Therapy horse vests?

[Foxhaven]

I would have thought these would be a Google search away... but no!

Anyone have a source for a therapy horse vest (especially therapy horse in training)? Or is this something I will have to have made special?

 

[amysue]

I would contact the foundation for servivce animals and see if they can steer you in the right direction.

 

[Marsha Cassada]

Not just anyone is supposed to have these, because the animals are allowed into selective buildings. One must go through an animal therapy society.

I looked into this in the past with a dog.

I met a man whose dog wore a therapy animal vest. The dog was antisocial, but it was suggested that the dog was perhaps trained to sense epilepsy in his owner. But I found out later it was not true; the man had paid someone to get the vest so he could travel with his dog and take it to places dogs could not ordinarily go.

 

[Foxhaven]

From what I've read at least - Actually it's kinda loose from a regulatory perspective. That has its good points and bad points. The vest isn't even required. They have started to clamp down on service animals (tighter definition than therapy animals) to limit it to dogs and (thankfully) mini horses. And there are bad points, one of which is what you point out (abuse of the system, which will no doubt invite more or less draconian regulation if not dealt with in the private sphere). To that end there seem to be several private entities that are trying to set standards.

http://www.aspca.org/nyc/aspca-animal-assisted-therapy-programs

http://www.tdi-dog.org/images/TestingBrochure.pdf resembles Canine Good Citizen requirements.

https://www.animaledu.com/Programs/AnimalAssistedTherapy.aspx

That's why I want to get a vest that identifies Legend as a Therapy Horse in Training... so folks know why he is there and what the goals are in my bringing him there. Frankly my plan is to start out at the local Big R (the manager is quite interested) and my wife's school (middle school kids on the edge of the correctional system). It's good for Legend to be in all these environments, and he loves people and people naturally gravitate toward him. As I did when I first met him... quite a horse.

Then maybe when the requirements come we will already be there, and beyond.