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Thread: How do Horses Help Kids with Emotional and Behavioral Issues?

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    How do Horses Help Kids with Emotional and Behavioral Issues?

    Animal Assisted Therapy - does it work?

    Kids with emotional and behavioral issues can be difficult to work with.

    Most of them are slow to trust adults, and may be unwilling to trust anyone at all. In addition, if the emotional or behavioral issues are caused by abuse, the child could be angry and prone to emotional outbursts.

    Cognitive therapy that includes an equine assisted program can be of great benefit to this type of person.

    There are several aspects of cognitive/equine assisted therapy that work well with kids who have emotional and behavioral issues. One of the simplest aspects is diversion.

    When a young person is focused on grooming, feeding, or exercising a horse, his/her focus is no longer on his own issues and problems.

    Far from being a "means of escape", caring for the horse provides an often-needed respite for the person's emotions and intellect.

    It can actually help the person feel refreshed and energized because the mind has been allowed to "rest" from its current problems.

    The open communication that's needed when learning new skills enables the therapist to "teach by example" as he communicates with his client.

    The young person will likely get frustrated, giving the therapist an opportunity to discuss - and model - appropriate ways to express emotions. The communication between the therapist and horse professional can provide this same kind of example as well.

    The young person may live in an environment where people yell when they disagree.

    During equine assisted therapy, the therapist and horse professional could provide real-life evidence that it's possible (and more productive) for people to talk instead of yell.
    A child's responses to the horses can also provide excellent insight into the child's opinions of self and of others, especially authority figures.

    Equine assisted therapy offers kids with emotional and behavioral issues a safe environment in which to work through issues of fear, anxiety, self-doubt, and poor communication.

    By teaching the child how to work with and communicate with the horse, the therapist will be indirectly teaching the child how to apply these same skills in inter-personal relationships.

    (Other forms of animal assisted therapy includes, Canine, Elephant and Dolphin. I've personally watched Dolphin assisted therapy and what I saw was quite impressive.)

    Link: Animal assisted therapy for troubled Teens - http://www.equine-therapy-programs.c...bledteens.html


    Most domestic animals also shy away from aggressive behavior. Animal assisted therapy can help a troubled teen learn that quiet, gentle behavior gets better results than behavior that is loud and aggressive.

    Animal assisted therapy
    Some people hear "animal-assisted therapy" and think that it means kids are simply hanging out with pets, but true AAT is a formal, planned program in which the teen participates. Interactions with the animal(s) are controlled, and are done for specific reasons.

    Facilities that choose to implement animal-assisted therapy typically conduct extensive studies and develop strict rules and guidelines for their programs. Far from being haphazard, these programs are focused and intentional, and often produce marked positive results.

    Counselors have seen teenagers, even teens in juvenile detention facilities, that are unresponsive to the counselor open up and actually "talk" to a therapy dog or horse. Some are so overwhelmed by a therapy dog's unconditional kindness that they break down and cry.

    This kind of emotional breakthrough is vital in the treatment of troubled or at-risk teenagers, and allows the teen to begin moving toward emotional and psychological healing.
    (Source)

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    I totally think it works! Its amazing when an animal so big and beautiful is nice to you.. Even when they dont have to, its up to them.. Even for non "troubled'' or non autistic people it can be good for...

    One day ... I went to a friends just outside of town.. I got out of my car to open her gate, and I hear this knickering sound, Im like wha? I turn around and this horse on the other side of the road was making sounds at me! And moving his head. I was like wow Hes talking to me? I was totally flattered! lol
    Brought smiles to me, can only imagine how much it would affect others..

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    The Guardian had an interesting article - (Source)

    The psychological benefits of working with horses are being recognised by growing numbers of therapists who work with autistic children, young people with behavioural problems, adults with depression or celebrities with addictions.

    "The horse is the perfect mirror, they are very emotional beings; we're only starting to realise how intelligent they are," said therapy counsellor Gabrielle Gardner, of Shine For Life, watching the horse dance around his pen at a farm in Blackstone, a village a few miles north of Brighton.

    "A lot of my clients start off being very nervous, so I wouldn't always use such a big horse. One of the reasons I think equine-assisted therapies work so well is that everyone has a reaction to horses; nobody is indifferent. People either love them or fear them, so that's two big emotions that immediately reflect what most of life's issues revolve around. If you can work with an animal like this and overcome the fear, then it isn't a bad starting point."

    Gardner has worked with all types of clients, including young offenders, and says a horse picks up on the way people are feeling, mirroring their emotions and responding. As a herd animal attuned to stress and body language, a horse will move away from an angry person, follow someone it trusts and be unsettled when it senses fear.

    "It's especially good for people who don't take to talking therapies. Counselling is not a 'one size fits all'. While you might forget a conversation you had with your counsellor a few weeks on, it's unlikely you'll forget what happened when you stood in a field with your counsellor and a horse. It's not like patting a dog; it's a big animal."
    "It has been clinically documented that just being around horses changes human brainwave patterns. We calm down and become more centred and focused when we are with horses," he says. "Horses are naturally empathetic. The members of the herd feel what is going on for the other members of the herd."

    In Scotland a charity called HorseBack UK is achieving tremendous results using horses to rehabilitate injured and traumatised members of the armed forces. Jock Hutcheson, a former marine, had retired to breed horses when he offered to take a group of former combatants riding. Self-confessed as "horse daft since I was three", he said that even he hadn't expected the horses to have such a huge impact. Last year he had 156 people through his Aberdeenshire centre.

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    it really makes you think.. we are supposed to b the most evolved land creatures but my goodness these wonderful beings outshine many a person ive encountered..lb

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