<!DOCTYPE HTML PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD HTML 4.01 Transitional//EN" "http://www.w3c.org/TR/1999/REC-html401-19991224/loose.dtd">
<HTML><HEAD>
<META http-equiv=Content-Type content="text/html; charset=us-ascii">
<META content="MSHTML 6.00.2900.3199" name=GENERATOR></HEAD>
<BODY style="BACKGROUND-COLOR: #ffffff">
<DIV dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma size=2><B>Subject:</B> Woman Wants
Horse As Service Animal<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV><!--~-|**|PrettyHtmlStartT|**|-~-->
<DIV id=ygrp-mlmsg style="WIDTH: 655px; POSITION: relative">
<DIV id=ygrp-msg
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 15px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; Z-INDEX: 1; FLOAT: left; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; WIDTH: 490px; PADDING-TOP: 0px"><!--~-|**|PrettyHtmlEndT|**|-~-->
<DIV id=ygrp-text>
<P>> Woman Wants Horse As Service Animal<BR>> <BR>> By DAVE GRAM,
Associated Press Writer<BR>> <BR>> Friday, October 19, 2007<BR>>
<BR>> (10-19) 22:25 PDT Warren, Vt. (AP) --<BR>> <BR>> The Central
Vermont Community Land Trust usually has no objection to a<BR>> service
animal like a seeing-eye dog moving into its apartments. But<BR>> Patty
Cooper's service animal is a horse of a different color: a black<BR>> and
white miniature horse, to be exact.<BR>> <BR>> Now the nonprofit housing
group is trying to figure out whether it can<BR>> accommodate a disabled
woman's new companion, with its need for grazing<BR>> space and questionable
housebrokenness.<BR>> <BR>> "Frankly, it's a bit unique," Preston Jump,
executive director of the<BR>> Land Trust, said in an interview.<BR>>
<BR>> Cooper, 50, has a severe case of celiac disease, a disorder in
which<BR>> exposure to a protein called gluten destroys the ability of the
small<BR>> intestine to absorb nutrients. One result can be brittle bones,
and<BR>> Cooper has used a wheelchair since she broke her back for the
second<BR>> time four years ago.<BR>> <BR>> Earl, short for Early to
Rise, is a 1-year-old miniature tobiano pinto<BR>> horse that weighs about
100 pounds and is 32 inches tall at the<BR>> shoulder<BR>> - just the
right height for a frequent face-to-face nuzzle with Cooper<BR>> as she sits
in her wheelchair.<BR>> <BR>> Earl isn't living with Cooper yet, but she
visits him daily at the farm<BR>> where he is recovering from his recent
gelding. It's clear a bond has<BR>> developed in the few months since she
bought him.<BR>> <BR>> "This guy just makes me so happy whenever I'm
around him," Cooper said.<BR>> "I'm not lonely any more."<BR>> <BR>>
Her plan is to attach shafts extending from Earl's harness to her<BR>>
wheelchair. "He'll be able to pull me back and forth to the bus stop<BR>>
and<BR>> pull me to town. After he's trained he'll be able to go on the bus
with<BR>> me under ADA laws."<BR>> <BR>> The ADA is the Americans With
Disabilities Act, the federal law<BR>> requiring entities that provide public
accommodations, like the Land<BR>> Trust, to make reasonable efforts to
accommodate people with<BR>> disabilities.<BR>> <BR>> Cooper got a
letter last week from the operations manager of the<BR>> 24-unit<BR>>
housing complex where she lives expressing worry about "possible health<BR>>
and safety issues. So, can you tell us how you intend to dispose of the<BR>>
pony's waste? Is the pony housebroken? If he is house-trained, who is<BR>>
going to pick up after him outside?<BR>> <BR>> "What does this animal
require for food?" it continued. "If it is hay<BR>> and grain, as I suspect,
where and how do you plan to store this food<BR>> so<BR>> that it will not
attract rats or otherwise become a potential health<BR>> risk to the other
residents living in this complex?"<BR>> <BR>> It went on to say it was
investigating whether a 4-by-6-foot stall<BR>> Cooper had built in her living
room for Earl constituted an alteration<BR>> and therefore a lease violation.
Cooper called that "a veiled threat of<BR>> eviction" on a blog she's been
maintaining about the issue.<BR>> <BR>> This week, both Cooper and the
Land Trust were taking a more<BR>> conciliatory tone. "I don't have any
problem with the Land Trust," she<BR>> said. "I think they do very good work
in the community" by providing<BR>> affordable housing for low- and
moderate-income people.<BR>> <BR>> For its part, the Land Trust issued a
statement in response to press<BR>> inquiries. "CVCLT's policy is to make
every effort to accommodate the<BR>> specific needs of our disabled
residents, including making allowances<BR>> for service animals when the
service to be provided is reasonably<BR>> related to the disability at
issue," it said.<BR>> <BR>> "Due to the unusual circumstances associated
with housing a pony in an<BR>> apartment setting," it added, "careful review
and consideration is<BR>> being<BR>> given to this request in order to
determine whether this animal can<BR>> reasonably address the specific needs
described by this resident while<BR>> assuring the overall welfare of both
the animal involved and<BR>> neighboring<BR>> residents in the apartment
complex."<BR>> <BR>> Cooper said she already had tried to respond to some
of the Land<BR>> Trust's<BR>> worries, installing a rubber mat at the base
of the stall, which she<BR>> says didn't require any apartment alterations,
as well as rubber-backed<BR>> carpeting in case of an accident before Earl
can make it outside. She<BR>> said she was talking with a neighbor of the
apartment complex about<BR>> grazing space on that property.<BR>> <BR>>
"I'm confident it's all going to work out," she said.<BR>> <BR>> One
benefit of a horse versus a dog is a longer life span. Tippy, the<BR>>
mixed-breed dog who was Cooper's previous service animal, died<BR>>
recently.<BR>> "I don't want to have to go through this again in 10 years,"
she said.<BR>> "Earl will live at least another 50 years. I'll still have him
when I'm<BR>> 100."<BR>> <BR>> <BR>><BR></P></DIV><!--~-|**|PrettyHtmlStart|**|-~--><SPAN
style="COLOR: white" width="1">__._,_.___</SPAN> <!-- Start the section with Message In topic -->
<DIV id=ygrp-actbar><SPAN class=left><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub/message/33938;_ylc=X3oDMTM3c2VqOHNkBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRtc2dJZAMzMzkzOARzZWMDZnRyBHNsawN2dHBjBHN0aW1lAzExOTM4MjgzODEEdHBjSWQDMzM5Mzg-">Messages
in this topic </A>(<SPAN class=bld>1</SPAN>) </SPAN><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJycXVzMm5xBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRtc2dJZAMzMzkzOARzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNycGx5BHN0aW1lAzExOTM4MjgzODE-?act=reply&messageNum=33938"><SPAN
class=bld>Reply </SPAN>(via web post) </A>| <A class=bld
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub/post;_ylc=X3oDMTJmYjFxcW5rBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNudHBjBHN0aW1lAzExOTM4MjgzODE-">Start
a new topic </A></DIV><!------- Start Nav Bar ------><!-- |**|begin egp html banner|**| -->
<DIV id=ygrp-vitnav><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub/messages;_ylc=X3oDMTJmcnVyMHNpBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNtc2dzBHN0aW1lAzExOTM4MjgzODE-">Messages</A>
| <A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJmbGRxMnU3BF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNtYnJzBHN0aW1lAzExOTM4MjgzODE-">Members</A>
</DIV><!-- |**|end egp html banner|**| -->
<DIV id=ygrp-grft></DIV><!-- yahoo logo --><!-- |**|begin egp html banner|**| -->
<DIV id=ygrp-ft><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/;_ylc=X3oDMTJlMGdjcTE2BF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNnZnAEc3RpbWUDMTE5MzgyODM4MQ--"><IMG
height=15 alt="Yahoo! Groups"
src="http://us.i1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/i/yg/img/logo/ma_grp_160.gif" width=106
border=0 NOSEND="1"></A> <BR><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub/join;_ylc=X3oDMTJnZTJhazhxBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNzdG5ncwRzdGltZQMxMTkzODI4Mzgx">Change
settings via the Web</A> (Yahoo! ID required) <BR>Change settings via email: <A
href="mailto:chocoholicclub-digest@yahoogroups.com?subject=Email Delivery: Digest">Switch
delivery to Daily Digest</A> | <A
href="mailto:chocoholicclub-traditional@yahoogroups.com?subject=Change Delivery Format: Traditional">Switch
format to Traditional</A> <BR><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub;_ylc=X3oDMTJlMDlmN2dqBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDZnRyBHNsawNocGYEc3RpbWUDMTE5MzgyODM4MQ--">Visit
Your Group </A>| <A href="http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/">Yahoo! Groups Terms
of Use </A>| <A
href="mailto:chocoholicclub-unsubscribe@yahoogroups.com?subject=">Unsubscribe
</A></DIV><!-- |**|end egp html banner|**| --></DIV><!-- ygrp-msg --><!-- Sponsor --><!-- |**|begin egp html banner|**| -->
<DIV id=ygrp-sponsor
style="CLEAR: none; RIGHT: 0px; BACKGROUND: white; FLOAT: left; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 25px; MARGIN-LEFT: 5px; WIDTH: 140px; POSITION: absolute; TOP: 0px"><!-- Network content --><!-- Start vitality -->
<DIV id=ygrp-vital>
<DIV id=vithd>Recent Activity</DIV>
<UL
style="PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 2px 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; LIST-STYLE-TYPE: none">
<LI style="CLEAR: both">
<DIV class=ct style="FLOAT: right"><SPAN
style="DISPLAY: none"> </SPAN>2</DIV>
<DIV class=cat><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub/members;_ylc=X3oDMTJnZTFwN3RmBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDdnRsBHNsawN2bWJycwRzdGltZQMxMTkzODI4Mzgx">New
Members</A></DIV></LI></UL><A
href="http://groups.yahoo.com/group/chocoholicclub;_ylc=X3oDMTJmYmdxdmsxBF9TAzk3MzU5NzE0BGdycElkAzE1NzAyNzU1BGdycHNwSWQDMTcwNTA0MTc5MQRzZWMDdnRsBHNsawN2Z2hwBHN0aW1lAzExOTM4MjgzODE-">Visit
Your Group </A></DIV><!-- Network content -->
<DIV id=nc>
<DIV class=ad>
<DIV id=hd1>Share Photos</DIV>
<P><A
href="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jcilau8/M=493064.10729657.11333348.8674578/D=groups/S=1705041791:NC/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1193835581/A=4025373/R=0/SIG=12dtn7qjm/*http://us.rd.yahoo.com/evt=44092/*http://smallbusiness.yahoo.com/webhosting">Put
your favorite</A></P>
<P>photos and</P>
<P>more online.</P></DIV>
<DIV class=ad>
<DIV id=hd1>Yahoo! Groups</DIV>
<P><A
href="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jv35rdt/M=493064.10729651.11333342.8674578/D=groups/S=1705041791:NC/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1193835581/A=4936876/R=0/SIG=11e3tma2a/*http://new.groups.yahoo.com/moderatorcentral">Moderator
Central</A></P>
<P>An online resource</P>
<P>for moderators.</P></DIV>
<DIV class=ad>
<DIV id=hd1>10 pairs of tickets</DIV>
<P><A
href="http://us.ard.yahoo.com/SIG=12jevlt8n/M=625000.11711226.12183027.8674578/D=groups/S=1705041791:NC/Y=YAHOO/EXP=1193835581/A=5008826/R=0/SIG=11oo17jiv/*http://promotions.yahoo.com/holidayjetsetter/index.php">a
day from Yahoo!</A></P>
<P>Fly home for the</P>
<P>Holidays for free.</P></DIV></DIV></DIV><!-- |**|end egp html banner|**| -->
<DIV style="CLEAR: both; FONT-SIZE: 1px; COLOR: #fff">.</DIV></DIV><IMG height=1
src="http://geo.yahoo.com/serv?s=97359714/grpId=15702755/grpspId=1705041791/msgId=33938/stime=1193828381/nc1=4025373/nc2=4936876/nc3=5008826"
width=1 NOSEND="1"> <BR><SPAN style="COLOR: white">__,_._,___</SPAN> <!--~-|**|PrettyHtmlEnd|**|-~--><!--~-|**|PrettyHtmlStart|**|-~-->
<STYLE type=text/css>#ygrp-mkp {
BORDER-RIGHT: #d8d8d8 1px solid; PADDING-RIGHT: 14px; BORDER-TOP: #d8d8d8 1px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 14px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 14px 0px; BORDER-LEFT: #d8d8d8 1px solid; PADDING-TOP: 0px; BORDER-BOTTOM: #d8d8d8 1px solid; FONT-FAMILY: Arial
}
#ygrp-mkp HR {
BORDER-RIGHT: #d8d8d8 1px solid; BORDER-TOP: #d8d8d8 1px solid; BORDER-LEFT: #d8d8d8 1px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #d8d8d8 1px solid
}
#ygrp-mkp #hd {
FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 85%; MARGIN: 10px 0px; COLOR: #628c2a; LINE-HEIGHT: 122%
}
#ygrp-mkp #ads {
MARGIN-BOTTOM: 10px
}
#ygrp-mkp .ad {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
#ygrp-mkp .ad A {
COLOR: #0000ff; TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
</STYLE>
<STYLE type=text/css>#ygrp-sponsor #ygrp-lc {
FONT-FAMILY: Arial
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ygrp-lc #hd {
FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 78%; MARGIN: 10px 0px; LINE-HEIGHT: 122%
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ygrp-lc .ad {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 10px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
</STYLE>
<STYLE type=text/css>#ygrp-mlmsg {
FONT-SIZE: small; FONT-FAMILY: arial,helvetica,clean,sans-serif
}
#ygrp-mlmsg TABLE {
}
#ygrp-mlmsg SELECT {
FONT: 99% arial,helvetica,clean,sans-serif
}
INPUT {
FONT: 99% arial,helvetica,clean,sans-serif
}
TEXTAREA {
FONT: 99% arial,helvetica,clean,sans-serif
}
#ygrp-mlmsg PRE {
FONT: 100% monospace
}
CODE {
FONT: 100% monospace
}
#ygrp-mlmsg {
LINE-HEIGHT: 1.22em
}
#ygrp-text {
FONT-FAMILY: Georgia
}
#ygrp-text P {
MARGIN: 0px 0px 1em
}
#ygrp-tpmsgs {
CLEAR: both; FONT-FAMILY: Arial
}
#ygrp-vitnav {
FONT-SIZE: 77%; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 10px; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana
}
#ygrp-vitnav A {
PADDING-RIGHT: 1px; PADDING-LEFT: 1px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
#ygrp-actbar {
CLEAR: both; MARGIN: 25px 0px; COLOR: #666; WHITE-SPACE: nowrap; TEXT-ALIGN: right
}
#ygrp-actbar .left {
FLOAT: left; WHITE-SPACE: nowrap
}
.bld {
FONT-WEIGHT: bold
}
#ygrp-grft {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 77%; PADDING-BOTTOM: 15px; PADDING-TOP: 15px; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana
}
#ygrp-ft {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; BORDER-TOP: #666 1px solid; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 77%; PADDING-BOTTOM: 5px; PADDING-TOP: 5px; FONT-FAMILY: verdana
}
#ygrp-mlmsg #logo {
PADDING-BOTTOM: 10px
}
#ygrp-vital {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 8px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 20px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 8px; PADDING-TOP: 2px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #e0ecee
}
#ygrp-vital #vithd {
FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 77%; TEXT-TRANSFORM: uppercase; COLOR: #333; FONT-FAMILY: Verdana
}
#ygrp-vital UL {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 2px 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
#ygrp-vital UL LI {
CLEAR: both; BORDER-RIGHT: #e0ecee 1px solid; BORDER-TOP: #e0ecee 1px solid; BORDER-LEFT: #e0ecee 1px solid; BORDER-BOTTOM: #e0ecee 1px solid; LIST-STYLE-TYPE: none
}
#ygrp-vital UL LI .ct {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0.5em; FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FLOAT: right; WIDTH: 2em; COLOR: #ff7900; TEXT-ALIGN: right
}
#ygrp-vital UL LI .cat {
FONT-WEIGHT: bold
}
#ygrp-vital A {
TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
#ygrp-vital A:hover {
TEXT-DECORATION: underline
}
#ygrp-sponsor #hd {
FONT-SIZE: 77%; COLOR: #999
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov {
PADDING-RIGHT: 13px; PADDING-LEFT: 13px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 20px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 6px; PADDING-TOP: 6px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #e0ecee
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov UL {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 8px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; MARGIN: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov LI {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; FONT-SIZE: 77%; PADDING-BOTTOM: 6px; PADDING-TOP: 6px; LIST-STYLE-TYPE: square
}
#ygrp-sponsor #ov LI A {
FONT-SIZE: 130%; TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
#ygrp-sponsor #nc {
PADDING-RIGHT: 8px; PADDING-LEFT: 8px; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 20px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 0px; PADDING-TOP: 0px; BACKGROUND-COLOR: #eee
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad {
PADDING-RIGHT: 0px; PADDING-LEFT: 0px; PADDING-BOTTOM: 8px; PADDING-TOP: 8px
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad #hd1 {
FONT-WEIGHT: bold; FONT-SIZE: 100%; COLOR: #628c2a; LINE-HEIGHT: 122%; FONT-FAMILY: Arial
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad A {
TEXT-DECORATION: none
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad A:hover {
TEXT-DECORATION: underline
}
#ygrp-sponsor .ad P {
MARGIN: 0px
}
o {
FONT-SIZE: 0px
}
.MsoNormal {
MARGIN: 0px
}
#ygrp-text TT {
FONT-SIZE: 120%
}
BLOCKQUOTE {
MARGIN: 0px 0px 0px 4px
}
.replbq {
}
</STYLE>
<!--~-|**|PrettyHtmlEnd|**|-~--><!--End group email --></BODY></HTML>