Therapeutic horseback riding

Therapeutic horseback riding, also known as equine-assisted therapy, is for individuals with a range of physical, emotional, cognitive, and social special needs. There are several different kinds of programs that utilize horses and horseback riding for therapeutic benefits. Equine-assisted activities, including therapeutic riding, driving, and vaulting are not therapy but sport and recreational activities that have therapeutic value. Equine-assisted activities, therapeutic riding is usually most effective in children because of the nature of mental, and social development. However, equine-assisted activities produce very favorable improvements in riders of all ages.

There are hundreds of programs around the world as well many organizations dedicated to the various forms of equine-assisted activities. "Therapeutic riding" refers specifically to horseback riding lessons for people with special needs in which the therapeutic benefits of riding are a result of learning riding skills. Licensed therapists who incorporate the horse as one of their tools during therapy sessions conduct equine-assisted therapy. This is different from therapeutic riding where the rider influences the movement of the horse. Forms of equine-assisted therapy include hippotherapy, in which a certified therapist uses the horse as a therapeutic tool, and equine-facilitated psychotherapy in which a certified mental health professional uses the horse in various ways for therapeutic benefit. Hippotherapy is a treatment strategy used by occupational, physical and speech therapists. The movement of the horse is carefully modulated to influence neuromuscular changes in the client.

Therapeutic riding is considered an animal-assisted activity. As with animal-assisted therapy, the contact with another living being and the special bond people form with animals is used as a therapeutic tool. However, horses provide more than just skills acquired from a relationship with an animal or learning to care for an animal. Riding a horse provides a unique and often profound activity for many people. The motion of the horse, concentration needed to acquire riding skills, and the communication between instructor and rider allow people with a variety of disabilities to benefit from riding.

Riding, like many other therapeutic approaches, can also be considered a form of recreational therapy. That is, because riding is an enjoyable activity for many people, therapeutic riding is also used as a quality-of-life activity for people with degenerative diseases as well as a 'fun activity' for children and adults. Riding is a rapidly growing field with much diversification. Horseback riding has been recognized by many medical professionals and therapists as a very effective physical activity for many people.

Historical overview
Therapeutic riding can be traced throughout the ages. There is documentation of individuals exploring the various therapeutic benefits of horsemanship as far back as 600 B.C. The first modern study of the therapeutic benefits of horseback riding can be traced back to 1875. Cassaign, a physician, prescribed riding for his patients believing that riding would benefit individuals with such issues as neurological disorders, joint pain and immobility and balance. Oxford Hospital in England suggested riding therapy for soldiers injured in World War I. Because of the unique bond that is often formed between human and animal, people throughout the ages have recognized the importance of riding for people with special needs. This knowledge has grown throughout the ages and been used in various different ways. However, therapeutic riding was not recognized as a therapeutic discipline until fairly recently.

Modern roots
Therapeutic riding is most often attributed to Lis Hartel, a woman from Denmark who used a wheelchair and was determined to ride despite her disability. In the mid 1940s, there were significant outbreaks of polio in Scandinavia. Hartel was stricken with this illness, which limited her mobility. Hartel was successful in her efforts to rehabilitate herself using horseback riding--so successful that she went on to win two Olympic silver medals for Grand Prix Dressage (1952 & 1956). Her fortitude and remarkable achievement caught the attention of therapists, doctors and horsemen alike. Hartel paired with a physical therapist named Ulla Harpoth; together the women started one of the first therapeutic riding programs. Word quickly spread of this successful treatment and riding programs developed all over Europe, North America and Australia. "Rideterapi" is offered free of charge to severely handicapped individuals in Denmark. The costs are covered by the National Health Insurance.horses are fun

Physical
Therapeutic riding can be beneficial to many people with special needs. The most obvious and often the most immediately recognizable benefit is physical. Because riding is a very physical activity, children and adults with special physical needs and various physical impairments can benefit from riding. The act of riding a horse is so unique, many people feel that riding, combined with other therapies, has a great effect on students because it fills a niche in the therapeutic needs of the individual that other activities can't. Instructors employ a variety of physical tasks that help improve balance, muscle strength, flexibility, joint movement, and posture. Therapeutic riding can benefit people with many different physical disabilities, including muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, multiple sclerosis, amputation, paralysis, spina bifida, down's syndrome, etc.

Balance and posture
Because horseback riding requires balance and good posture for all riders, students lacking good balance and posture will be working on their balance issues from the very moment they mount. The exercise of riding grounds the rider in his or her hips. The movement input from the horse causes the rider to strengthen core muscles (postural muscles along the spine) and the movement offers input to both sides of the rider so they are more likely to improve their upright position. This connection between horse and rider is a fundamental element in building balance in riders with and without special needs. Instructors often employ various exercises and riding skills that work on balance and posture in multiple ways. Because therapeutic riding is fundamentally flexible to the student's needs, balance exercises are quite varied. Exercises can range from simply sitting atop the horse, to walking, to trotting. Instructors working on balance and posture with a student may also use exercises such as grabbing rings while riding, riding with arms stretched out, riding with the eyes closed, riding backwards, etc. The combination of supporting as well as challenging the rider enables the rider to improve their physical capabilities.

Muscles and joints
The movement of the horse also requires good muscle tone and flexibility. The most obvious muscle regions that benefit from such exercise are the back, buttocks and legs, as well as the ankles, knees and hips. Riding also affects smaller muscles and joints throughout the body as riding is an activity that requires the participation of the entire body. Riders with low muscle-tone and loose flexibility will work on strengthening and tightening the muscles primarily in the back, neck, buttocks and leg regions. Riders with very high muscle-tone work on relaxing the muscle and moving with the gait of the horse. The different gaits of the horse can be used to make the student aware of different muscle groups. As the rider learns different riding skills, muscle tone and flexibility are increasingly improved. The flexibility of equine-assisted activities enables riders with very different needs to benefit from the same motion while learning the same skills.

Cognitive and sensory
People with various cognitive and sensory disabilities can be helped with riding activities. Examples of some disorders include: mental retardation, autism, brain damage, Down Syndrome, developmental disorders, ADD/ADHD, dyslexia, learning disabilities etc. Riding requires attention, reasoning skills and memory. Because riding builds knowledge as time progresses, simple tasks grow into complex skills that provide the rider with intellectual stimulation. Riding incorporates a lot of information into a fairly small amount of time. In a session (which varies depending on the student and the program) an individual is asked to both interpret sensory information they are receiving from the horse, instructor, environment, etc., and use this information in a manner that is appropriate for learning riding skills. The motion, feel, smell, sound and sight of a horse is a lot to absorb; however, lessons can be simplified to focus only on this sensory information, giving the student time to process this information. Higher-functioning riders can use riding skills and tasks given by instructors to help integrate this sensory information in a way that makes sense to the individual student. Riding is both relaxing and demanding for students of all cognitive abilities, depending on the focus of the lesson. (See Equine-Facilitated Mental Health Association - EFMHA - a section of NARHA, the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association - at: www.narha.org.)leg muscles, stomache muscles, back muscles and arm muscles greatly benefit from riding

Emotional, social and psychological
Individuals with emotional, social and psychological disabilities all benefit in similar ways. A study conducted by Hannah Burgon found that therapeutic riding participants experience increased confidence and improved self-concept, and that these activities aid social stimulation and leads to acquisition of transferable skills. Riding helps the student interact with others and to form meaningful relationships with horses and people. Building a relationship with an animal is very rewarding in many aspects; for a person with an emotional, social or psychological disability, the trust and loyalty an animal shows for people demonstrates to the student how important these attributes are in personal relationships. Horses also help people feel in control of their situation because there is a direct correlation between action and reaction. To learn how to care for and ride a horse, a student must also be able to communicate efficiently with the horse and the instructor. In this way, riding is a very social activity, but is less daunting to people who are uncomfortable in social situations. However, the experience of riding a horse is very different. Riding helps to empower people and enables them to connect on a personal level. The sometimes unpredictable nature of animals and situations also creates a real-life environment in which students will be able to confront fears and make adjustments to situations beyond their control.