally recognized service animal besides dogs. They are subject to the same rules as service dogs, such as performing a task that mitigates a disability and house training.
What can service horses do?
Examples of tasks that a service horse can perform include:
Guiding a blind handler
Helping somebody to balance while walking
Helping somebody to rise from the floor or a seated position
Pulling a wheelchair
Retrieving objects for a handler
Reminding a handler to take their medication at a set time each day
Alerting a handler to an oncoming medical event
Guiding a handler to safety at the onset of a medical event, such as taking them to a chair or removing them from a busy crowd
Why a horse and not a dog?
A service horse can be an excellent choice for anyone who is allergic to or afraid of dogs. There are some tasks that horses are better suited to, such as weight-bearing to help a handler with poor balance. With a lifespan that frequently exceeds 30 years, a horse can be a much more emotionally feasible service animal for many people, because the average working life of a service dog is just eight years. Plus, with the high cost to train a service animal, that upfront cost stretches three times farther than with a dog.
Are miniature horses practical service animals?
With their larger size and needs such as an outdoor space and hoof trims, miniature horses are not always as practical as a service dog. Although horses up to 34 inches are allowed to be service animals, that would be an impractically large size. With the exception of horses who will do a lot of weight-bearing and counterbalancing, smaller is typically better. A 28 inch horse takes up no more space than a manual wheelchair, and is able to accompany their handler in a lot of circumstances, such as being able to fit alongside a table in a restaurant, fit in the back of a van for transport, and maneuver easily through aisles in a store.
It is true that a horse will never be as practical as a small dog, and it certainly brings with it a lot of unwanted attention, but for a lot of people the pros outweigh the cons.
Our goals
no organizations currently exist that train and match people with service horses. The high cost of extra small horses, hiring a professional trainer, and the risk of an animal not working out create barriers for many people.
We train horses and match them with people, the same way it is done in service dog programs.
We have already started to put together our own breeding herd of extra small horses, which will allow us to set horses up for success and increase the odds they will work out as a service animal from the day they are born.
We train horses to a very high standard, and with as many trained behaviors as possible to help their handler.
We facilitate the best match between each horse and handler, and provide support to that handler for the rest of the horse‘s life.
We provide our horses with the best care possible. This includes making sure they end up in a situation that is right for them. We will never force a horse to do a job that they do not like.
We rehome horses as therapy trained and highly trained pets where appropriate, such as if a horse grows too large to be practical for service work.
We continue to help educate the public about service horses, and the often misunderstood difference between service, therapy, and emotional support animals.
And, we like to give back to the community at large. Our horses that are in training or part of the breeding herd do things like therapy visits and reading programs. The farm will be a safe haven for horse lovers of all stripes and abilities. We offer fun and educational programs, such as pony summer camps and horsemanship lessons.
We hope you will consider supporting our mission.
Ways you can help!
Monetary donations: We are unfortunately not a 501(c)(3) as of yet, but we can still take, and are incredibly appreciative of, monetary donations in any amount. We are a registered nonprofit, and are working on applying for 501(c)(3) status. If (when) we receive 501(c)(3) status, any donations given before that time would then become eligible for tax deduction.
Keep up with what we’re doing: Please consider following this page, as well as Positive Impact Equine. The more our posts are liked, commented on, and shared, the more reach we will get.
Volunteer: Even if you don’t live local, we are always looking for volunteers. There is a ton of work that goes into a project like this, and we are always going to need help. There is researching grants, grant writing, fundraising, building and maintaining a website, accounting, and so much more. We would like to have a supportive network of as many people as possible. If you would like to help, please message the page or email us at [email protected]
Horses: We are always keeping an eye out for extra small miniatures with lovely dispositions. If you think you might have one that fits what we are looking for, please reach out. We know these horses are hard to come by, and networking with the Miniature Horse community is going to be the best way to find them.
Sharing and engagement: It’s no secret how fickle the FB algorithm has become. If you want to keep seeing our posts, please like them and leave the occasional comment, or they may stop showing up in your feed. Please consider sharing our posts and inviting your friends to like the page as well. It can be tricky to build up a following on social media, and every person makes a difference.
Image description: The photo is our logo – a person being guided by a miniature horse walking from left to right. Below their feet are the letters CALI. The logo is solid black on white.
