by April Conrad

“I’ve always heard that riding horses was extremely good therapy for special needs children, but my daughter Sierra’s first experience around a horse proved to be an outstanding experience for all of us,” says Norma Stanley of Decatur. “It was exciting to hear Sierra, 16, who doesn’t really speak many words at her age level, say ‘whoa’ and ‘go’ and see the horse stop or move automatically. Her face would just light up when the horse did what she said!”

Hippotherapy (derived from the Greek word for horse and literally meaning “horse therapy”) is a form of therapy that is generally considered alternative. “I don’t like that it is considered an alternative therapy,” said Marie Dawson, an occupational therapist and president of Creative Therapy, Inc.

Dawson said that even though the therapy is delivered atop a horse, the type of work is the same as the kind of treatment that is done in a clinical setting. But more fun.

“We work on core issues,” she said. Depending on the goals, therapy focuses on issues like head control, trunk control, weight-bearing, visual tracking, sensory integration, speech, and disassociative (moving one arm or leg independent of the other) movement.

Physician’s approval is required for any hippotherapy program. Most programs accept children over age 2. Hippotherapy, said Dawson, is not recommended for children who have compromised respiratory conditions, are highly allergic, those who have significant behavior issues, active seizures or contractures. But it is highly recommended for children with cerebral palsy, Downs, autism, or developmental or speech delays.

“My son likes the horses and is interested in them,” explains Lisa Stuckey of Lawrenceville, “and they also facilitate improvements in language and communication.” Lisa’s 3-year-old son, who has Hypotonia (decreased muscle tone) and delayed language and sensory issues, has been participating in hippotherapy sessions for the past year-and-a-half and she has seen a noticeable difference in his balance, muscle tone, and posture.

“Before starting hippotherapy he could barely stand and balance on a beam,” she says, “but he can now walk confidently across the entire beam.”

According to chiropractor Dr. Marilyn Peterson of Parkwood Farms, the list of such benefits is quite long and encouraging: increased balance, posture, coordination, strength, flexibility, and attention span, just to name a few.

“Because the horse mimics 90 percent of the movement of the human pelvis, the children get the feeling of walking,” explains Dr. Peterson.

Sessions require a team of three people: the therapist, a leader, who walks the horse around the ring and controls the animal, and a sidewalker, who helps make sure the child is secure and safe on the horse. “The parent definitely needs to feel comfortable with the therapist,” said Dawson.

For children who have fine motor delays, or who have only slight developmental or speech delays and don’t need intensive therapy, there is another option: therapeutic riding.

Therapeutic riding is less focused on therapy and more focused on teaching children to care for, groom, ride, and have a trusting relationship with a horse. Many children “graduate” to therapeutic riding when they have met their therapeutic goals in hippotherapy.

Most programs have several horses of different sizes and breeds. They all share calm, willing temperaments. “They (the horses) know that this work is their job,” said Dawson. Because all equine programs are set up so that the child rides the same horse for every session, many children receive an added bonus: a relationship with the animal they ride. Few children, let alone special needs children, get the opportunity to look into a horse’s big brown eyes and get to pet a soft, warm snout.

Because certified therapists treat children, most hippotherapy is covered by insurance with the exception of the stable fees, which vary from program to program. Some programs offer scholarships to cover the extra fees. Parents should look for a program that is a member of the AHA or one that is NARHA certified. For more information hippotherapy the AHA and the NARHA both have websites with links to local programs: www.americanhippotherapyassociation.org or www.narha.org.

Profoundly-disabled, older children or those who are confined to a wheelchair can experience equine thrills through carriage driving. Driving Magic, based in Duluth, is the only carriage driving program in the Atlanta area. Children sit in a carriage (or their own wheelchair) while being pulled by a horse, learning safety techniques, harnessing and driving skills, and the importance of teamwork. For more advanced carriage drivers there are even organized competitions that they can participate in.

“We have a hydraulic lift, made specially for wheelchairs. This helps us get the wheelchair and the rider into the four-wheel cart (carriage). It is pulled by a 2,200 pound Belgian Horse,” said Jennifer Lindscoog, the executive director and founder of Driving Magic, a program she began a year ago when she discovered the need for a carriage driving program.

Carriage driving puts the reins in the child’s hands, but the driving is actually done by the person sitting next to them, called an “able-bodied whip.” Children who have little control of their arms experience the feel of controlling the cart through interactive reins on the child’s side which mimic the movement of the able-bodied whip, moving to the right, left or pulling up to stop. There is also a hydraulic brake, just in case...

“We recommend carriage driving for disabled pre-teens and young adults because it is very hard for a sidewalker to manage them in a traditional hippotherapy program,” said Lindscoog. And, they can go pretty fast in the carriage, a sensation that many severely disabled people crave and have few opportunities to experience.

She also recommends the program for children with autism. “They love the process. It is a big, long process to harness the horse for the carriage. The kids love putting on and taking off the harness,” she said. Some participants also learn about caring for a horse as part of the program. Each program is tailored to the goals and abilities of the participant. They also do group events. While kids wait for their turn in the carriage, they learn horse care and do other fun stuff like horseshoe painting crafts and make a picture with Driving Magic’s equine celebrity, Clyde.

Jane Grillo contributed to this article.