Wondering how horses can help? This is the page to learn more about adaptive/therapeutic riding, hippotherapy and other equine assisted activities and therapies.
For more information about terminology see Terminology on Horses can Help or check out our chart for therapeutic riding and hippotherapy.
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I think my child would benefit from and equine assisted activity or therapy program. How do I choose a safe program?
There are many factors that go into creating a safe program. These include well trained staff, horses and volunteers (if used); accreditation programs and adequate facilities. Ask the center/program if they are NARHA accredited- a premiere accredited center allows a national representative to come visit the program and determine if they are following the national guidelines. Premiere accreditation is the gold star of the Equine assisted activities and therapy field. However, some very good and safe programs are not premiere accredited centers. Ask the following questions:
• Do you follow NARHA standards- why or why not?
If a center does not follow NARHA standards- beware. The standards are common sense guidelines for safety, administration and horse welfare.
• What training do you staff have? Are they NARHA or CHA certified instructors?
If the center provides therapeutic riding they should have certified instructors. NARHA certified riding instructors have attended a weekend training course and passes a certification exam for teaching riding to persons with disabilities. CHA instructors have undertaken a more rigorous exam process with increased training requirements. Staff should have additional training and attend continuing education and conferences.
• Do you employ therapists? What training do they have?
You are looking for AHA trained therapists Level II or Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist if the center provides Hippotherapy.
• How do you care for your horses? What do you do with them when they are old or are no longer working in your program?
The center should easily be able to tell you details about their feeding, turnout and training programs for their horses. Take a tour through the barn- it should be clean and the horses should look healthy. Many programs retire horses to staff, volunteers or return them to their owners. Beware of programs that sell horses or take them to an auction.
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My doctor recommended hippotherapy. How do I find a therapist with the proper training ?
The American Hippotherapy Association provides a FIND A THERAPIST link on their webpage. This listing provides contact details and information about the level of training the therapist has. Level I training is an introductory course to Hippotherapy. Level II training provides in depth training in clinical reasoning and treatment techniques. A Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist (HPCS) has passed a national examination and fulfilled to demonstrate their knowledge in hippotherapy. Requirements include 6,000 practice hours and 100 specialty hours prior to eligibility to sit for the exam. In addition, interview the therapist and find out their personal experience with horses outside of professional training. Therapists who are riders are more likely to understand the horse fully, including safety concerns, training and horse welfare.
http://www.americanhippotherapyassociation.org/aha_hpot_therapist.htm
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Rating: +0
What’s the difference between adaptive/therapeutic riding and hippotherapy?
See the chart that lines up the differences between these two programs. Therapeutic riding is an horseback riding lesson adapted to persons with special needs. Hippotherapy is a medical treatment strategy utilized by physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech language pathologists.
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Rating: +0
I am unsure about what’s happening in my child’s riding lesson or therapy session. Who can I ask?
First, ask the riding instructor or therapist! Whenever you have questions ask the service provider. If you continue to feel unsure you can look for a local NARHA Master Instructor or Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist to see if they will discuss your child’s situation. I offer consultation via free video reviews (see below) or traveling to work with the professional and your child.
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Rating: +0
I found a great place that provides hippotherapy! How can I afford therapy?
Hippotherapy may be covered by your medical insurance. Ask your therapist if they accept insurance, if not ask your insurance provider the following questions:
• Do you have outpatient, out of network benefits? Most hippotherapy providers are not in-network with insurance companies.
• What are my exclusions? There may be a variety of treatment methods and/or conditions that are excluded from your policy. If the insurance company states that hippotherapy is excluded you may not submit your bills/statements.
If you have out of network benefits and hippotherapy is not excluded you may be able to submit your OT, PT or SLP statements.
Other options for payment include: center based subsidies, local service or charity organizations and personal benefactors. These options may cover all or part of the cost of therapy and may have additional requirements.
-
Rating: +0
I heard about benefits from equine assisted activities and therapy. What benefits can I expect?
There are many websites that make claims about the benefits of equine assisted activities and therapies. However, the research is limited, but anecdotal reports abound. The majority of research has been done on hippotherapy. The benefits from hippotherapy programs should not be extrapolated to therapeutic riding or other equine assisted activities. There is a variety of research to show that participation in recreational or sport activities for persons with disabilities have positive benefits on emotional wellbeing and physical fitness. Participation in equine assisted activities is likely to have similar benefits. New research is ongoing and shows promising benefits for equine assisted activities and therapies. For more information about research- check out Horses and Humans Foundation.
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Rating: +0
My child is young and has a physical disability. Can someone sit behind her on the horse?
Backriding (in a therapeutic riding setting) or tandem hippotherapy (in a hippotherapy treatment) is dangerous. Placing two people on a horse puts increase stress and strain on the horses back and increases the likelihood of injury to the horse. A horse in discomfort or pain is more likely to react by running away or bucking. NARHA has put forth guidelines for tandem hippotherapy that all professionals should follow if they choose to attempt backriding or tandem hippotherapy. These standards attempt to protect the horse and maximize gains in a medical treatment session. If a child needs that much support they are likely contraindicated for therapeutic riding and should not be put in a backriding situation anyway. NCEPT offers a good DVD entitled, “Treatment Options for Patients with Severe Functional Limitations” that discusses alternative to backriding. As a competitive rider and Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist I do not believe that the benefits to the participant outweigh the risks to the whole team including the participant, mounted adult, sidewalkers, horse handler and especially our partner- the horse.
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Rating: +0
Equine assisted activities or therapy made a difference for me. How can I give back?
There are many ways to give back to the equine assisted activities and therapy community. You can donate or sit on a committee at your local center. National organizations like NARHA, CHA, AHA and Horses and Humans rely on financial donations to provide education and research in these important areas.
Rating: +0
I think my child would benefit from and equine assisted activity or therapy program. How do I choose a safe program?
There are many factors that go into creating a safe program. These include well trained staff, horses and volunteers (if used); accreditation programs and adequate facilities. Ask the center/program if they are NARHA accredited- a premiere accredited center allows a national representative to come visit the program and determine if they are following the national guidelines. Premiere accreditation is the gold star of the Equine assisted activities and therapy field. However, some very good and safe programs are not premiere accredited centers. Ask the following questions:
• Do you follow NARHA standards- why or why not?
If a center does not follow NARHA standards- beware. The standards are common sense guidelines for safety, administration and horse welfare.
• What training do you staff have? Are they NARHA or CHA certified instructors?
If the center provides therapeutic riding they should have certified instructors. NARHA certified riding instructors have attended a weekend training course and passes a certification exam for teaching riding to persons with disabilities. CHA instructors have undertaken a more rigorous exam process with increased training requirements. Staff should have additional training and attend continuing education and conferences.
• Do you employ therapists? What training do they have?
You are looking for AHA trained therapists Level II or Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist if the center provides Hippotherapy.
• How do you care for your horses? What do you do with them when they are old or are no longer working in your program?
The center should easily be able to tell you details about their feeding, turnout and training programs for their horses. Take a tour through the barn- it should be clean and the horses should look healthy. Many programs retire horses to staff, volunteers or return them to their owners. Beware of programs that sell horses or take them to an auction.
Rating: +0
My doctor recommended hippotherapy. How do I find a therapist with the proper training ?
The American Hippotherapy Association provides a FIND A THERAPIST link on their webpage. This listing provides contact details and information about the level of training the therapist has. Level I training is an introductory course to Hippotherapy. Level II training provides in depth training in clinical reasoning and treatment techniques. A Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist (HPCS) has passed a national examination and fulfilled to demonstrate their knowledge in hippotherapy. Requirements include 6,000 practice hours and 100 specialty hours prior to eligibility to sit for the exam. In addition, interview the therapist and find out their personal experience with horses outside of professional training. Therapists who are riders are more likely to understand the horse fully, including safety concerns, training and horse welfare.
http://www.americanhippotherapyassociation.org/aha_hpot_therapist.htm
Rating: +0
What’s the difference between adaptive/therapeutic riding and hippotherapy?
See the chart that lines up the differences between these two programs. Therapeutic riding is an horseback riding lesson adapted to persons with special needs. Hippotherapy is a medical treatment strategy utilized by physical therapists, occupational therapists and speech language pathologists.
Rating: +0
I am unsure about what’s happening in my child’s riding lesson or therapy session. Who can I ask?
First, ask the riding instructor or therapist! Whenever you have questions ask the service provider. If you continue to feel unsure you can look for a local NARHA Master Instructor or Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist to see if they will discuss your child’s situation. I offer consultation via free video reviews (see below) or traveling to work with the professional and your child.
Rating: +0
I found a great place that provides hippotherapy! How can I afford therapy?
Hippotherapy may be covered by your medical insurance. Ask your therapist if they accept insurance, if not ask your insurance provider the following questions:
• Do you have outpatient, out of network benefits? Most hippotherapy providers are not in-network with insurance companies.
• What are my exclusions? There may be a variety of treatment methods and/or conditions that are excluded from your policy. If the insurance company states that hippotherapy is excluded you may not submit your bills/statements.
If you have out of network benefits and hippotherapy is not excluded you may be able to submit your OT, PT or SLP statements.
Other options for payment include: center based subsidies, local service or charity organizations and personal benefactors. These options may cover all or part of the cost of therapy and may have additional requirements.
Rating: +0
I heard about benefits from equine assisted activities and therapy. What benefits can I expect?
There are many websites that make claims about the benefits of equine assisted activities and therapies. However, the research is limited, but anecdotal reports abound. The majority of research has been done on hippotherapy. The benefits from hippotherapy programs should not be extrapolated to therapeutic riding or other equine assisted activities. There is a variety of research to show that participation in recreational or sport activities for persons with disabilities have positive benefits on emotional wellbeing and physical fitness. Participation in equine assisted activities is likely to have similar benefits. New research is ongoing and shows promising benefits for equine assisted activities and therapies. For more information about research- check out Horses and Humans Foundation.
Rating: +0
My child is young and has a physical disability. Can someone sit behind her on the horse?
Backriding (in a therapeutic riding setting) or tandem hippotherapy (in a hippotherapy treatment) is dangerous. Placing two people on a horse puts increase stress and strain on the horses back and increases the likelihood of injury to the horse. A horse in discomfort or pain is more likely to react by running away or bucking. NARHA has put forth guidelines for tandem hippotherapy that all professionals should follow if they choose to attempt backriding or tandem hippotherapy. These standards attempt to protect the horse and maximize gains in a medical treatment session. If a child needs that much support they are likely contraindicated for therapeutic riding and should not be put in a backriding situation anyway. NCEPT offers a good DVD entitled, “Treatment Options for Patients with Severe Functional Limitations” that discusses alternative to backriding. As a competitive rider and Hippotherapy Clinical Specialist I do not believe that the benefits to the participant outweigh the risks to the whole team including the participant, mounted adult, sidewalkers, horse handler and especially our partner- the horse.
Rating: +0
Equine assisted activities or therapy made a difference for me. How can I give back?
There are many ways to give back to the equine assisted activities and therapy community. You can donate or sit on a committee at your local center. National organizations like NARHA, CHA, AHA and Horses and Humans rely on financial donations to provide education and research in these important areas.
1 - Notification of when your question has been answered. (Optional)
Now offering FREE video review of you or your childs’ riding lesson or hippotherapy session.
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