Hippotherapy
What is Therapeutic Riding?
Horseback riding has long been considered an enjoyable activity for people of all ages and abilities. Therefore it makes sense that horseback riding be used as a recreational, thus therapeutic, activity for children and adults with disabilities. The benefits of therapeutic riding, both physical and emotional, have been recognized for individuals with disabilities as far back as the 5th century, B.C. Yet the formal use of horseback riding for rehabilitation of therapy programs is still a relatively new concept. In fact, therapeutic riding did not begin in the United States until the 1940's. Today there are well over 600 center in the US that have this program.
What are the benefits of Therapeutic Riding?
Hippotherapy which when translated from the Greek literally means "treatment with the help of a horse"-is a more formal type of treatment than basic therapeutic riding. It's "play and leisure" activity that many people consider a favorite hobby or pastime. Therapeutic riding, therefore, simply transforms the recreational pleasures of horseback riding and uses them to promote the various intrinsic social, emotional, and physical benefits of riding. The needs and/or disabilities of the client dictate which of the four major areas of therapeutic riding will be selected and implemented. The first three categories for which therapeutic riding has been employed - recreation, education, and competition - are primarily associated with various psychosocial benefits. Horseback riding has a calming effect and often times helps a client relax. For some, the time-out to enjoy the ride, and even get away from traditional exercises and machines, may be what keeps them going. Horseback riding is also a very normalizing and equalizing type of activity. It gives people with disabilities the opportunity to participate and succeed at something that many able-bodied people may hesitate to try, both recreationally and competitively. Some therapeutic riding programs incorporate games and activities performed while on horseback to increase the beneficial effects of riding. Children with disabilities may play red-light/green/light or "Mother, may I?" while on horseback as a means of increasing their interaction and social skills. In addition these groups give people with disabilities, particularly children, the opportunity to socialize and be with others who not only have similar problems, but who also have similar interests, such as riding. In addition to encouraging social interaction, horseback riding also encourages the rider to interact with the horse. Individuals with delayed language or other language problems are encouraged to give the horse the necessary commands, such as "go" or "walk" to move. Consequently, rider's learn the benefits of meaningful speech, that when they speak to the horse they get results. This in turn encourages additional interaction and speech.
Individuals of all ages, with a wide range of physical, cognitive and/or emotional disabilities benefit from therapeutic horseback riding and other equine activities. The types of disabilities and conditions that can benefit are Amputations, Autism, Brain Injuries, Cerebral Palsy, Down Syndrome, Emotional Disabilities, Hearing Impairments, Learning Disabilities, Mental Retardation, Multiple Sclerosis, Muscular Dystrophy, Spina Bifida, Spinal Cord Injuries , Visual Impairments , and other disabilities.
A major area for which horseback riding is encouraged people with disabilities is therapy. Therapy builds upon the psychosocial benefits of riding a horse, and adds improvements in physical components as well. The motion and heat of the horse, not only aid a rider's blood circulation and reflexes, but also gently exercise the rider's spinal column, joints, and muscles. The horse's three-dimensional movement provides a combination of sensory and neurological input that can be used to address a variety of disabilities. These movements can not be duplicated by traditional exercise or by exercise machines which typically only work on one muscle group at a time and can't produce body movements in a natural, rhythmic, and progressive way. Horses, on the other hand, can. In fact, as anyone who has ever ridden a horse can probably attest to, riding exercises a wide variety of muscles in the body, including muscles many people didn't even realize they had. In other words, horseback riding can exercise portions of the body that often remain unused or aren't working. Therefore riding can serve as an alternative to muscular therapy or exercise equipment, especially for those who are "therapy tired" - those who are tired of performing exercises in the same room, on the same equipment, day after day. Unlike some more traditional therapy sessions, horses provide a more motivating, richer therapeutic environment - combining fresh air and the outdoors with the emotional contact and movements of a horse. For individuals with disabilities the movements of the horse simulate motions that able-bodied individuals do normally. The synchronization of the horse's movement and the rider's muscles can even create the same sensations as walking, which can be a "wonderful" feeling for those who can't walk. As Tim Stine, a State Representative who has become an advocate for therapeutic riding since a diving accident left him paralyzed from the chest down stated, "It's the closest I've come to feeling the sensation of walking since my accident." This walking sensation results from the rhythmic gait of the horse which is similar to the stride of humans and, consequently, moves the pelvis in a way similar to walking.
Riding a horse also moves a rider's trunk, arms, shoulders, head, thereby improving one's posture, as well as toning the muscles in the stomach and arms. All of these movements result in increased strength, flexibility, and mobility. They also result in improvements in balance and coordination, especially since staying atop a moving horse serves as such a high motivator for maintaining one's balance and posture. Riding a moving horse can also improve one's spatial orientation skills, as well as fine motor skills, especially for those also involved in grooming or controlling the horse independently.
Hippotherapy combines therapeutic horseback riding with traditional therapy exercises for maximal benefits. It focuses on the increases in balance, coordination, and strength that result from therapeutic riding, thus hippotherapy programs differ from riding for the disabled programs because they do not teach riding skills or emphasize the riding for pleasure aspect of therapeutic riding. Rather hippotherapy uses the rhythmic movement of the horse to influence the rider's postural reactions, balance, function, and sensory processing. Therefore it serves as more of an adjunct to treatment.
Hippotherapy includes formal exercises on horseback that are led by an occupational or physical therapist to achieve specific goals and objectives. In hippotherapy sessions, the horse is led or driven behind while the occupational and/or physical therapists work with the rider to improve and correct proximal and central motor and sensory deficits. Therapists accomplish these goals with stretching and strengthening exercises on horseback. They utilize the movements of the horse to mimic normal human development for establishing postural control. In other words, they vary the movements of the horse or of the rider to imitate normal developmental patterns and movements. For example - in developing postural control in a child with a developmental disability, an occupational therapist may begin working on anterior/posterior direction by decreasing or lengthening the horse's stride while the rider sits normally atop the horse. The therapist may then work on lateral control by having the horse move in large circles. Then, the therapist and rider may work on developing rotation through activities requiring reaching and crossing mid-line while riding the horse. This series of postural control exercises from anterior/posterior to lateral to rotational follows a normal developmental sequence. Therapists may also have the rider ride backwards on the horse. This movement gets the individual out of flexion and activates extension and trunk control. Lying down on the horse is a third popular exercise performed in hippotherapy. Lying on the horse's back provides a large base of rhythmic proprioception and tactile input. Plus, since the client's body is along the horse's mid-line, the rider gets a sense of their own mid-line due to the predictable vestibular input.
What is it important to use a trained center?
Just as the therapists involved in hippotherapy and therapeutic riding programs must be carefully trained for the task, so must the horses used. In addition to walking rhythmically but slowly, the horses involved must be able to vary their stride as needed for the client depending on the type of therapy. They may need to tolerate carrying two riders at a time - the therapist and the client, as well as carrying riders facing backwards, kneeling, or falling on its neck or rump. The horses used also need the disposition to be bumped with crutches, canes, and wheelchairs, mounted from both sides from mounting blocks, wheelchair ramps, and hydraulic lifts, and loaded with special equipment and pads. The horse can not be distracted during mounting, no matter how long it may take, or during treatment periods even with the extraneous activities, such as ring-tosses or games that are performed to further encourage coordination and balance.
Riding Links
Benefits of
riding
NARHA- Find a riding center near you
Articles -written about the benefits of riding with special needs
*POEM*
I saw a child who couldn't walk,
sit on a horse, laugh and talk.
Then ride it through a field of daisies
and yet he could not walk unaided.
I saw a child, no legs below,
sit on a horse, and make it go
through woods of green
and places he had never been
to sit and stare,
except from a chair.
I saw a child who could only crawl
mount a horse and sit up tall
Put it through degrees of paces
and laugh at the wonder in our faces
I saw a child born into strife,
Take up and hold the reins of life
and that same child was heard to say,
Thank God for showing me the way.
John Anthony Davies
