Hi Angela!
Mercy's visits are listed to be as "Predictable" on her certificate and she has a green card (higher level of accomplishment earns a different color, from what I remember). That is determined by the evaluator.
I do not think there is a "Therapy Horse in Training" label that any group puts on their trainees. I follow rules of cleanliness - Mercy is bathed and groomed before visiting and her hooves are wrapped in Vetrap and we follow the lead of our nursing home guides. I like having a guide so the residents are comfortable as well with a familiar face (see below on At my request...).
Before Mercy was certified, we offered her services to schools and libraries, civic events and parades, open houses and sidewalk sales, free of charge (and we still volunteer - have been doing it for 10 years). Some folks said yes, others said no but then called us back a year later to have Mercy and her foal visit for a talk. She has been bomb proof to a fault - the helicopter landing and taking off near her blew me away. She could care less! We hope to add hospice patients to our resume...between work and the farm and my family there is not enough hours in a day to visit everyone - I wish there were but my work helps to pay for the gas and the horses so we can visit our nursing home friends.
She travels by small horse trailer now but back in the early days, I would take the backseat out of my Cherokee and she would load in there, jumping in like a big dog. It is not something I recommend for shipping unless you have a really, really, REALLY bombproof horse - age has made me much more cautious these days although Mercy was ALWAYS very excited to load and go by car for the radio, endless treats buried in her hay and the air conditioning.
Of all my minis, only Mercy and the two dwarves I have were safe enough to travel by car.
At my request, we have a staff member of the nursing home(s) accompany us as we visit the residents and we let the residents make the call as to how close they want to be. For many residents, it is one sense of control they have over a life that may seem out of control with others taking charge. If they don't want to see Mercy (and this happens rarely), we tell them it is OK and that we hope they are having a great day, with a big smile.
The halter obstacle training is my favorite way to train a therapy horse - the unusual obstacles sometimes seen, the ability to move on command and in the right direction without being touched is a plus and the case of show nerves a handler gets will show how the horse reacts if a handler is nervous coupled with weird obstacles. I have been working with Mercy so long now that we read each other very well... right down to when she needs to use the trailer.
Our Independence is next in line for training - her tiny size, friendliness and calm nature says the stuff is there to develop for someone to follow in Mercy's hoofprints. Mercy's daughter Connie (a dwarf) also excelled in therapy work - she is not yet certified but she has mileage from this past year and she has gone to live with a friend of mine interested in pursuing therapy work. She will teach my friend well!
Best wishes to you and Gemini - my personal email is
[email protected] if you have other questions!
Denise
Silversong Farm
home to triple AMHR Hall of Fame recipient and Animal Planet "star",
Haligonian Mercy Bo Cool 
