"I checked the city ordinances," Schwenk said. "There's nothing stating you can't have a horse."

That Schwenk broke no laws in penning Sweetie, a 1,200-pound retired thoroughbred, in his backyard has become a matter of concern in Wendell, a town of 4,500 in eastern Wake County.

At issue is whether the town should officially leave its agrarian past behind and declare itself horse-free. Currently, town ordinances only prohibit hogs from living in town. As for horses, the only stipulation is that they not be hitched to a telephone or electrical pole.

Sweetie's weeklong stay in town has prompted several of Schwenk's neighbors to pressure Wendell officials to update the town's animal control laws.

"We now need ordinances for things that common sense would have dictated 15 years ago," said neighbor Kay Ferrell.

On Monday, the Wendell Board of Commissioners is expected to vote on whether to prohibit most livestock and fowl from being kept within town limits.

Schwenk, who operates a limousine service called Town & Country out of his home, has vowed to fight the town -- in court if necessary -- if commissioners pass anti-Sweetie legislation. The 41-year-old single father already has announced plans to run for mayor of Wendell next year, and Sweetie has emerged as a potential wedge issue in the campaign.

"Don't harass people, especially if they're not breaking the law," he said of his governing philosophy.

Sweetie's permanent home is a 2.5 acre pasture about four miles from Schwenk's neighborhood, which is just off Wendell Boulevard.

Schwenk said he strung up a makeshift electrical fence to corral the horse on his one-third-acre lot after poor health kept him from taking his 8-year-old daughter, Amber, to visit Sweetie. Schwenk said he bought the 20-year-old former jumping horse for $200 seven months ago as a gift for Amber.

"She told me straight up, 'Daddy, I want to be a cowgirl,' " he said. "I think it's her calling."

Schwenk said he originally planned to have Sweetie over for just the weekend but extended her stay after Wendell police, the town's planning staff and three animal control officers all paid him a visit.

"My horse wasn't even in the yard 15 minutes when a neighbor called the police," he said.

Kenkesha Clark Staten, 28, who lives two doors down from Schwenk, said she thought he was joking when he talked about bringing Sweetie into the neighborhood. She and many of her neighbors live on lots no bigger than a third of an acre.

Staten, who has three young children, was stunned to look out one day and see Amber leading Sweetie around the neighborhood.

"His daughter took it for a stroll, all by herself, no supervision," she said.

Wendell officials say they have no animosity toward Sweetie and are simply concerned about the potential dangers of keeping the animal in a residential neighborhood.

"It's a very pretty horse and a very large horse," said Teresa Piner, the town's planning director. "The size of the animal ... I don't know how it could exercise its muscles."