She stands only about 17 inches tall, but the joy that she brought to children and their families at UCSF Children's Hospital was enormous.
She is Thumbelina, a miniature horse that has been officially recognized by Guinness World Records as the smallest horse in the world.
Thumbelina made a stop at UCSF Children's Hospital on Tuesday morning as part of her nationwide tour of children's hospitals, special camps, children's group homes and shelters.
"For these children to have even a few minutes when they don't have to think about where they are and why they're here is really important," said Roxanne Fernandes, UCSF Children's Hospital executive director. "And it's also really important for a parent to see their child just being a kid."
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Olivia Ross, 2, shows her excitement petting Thumbelina at UCSF Children's Hospital on Tuesday. |
Thumbelina received a rock star's welcome. She was greeted by nearly 50 adoring fans, many of them in wheelchairs or pulling IV poles, who crowded around the makeshift "corral" that was set up in the Playroom on the sixth floor of the hospital.
Kneeling before the tiny horse, the children, many of them battling life-threatening illnesses like cancer, stroked the flanks of the gentle little animal. Thumbelina calmly munched on mouthfuls of straw.
The chestnut mare stands 17½ inches tall and weighs 57 pounds. She is a dwarf miniature horse and about half the normal size of members of her breed, which typically stand 34 to 38 inches tall at the withers. At birth, Thumbelina weighed only 8 pounds and stood only 11 inches tall.
When she's not on tour, Thumbelina lives at Goose Creek Farms in St. Louis, Missouri, with her owner, Michael Goessling, who said he plans to visit children in all of the 48 contiguous states this year.
"We hope that hundreds of thousands of children will get to experience the joy of meeting Thumbelina in person," Goessling said. "It's something they will never forget."
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Dozens of patients at UCSF Children's Hospital enjoyed petting Thumbelina, the world's smallest horse. Photos by Heather Hoover |
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