Therapy with horses:

(No previous experience with horses needed)

This form of therapy is aimed at people with special needs or people who have to master and face special challenges in their lives.
‘’Challenges in life ‘’ have a wide spectrum and nearly all of us have to face them at some moments and times in our life’s….
The word ‘’Therapy ‘’sometimes has a negative stigma attached to it.
I would like you to forget about this.

Of course we aim for benefit but I believe by enjoying, having fun and facing something new, the biggest benefits arise often by itself. The horse as therapist transmits and offers such a wide range of possibilities and has a call character which once in his present is often indescribable.
The horse asks the person to get in touch with him and an interaction between man and horse gets created.
This gives us the possibility to develop awareness of non verbal communication and body language.

Only through respect and mutual trust the basis for a relationship (exactly the same as going into relation with a person) is laid. The work takes place via the relationship triangle client, horse and therapist/teacher/facilitator.

The relationship between man and horse has an archaic and symbolic primal power, which gets channelled in the interaction with the horse and has a healing support.
The horse is supportive dealing with education, social, emotional and cognitive problems. In partnership and interaction between client, horse and therapist/facilitator we discover new life perspectives and gain strength.

……. ”From the horse we learn humanity ” -……..Hans Heinrich Isenbart
….. ’’There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man’ …. Winston Churchill

Horse therapy/being with horses facilitates to deal with symptoms such as Autism, Down syndrome, social isolation, traumas and individual issues.
The horse in horse therapy is the natural mediator in the therapeutic interaction with the human being – self-reflection and acceptance are important components which come without force -.
The direct and reliable feedback of the animal transmits safety and self-efficiency to the client.
Horse therapy has cognitive, emotional and physical effects on the person dealing with it.

The Emotional side (examples)
-Horses react and reflect directly to situations and by how they are treated. The horse
urges people to communicate and react.
-The person experiences the direct feedback of his own actions and body language
while dealing with the horse.
-For example, being able to lead a horse requires courage, a clear appearance and
enforcing power.
-The person will be confronted with situations in which he/she must become active. If
he/she has mastered such a task, he/she will be proud of it and his/her self-esteem
will be strengthened.

The Cognitive side (examples)
-Cognition is the term used in relation to the processing of human information.
Certain learning processes deliberately take place, but there are situations in which the human being is learning unconsciously.
-Man needs a certain motivation to learn. As the horse has a high call character motivation is usually high.
-By working around the horse the vocabulary is supplemented with specific words.
For example, the naming of cleaning utensils, body parts of the horse.
-Depending on the client, new gestures are learned or he/she is asked to use the already learned gestures when working with the horse.
-The continuous repetition of workflows ensures security and over time allows activities to be carried out independently.
-The Person learns to follow instructions and can interact more and more adequate to the horse, the teacher and his surroundings.
-The person learns to express wishes and to give instructions. The goal is that the person becomes more and more independent and is able to demand help if necessary.
This can be verbal, through gestures, or mimics.

Motoric /Physical side (examples)
-Dealing from the ground with the horse challenges us while we are walking along with it,cleaning it and touching it
-While sitting on the horse without a saddle, the warmth and the movement of the horse has a relaxing effect on the person.
-Due to the rhythmic support, early deficits can be worked up.
-The horse’s movement actively supports the patient’s freedom and the equilibrium.
-The three-dimensional rotation movement, which is produced by the horse on the human being, in particular on his pelvis, is relaxing as well as muscle-building.
-Possible further benefits are:
-Relaxing tight muscles
-Building muscle strength
-Improving fine motor coordination
-Sharpening hand/eye coordination
-Improvements in Posture & Flexibility