No horsing around: Couple keeps pet steed outside New York City home
TOMPKINSVILLE, Staten Island (WABC) -- Who says you need a car in the city? On most days, a couple from Staten Island can been seen riding their pet horse around their neighborhood.
The rest of the time, "Morgi" is "parked" in their Tompkinsville driveway.
"It's amazing," owner Abdul Elanani said. "It's fun. It gets my mind off a lot of things."
Initially, Elanani and his wife Ayat Masoud kept the horse boarded at a stable in New Jersey. But when they moved to Staten Island, they learned there is no law prohibiting residents from owning horses as pets.
The couple spent nearly $5,000 building a custom stall in their driveway for Morgi.
Health Department Code Article 161 states that horses are not prohibited animals in New York City, and no permit is required for horses owned by individuals with private property who use the horse only for recreational purposes.
Elanani admits his next-door neighbor has complained about the smell of horse manure.
"We clean up as much as we can," he said. "We try and make the environment as nice as possible."
Other residents don't seem to mind their new four-legged neighbor.
"If he's taking care of the horse, I think it's awesome," neighbor Phyllis Forman said.
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