Healing Hearts Horse Assisted Therapy

General information

Equine assisted therapy involves pairing people with horses to enable people to overcome emotional issues, conditions or physical trauma. Equine assisted therapy can be used for equine assisted psychotherapy or equine assisted learning, depending on the specific treatment goal.

Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) uses horses for emotional growth and learning. It is a collaborative effort between a mental health professional and a horse specialist working with the clients and horses to address the agreed upon treatment goals and facilitate a process for healing.

We use a non-riding experiential model where clients can learn about themselves and others by participating in ground activities with the horses.

Horses are used because, as herd animals of prey, they accurately reflect the internal state of those around them. Because of their highly perceptive and sensitive nature, horses seem to mirror and respond to the thoughts, feelings and body language of the client. They can identify feelings you are not even aware of or has been masking such as fear, guilt, anger or feelings of inferiority. Further horses are large and powerful animals. This creates a natural opportunity for some to overcome fear and develop confidence.