Therapy Horses Case Study

Riding horses can be used in many spectacular ways. Horses can be used for therapy with special needs children. Horses can help ease soldier’s minds. Riding horses helps with emotional issues, diminish post-traumatic stress disorders, and allow children with special needs to have fun.

Humans keep pets such as cats, dogs, and horses; why should farm animals be treated any differently than how people treat their own pets? (Elizabeth Kolbert 17). Every day, millions of farm animals are being slaughtered inhumanely by farm workers. There needs to be a stop to this. The treatment of animals should be improved. There should be no more growth hormones given to animals, because they cause many problems such as developmental disabilities. Living conditions should be made appropriate, and farm animals should be given space to roam.

The idea of intersectionality is that all of our identities overlap and are also constantly affecting our privileges and oppressions. People do not always think about their interactions despite them playing a pivotal role in our human experience. This is what causes some writers to feel the need to put them into words so that maybe more people will look at themselves and do some thinking about their own intersections. Some of the authors that I believe have done this well are Patricia Collins in her work titled Black Feminist Thought. Another work that discussed intersectionality well is titled “A Black Feminist Statement” which is powerful in the way it discusses how race interacts with womanhood. The final piece I feel as though needs discussed is Women, Race, and Class which is a piece written by Angela Davis that discusses the intersections that can be seen in

There are numerous organizations supporting EAAT but very limited peer reviewed research was available for review. Majority of research performed for this paper was derived from personal interviews and information gathered from the various equine therapy associations. The Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship International (PATH) is a non-profit organization founded in 1969. PATH provides certification for EAAT instructors as well as educational opportunities found within several prestigious universities. Originally PATH began utilizing horseback riding as a method of physical therapy but today the organization includes activities ranging from physical, cognitive, mental, and confidence building techniques treating a wide variety of mental and physical disabilities with something as simple as a horse. People from all walks of life have found the “power of the horse” to be an essential form of therapy for people suffering from brain injuries, mental retardation, multiple sclerosis, depression, and birth defects/disorders.

There is a big number of special needs population in the US that don’t get much help with therapy or can’t find any therapy that works. A new therapy that works to help these people is equine therapy. Equine therapy helps the special needs population by helping the special needs, the horses, and the money that goes to equine therapy. Equine therapy has been around since 1946 and was introduced as horseback riding from the Ancient Greek (“What is Equestrian therapy?”). Equine therapy “has become a recreation and a motivational activity for the disabled while at the same time a therapy for them” (“What is Equestrian therapy?”).

Intersectionality is defined as the, “interconnected nature of social categorization such as race, class, and gender, as they apply to a given individual or group, regarded as creating overlapping and interdependent systems of discrimination or disadvantage.” In lighter terms, a certain individual or group can have a vast amount of discriminations against them. An ample number of pieces came out during the 1960’s and 1970’s. Intersectionality can give a more up close look on social injustices and oppressions. Michele Wallace, Cheryl Clarke, and Barbara Cameron all wrote about the intersectionality they endured during their lifetimes. Their works can be compared by modern feminist authors such as Simone de Beauvoir and Betty Friedan.

The term intersectionality is a concept that is new to me, but gives me a deeper understanding of how people are strongly affected not only by one form of discrimination, but by multiple forms simultaneously. The reading Intersectionality: A primer by Christine Emba defines intersectionality as a term used to describe and recognize how race, class, and gender are separate categories that can overlap and intersect (Emba, 2015). Many times these categories can merge with each other in ways that can marginalize certain groups of people and leave them unnamed and hidden.

Definition: Intersectionality is defined as “a framework for conceptualizing a person, or group of people as affected by a number of discriminations and disadvantages. It takes into account people’s overlapping identities and experiences in order to understand the complexity of prejudice they face” (YM Boston). In other words, intersectionality is the concept that individuals are often discriminated by various sources of oppression such as their religion, class, sexual orientation and many other identifiers.

Learning to master the horse increases the rider's self-esteem and confidence. Interacting with and controlling the horse enhances focus, decision-making skills, and effective verbal and nonverbal communication ("Why the Horse?"). Riders may become very satisfied and self-confident after successfully completing a task set by the instructor of the hippotherapy session. This feeling of confidence improves the rider's overall mood and makes them enjoy horseback riding even more.

David Block, a documentary producer and director states, “Horses don’t judge by appearance. They look past peoples’ disabilities and recognize the emotions inside. Horses are more than friends and companions. They are mirrors of the soul.”. A study conducted in 2008 found, “...12 week animal-assisted therapy program showed these programs are statistically more effective in promoting recovery (“The Soulful Benefits Of Healing…”). There are many benefits of using horses to help with therapy such as: Physical improvement, psychological improvement, educational improvement, and social improvement. The use of Equine therapy can benefit people in many different ways.

On July 8, 2016, Jaycee Dugard sat down for an interview with Diane Sawyer, where she mentioned that equine therapy played a role in healing her after eighteen years of captivity, but she is not the only one that realizes the therapeutic quality of horses. Over two million households own horses. Horses make great pets because they're easier to care for, are better prepared for dangerous situations, and offer numerous physical and mental advantages. In this paper, I argue that domesticated horses are better pets than dogs are.

Connecticut Equine Clinic is the premier equine veterinary clinic in the Coventry, Connecticut region. Equine podiatry is the understanding of the form and function of the horse foot. Combining information from a physical exam, radiology and ultrasound with therapeutic farriery can relieve and prevent foot problems. Many problems associated with lowered performance and perceived behavioral issues may actually be signs of pain in the feet. Refusing jumps, difficulty in executing leads, loss of performance and more can indicate foot pain. Hock, stifle, caudal heels, knees back and even biting problems may simply be pain and damage as the result of hoof imbalances. Taking preemptive action can optimize long term health and welfare of the horse and reduce or avoid down time.

The data collected was mainly found on different horse forums and websites that sell horse health monitors similar to the Cabasus health monitor, details of the online forums and websites can be found on the provided excel spread sheet. The data revealed that consumers who search for horse health monitors expect clear and concise directions to accompany the product; they also expect the product to be easy to use. Customers want readily accessible to data about the horse’s health and wellbeing as well as help with specified horse training. The data collected provided information about how this type of customer loves horseback riding alone or with friends, and how the user perceives the horse health monitor as a resource to attain their goals.

As a future nurse, mercy plays a huge role in my career. In any case, if a patient was put into a serious coma then it would be not only the doctor’ job, but also my decisions on the line. Making decisions to help others is very nerve-wrecking, and the services I volunteer at throughout my life will teach me to make decision more carefully. This issue impacts what is going on in the larger political spheres because animal abuse and killings occur on a daily basis. As I stroll through social media, I see animal abuse pictures, and the same happens as I turn the television on to see the commercials. These are a tragedy to watch, and they are against our moral rights to help them because they have a life just like humans. Murdering or injuring a human in a sing; therefore, animals abuse should be exposed to be the same kind of sinful

A job I recently held was at Horseplay, a Therapeutic Riding Center for children with disabilities. While there I went through a week of training. Training included learning how to guide and walk a horse. Right after that I quickly learned how to put horses back into their stalls and clean their hooves. My specific duties were to: clean stalls and horses, take horses in and out of stalls, and guide horses around the arena. After that I would complete my duties as a side walker, which entailed bringing the horse to the standing station and passing it to the instructor, who would take over and guide the horse. While the horse was still, I would get a child rider and gently put him on the horse. After the child is on the horse, I walk alongside the horse and hold the child’s back straight as the other volunteer on the other side of the horse holds his leg for extra security. My main job was to talk to the kids and make sure they stayed securely on the horse.