HONOLULU -- Hospital officials confirmed a horse trotted through Wilcox Memorial Hospital earlier this month.

A spokesman for the hospital said a man called the hospital and said he was going to ride his father's horse into the hospital, where his father was a patient.

"He proceeded to take the horse up the elevator up to the nursing floor where he was met by security and our nurse supervisor," said the spokesman.

The man, who appeared intoxicated at the time, posed for pictures with the horse and an off-duty nurse.

The animal was escorted out of the building after the man's father claimed the horse wasn't his.

"We do have a pet visitation policy, but it does not include a horse," said the spokesman. "Although it sounds funny, we don't want to compromise our visitor and our patient healthcare."

The hospital said it notified the health department.

Officials with the heath department said they would look into the incident to determine if any actions are needed to ensure the safety of the hospital. An internal hospital investigation, however, found that the incident did not warrant any disciplinary action.

"We investigate all incidents and this is a very rare incident and naturally its something we sat and discussed so we can understand how it happened and how we can prevent it the next time," said the hospital spokesman.

The hospital did say that they are looking for ways to improve security at the hospital.