Therapeutic Horseback Riding | Equine Assisted Therapy

Who Do We Help?

Riding is proven effective as recreational therapy in the treatment of various disabilities including but not limited to:

Riders must have a disability and benefit from Equestrian Therapy to ride in the program. All riders are required to have a competed packet of forms (including a liability release, consents, and health history for example) and a Physician Referral form in order to ride. The rider must be four years of age or older and have a minimum sitting balance and head control of a 6 month old.

Autism
Hearing Impaired
CVA (stroke)
Traumatic Brain Injury
Cerebral Palsy
Muscular Dystrophy
Developmental Delays
Parkinson's Disease
Mental Health Disorders
Various Syndromes

Down Syndrome
Intellectual Disabilities
Spina Bifida
Multiple Sclerosis
SID (sensory integration)
Sight Impaired
Paralysis
Emotional Disabilities
Pervasive Development Disorder

What is Therapeutic Horseback Riding?

The horse’s walk is a multi-dimensional, rhythmic and symmetrical gait that works one side of the student’s body, then the other, causing the pelvis to work both back and forth, side to side and up and down, just as it would if the rider were walking in the normal manner on the ground. This helps the rider maintain the proper postural alignment while stimulating the correct muscles. Through the motion of the horse, individuals with disabilities experience greater self-awareness, increased attention span and improved balance, coordination, muscle tone and physical condition. Our horses are marvelously mobile therapeutic machines.

Riding Encourages: