BEDFORD, Pa. (WTAJ) — A woman is using her horses to put smiles on the faces of seniors quarantined inside their nursing homes.

Allie Whelan, manager of Mystic Meadows Farm in Bedford, got the idea to visit nursing homes from her grandmother who has been feeling lonely during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The horses were dressed up with flowers for their visit to senior centers throughout Bedford and Everett, and they came up to the window to greet residents stuck inside.

Whelan says the visits are mutually beneficial as the horses, who normally are used to train riders, are needing something to do right now as well.

The reaction has been so successful that Whelan says many of the homes are asking for a return visit.

“Some cried, there were smiles as well. Shock, too, they weren’t really expecting to see horses outside their windows,” Whelan said.

Whelan says she will continue to take horses to nursing homes during the quarantine and is considering making the visits a regular thing.