Hippotherapy

Hippotherapy is conducted by contract therapists at Horses Help. These therapists have all become certified through the American Hippotherapy Association to provide treatment protocols for the special needs population. All therapists are licensed in the State of Arizona. Therapists who perform hippotherapy are Physical Therapists, Occupational Therapists, and Speech Therapists. These therapists understand the 3 dimentional gate of the horse to achieve specific therapy goals.

New Patients will require additional paperwork from the provider. Download the forms and return to Horses Help or the contractors address.

PatientInformation.pdf [285.00 Kb 7/12/2007]

Equine Education Programs
Horses Help

If your organization is interested in Equine Educational experiences, Horses Help has the ability to tailor an educational experience to meet your needs.

Contact: Gregg Goodman at gregg.g@horseshelp.org for information.

Literacy Program: The magic of motivation works with just ONE HORSE POWER!

Imagine 11 students, a school nurse, a social worker, a special education teacher, and one very beautiful miniature horse trying to teach and motivate at risk students through an equine educational program. That is exactly what “Sasha” the miniature horse and Nina Turley, (school nurse and NARHA certified Therapeutic Riding instructor) are doing at Palomino Elementary School. Nina took the idea to Principal of Palomino Elementary and with the help of Millie Cotto (Social Worker) and Gianna Giovanatto (Special Ed Teacher), they were off to the races.

This literacy and horsemanship program combine reading and writing vocabulary words associated with horse behaviors, parts of the horse, colors, and care and maintenance of our equine friends. After each section, the students are bused to Horses Help campus to practice the skills for about 2 hours. Sasha and her other barn mates act as the hands on experience extending from the classroom. This course is designed to motivate students who may not be meeting regular class standards. One example is a student who had been sitting like stone all year and not participating in writing activities. In lesson 2 horse emotions, he picked up his pencil and copied all 5 new vocabulary words neatly and enthusiastically under the correct pictures. In week 2, 3 students passed there spelling test, and in week 6 all students passed their spelling test. These students had never passed a spelling test before! We look for big things from this program and we are thrilled with Nina’s and Sasha’s community leadership.

Gateway Academy

This year, Horses Help built a program for Gateway Academy, a wonderful charter school specializing in Aspergers Syndrome students.  This program was conducted for 15 weeks giving their students an introduction in equine nutrition, language, physiology and anatomy, breed distinction, care and maintenance and of course riding skills.  The program was introduced and conducted by Lisa Pewe our equine manager.

Visit the Gateway Academy site at www.gatewayacademy.us