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Kicker: Tiny hooves, big hearts

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WORLD Radio - Kicker: Tiny hooves, big hearts

Musical miniature horses cheer up veterans, firefighters, and hospital patients


A miniature horse visits residents at an assisted living facility in Decatur, Ill. Associated Press / Photo by Jim Bowling / Herald & Review

Editor's note: The following text is a transcript of a podcast story. To listen to the story, click on the arrow beneath the headline above.

LINDSAY MAST, HOST: You’ve heard of therapy dogs? How about if your therapist has hooves and tries to play piano?

Meet Victoria Nodiff-Netanel, former dressage rider turned founder of Mini Therapy Horses.

NETANEL: She was doing a number on her keyboard which is what all my horses do and it brings a lot of smiles to everyone.

It all started with one miniature horse named Pearl. Now there are nine of them, washed, braided, shoed and ready to stirrup those smiles in hospitals, fire stations, and disaster zones.

The pint-sized pros visit veterans every Monday.

NETANEL: We love our veterans and our horses have been there every Monday for 17 years now.

And no long faces when they’re done.

It’s The World and Everything in It.


WORLD Radio transcripts are created on a rush deadline. This text may not be in its final form and may be updated or revised in the future. Accuracy and availability may vary. The authoritative record of WORLD Radio programming is the audio record.

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