Elderly man visited in nursing home by pony

89-year-old Karl Holmen was sad that he was too unwell to visit the new foal born to his granddaughter’s Susan’s horse, but Susan devised a plan to cheer him up. That plan took the shape of Bolla, a 15-year-old mini Shetland pony, who is just 85cms tall.

It may not have been possible to take the mother and newborn horse to visit her grandfather in Stavern nursing home in southern Norway. But Susan knew that Bolla was used to visiting Karl in his sitting room when he still lived at home. So she investigated the possibility of taking Bolla in to to see her grandfather.

“It was actually a very simple process. I asked a girl who worked at the nursing home if she could help me arrange it, and after a few days it was done,” said Susan. She says that her grandfather was very happy when Bolla came to visit. “He thought it was great. And so did the others at the nursing home.
"They thought it was very special to have a horse to visit,” says Susan, who, after taking the pony to see her grandfather, took a tour with Bolla to see the other patients at the nursing home. “She is calm around people, so it went very well,” Susan said. One of the managers of the home, Inger Johanne Stensland, said that the visit was a huge success. “This was a very big event, both for us employees and residents. It was great fun. Bolla is definitely welcome back."