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Photograph by Karine Aigner
Salmon, Idaho
Laughter is the best medicine! Tater Tot, a miniature horse, visits hospitals and schools to bring cheer to young and old alike. Tater Tot is featured in the May 2010 issue of National Geographic Kids magazine. -
Photograph by Karine Aigner
At a nursing home, residents laugh as he tows their wheelchairs down the hall.
Tater Tot is part of the pet-visiting program to help cheer people up—the happier they are, the better they feel. -
Photograph by Karine Aigner
“Tater Tot gives them something to look forward to,” says handler Jane Burke. “He pays attention to them and makes them feel good.”
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Photograph by Karine Aigner
Tater Tot travels in the Tater Mobile, a special minivan with no middle seat.
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Photograph by Karine Aigner
When Tater Tot, the miniature horse, visits a school for developmentally disabled kids, children giggle as he pulls them in a cart. He also patiently stands by while kids run their fingers through his mane. In the nursing home, he’ll slip into rooms so he can snuggle with his head on residents’ laps.
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Photograph by Karine Aigner
Tater Tot wears fleece booties with rubber soles so he won’t slip on floors.
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Photograph by Karine Aigner
Says Burke, “People love him so much, they’ll even forgive him if he has an accident on the floor.”
Text by Kitson Jazynka
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