What does equine assisted therapy do?

What does equine assisted therapy do?

Clients who participate in equine-assisted therapy are usually seeking help for emotional or behavioral problems. Clients work with specially trained horses and learn about caring for them. The therapy focuses more on learning to care for the animals rather than learning to ride.

What is the difference between equine assisted therapy and hippotherapy?

Equine-assisted therapy focuses on addressing mental health, with patients caring for horses in a stable setting. Hippotherapy, on the other hand, is an approach to physical therapy where the patient rides horses in order to address physical health.

What are the different types of equine assisted therapy?

5 Popular Types Of Equine Therapy

• #1 – Therapeutic Horseback Riding.
• #2 – Hippotherapy.
• #3 – Equine-Assisted Learning (EAL)
• #4 – Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP)
• #5 – Less-Common Therapies.

What is equine therapy for PTSD?

New research shows equine therapy—a treatment method that uses the connection between people and horses to enhance emotional healing—can jump-start the healing process for veterans who suffer from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD).

Is equine-assisted Psychotherapy evidence based?

Equine-assisted psychotherapy (EAP) has emerged as a promising, evidence-based intervention for the treatment of trauma and stressor-related disorders. This experiential therapy offers an option for clients whose traumatic experiences render traditional talk therapies ineffective.

How is hippotherapy different than therapeutic riding?

Physical, Occupational or Speech Therapy. The move- ment of the horse is a treatment tool. Hippotherapy is not a horseback riding lesson. It is physical, occupational or speech therapy, which is approved by a physician and implemented by a team that includes a licensed, credentialed therapist.

How are horses selected for equine therapy?

Horses, which might be full-size or smaller ponies, are chosen as therapy animals based partially on their ability to withstand a great deal of distraction and tolerate unpredictable or erratic behavior from people riding or grooming them.

Is equine therapy good for trauma?

Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) can help individuals, couples, and families to work through the pain of traumatic life experiences. EAP can help clients to find more internal resources than they knew they had, strengthen coping skills, practice asking for and receiving help, and begin to regain a sense of control.

Can horses help with anxiety?

While it has long been understood that spending time with animals and pets can positively affect our mood, new research suggests that horses may have a sixth sense that can identify anxiety, stress, and fear in humans, thus helping individuals identify these emotions in themselves.

Why are horses good for autism?

Horses calm riders with autism, allowing them to focus, think and accept training. The desire to ride also allows us to encourage positive behaviors and gently discourage negative behaviors.