Uproar over disabled tot's therapy pony

Offers of help are pouring in to a Canadian woman whose disabled son may have to give up his therapy pony because of zoning laws in a small Ontario town.

Antonia Spiteri was told a neighbor had complained to the town council about the horse odor coming from her property in Caledon, a small agricultural town northwest of Toronto.

Her 3-year-old son Sam has a form of quadriplegic cerebral palsy and rides the pony named Emily as physical and emotional therapy on the family's 1.2 acre property, the Canwest News Service reported.

The pony is the only farm animal on the property, which isn't zoned for livestock use. In order to keep the pony, Spiteri will have to pay the town $800 to consider rezoning the land, and if approved, another $340 for an exception application to the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, the report said.

Since the story broke, Spiteri said her phone has been ringing off the hook with messages of support and e-mails are flooding in.

It's been very overwhelming. We never expected this kind of outpouring from the community, she said.

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