Tonka’s Job

Tonka is a miniature horse service animal trained for mobility support. His owner lives in Oregon. He was trained by Donna Scarpa of The Tiny Trotters in Los Osos, CA. Tonka is fondly referred to as “a cane with a brain“ because of his skills as a mobility assistance animal. He helps his owner with balance issues associated with MS. Tonka is able to help her with her balance while walking, when sitting, standing, changes in terrain, stepping up and down curbs, retrieving a dropped item and, in the event that she does fall, he is there to assist her in getting back up. An assistance animal can have a calming effect that a cane or a scooter can’t. They can offer independence and a partnership which can result in renewed confidence when facing day to day challenges. A miniature horses working life is much longer than a dogs simply because their lifespan is 30 years. Just as with a dog, a horse is a commitment and not for everyone. It took decades for the general public to accept dogs as service animals for the blind and disabled, now the ADA recognizes miniature horses as well. Tonka was trained using operant conditioning, clicker training, positive reinforcement and humane animal training methods. A special thanks from Donna Scarpa to her family for all their help and assistance during the training process, without it, it could not have been as successful.