Amos may be small, but he is dynamite in a small package. While charitable celebrities like Oprah and Angelina Jolie are easily recognized all over the world, little Amos has become quite a celebrity on a local level.

The 17-year-old miniature horse lives in Pinellas Park, Florida, and he is quickly becoming famous for the work he has done with children and the elderly in Tampa Bay. “Amos brings joy and smiles to everyone. No matter what age they are,” says his owner Shelly Mizrahi.

For the last six years, Amos has averaged 200 visits a year all over Pinellas County to nursing homes and children’s hospitals. Everywhere he shows up, patients miraculously start feeling better. “He’s there to make them happy and brighten their day and maybe even make them feel better,” says Shelly.

Studies have shown that meeting with a therapy horse like Amos increases a good stress hormone. Shelly says when Amos visits someone he knows just how to make them feel better. Besides, if he didn’t want to, at 250 pounds no one would be able to make him do it.

Before becoming a therapy horse, Amos played basketball with the Harlem Globe Trotters. His basketball skills earned him the Today Show’s “Best Pet Trick in America” contest. Now he shares his talents with a different crowd.

When visiting a facility, Amos gently and patiently walks through the halls giving those who wish a chance to spend time petting him. Shelly, who used to show horses, says she can’t think of a better thing to do than to take Amos out to help people feel better.

“I love showing horses, but this just touched me in a way that I can share my horse with other people means so much more than going out and getting a blue ribbon,” she says.

What an amazing story! Be sure to share this story with your family and friends. Who doesn’t love petting a horse?