Above: Millstone’s Carol Wingerter (r) and her pony Samson, 11, provide therapeutic visits to patients in nursing homes and other facilities. Right: Samson the Kissing Pony will be inducted into the New Jersey Veterinary Medical Association’s Animal Hall of Fame on March 6. His video went viral. He appeared on national television. Now, Millstone’s Samson the Kissing Pony is being inducted into the Animal Hall of Fame.
Owned by township resident Carol Wingerter, Samson not only visits patients in nursing homes and other facilities, but also gives them gentle kisses. Although she and Samson have become famous for their community service, Wingerter said she doesn’t volunteer for recognition.
“I just feel badly for people who have limited or no contact with animals,” she said.
Wingerter initially visited patients with a therapy dog. Her Great Dane received so many visitation requests that she began searching for another animal to work with. She found Samson, an Australian miniature pony, through an online Dreamhorse ad.
Eleven years after his birth at a southern New Jersey farm, Samson is being celebrated as one of the state’s outstanding animals. According to the New Jersey Veterinary Medical Association (NJVMA), the 36-inch-tall pony has established a big name for himself in New Jersey.
“Straight out of a field just five years ago, with no training, Samson has been able to captivate the hearts of residents at numerous nursing homes across the state,” NJVMA Director of Communications Paola Hernandez said. “Five months out of the year, Samson visits nursing homes, where his presence provides a degree of comfort to the elderly, who are confined to indoor environments. What makes Samson even more special is his expression of unconditional love, as kisses are granted at anytime upon request.”
Samson met the criteria in the NJVMA’s therapy category for induction into the 16thAnimal Hall of Fame. Nominees for this category are animals that serve people in hospitals, rehabilitation centers, nursing homes, schools, prisons or other care facilities.
“And although we had a number of therapy nominations, Samson was unique in that for his size, he is relatively calm around people and isn’t afraid to express love and affection,” Hernandez said. “Needless to say, it is quite nice to come across a miniature horse that’s able to display these characteristics, particularly a kissing pony.”
Every Thursday from spring through fall, Wingerter and Samson visit different facilities within half an hour of Millstone. Regular nursing home visits include facilities in Monroe, Hamilton, Tinton Falls and Eatontown. Samson also gives kisses to visitors in the courtyard at Jersey Shore University Medical Center in Neptune.
Last summer, after appearing on the front page of the Trenton Times, the ABC news affiliate WPVI-TV in Philadelphia featured Samson and Wingerter making their rounds at the Arcadia Nursing and Rehab Center in Hamilton. Online, the video went viral. The pair later appeared on “Good Morning America,” where Samson gave smooches to anchors George Stephanopoulos, Robin Roberts and Juju Chang.
The NJVMA will induct Samson along with two other animals and two animal organizations into the Animal Hall of Fame on March 6. The induction luncheon will be held at the Hamilton Park Conference Center in Florham Park. The NJVMA established the hall of fame to publicly celebrate the human-animal bond. Over 80 animals have been inducted into the hall since its inception.