Pushing through Boundaries

During an open house we were hosting at Unbridled Change I had the unique opportunity to push my personal boundaries on where Equine Assisted Learning /Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAL/EAP) can be utilized and with what populations.

We had set up our facilities and horses in the normal fashion for our open houses.  Some horses up in the barn so that visitors can meet the herd and the demonstration horses in the arena already moving around and also available for the public to come up and meet.  Frank, Lady Grey, and Shawnee were our demo horses for the day.

Unbridled Change offers mental health therapy, educational/learning programs and therapeutic riding,but our open houses and demos focus mainly on the mental health and learning side of our program.  As I was greeting our guests and answering questions and a wonderful young lady “Kristy” tapped my arm and asked if we let people ride.  I was getting ready to turn around and answer in my typical fashion, “No, all our EAP/EAL clients complete hands-on activities with horses on the ground…” but as I turned I noticed that she was in a wheel chair.  Without thinking I switched into therapeutic riding mode with her and barely talked about the EAGALA side of our program.  Kristy proceeds to inform me that she loves horses and her older sister has competed in hunter/jumpers and owns a thoroughbred.  She worked with her sisters horse but hasn’t been able to ride her due to temperament and safety concerns.  She shared that her dream was to work with horses as a professional and “…be completely free with them”.  

As we moved into the demo portion of the open house, I switched back over to the EAGALA side of my brain and started describing that side of our program, the types of populations we typically work with and what some of the benefits are.  I asked for volunteers to help with the demo.  Kristy had wheeled up onto our mounting ramp so that she could greet the horses and see into the ring without obstructions.  She smiled but did not raise her hand.  We started into the EAL activity, “Horse Human Blob” when completed my co-facilitator, Cami Murnane,and I were processing what that was like for the group.  The group decided that they really weren’t done and they wanted to try it again this time without lead ropes(some of the group members thought it was cheating). So we sent them back out to try again. 

At that moment Kristy raised her hand and asked if she could come in and help.    I have to admit at that I had a flash of loose horses running around the arena, her in her electric chair stuck in the middle and possibly getting injured – the therapeutic riding side of my brain was screaming “No Way!!” in my head.  I did what I normally did when my own issues or stuff comes up – looked to my co-facilitator Cami Murnane, our therapist.  She was smiling and nodded in approval.  I was still not sure but decided to practice what I preach – trust the horses.

Kristy wheeled into the arena – without talking the group of volunteers took a defensive position around her.  She was barely able to get next to a horse.  What happened over the next 30 minutes reminded me that our horses are amazing!  Frank, our big draft horse, was the first to greet her, lowering his head to her knees – as she wheeled around him he never flinched.  It was our racking horse Shawnee that caught my attention.  She was watching her and moving closer and closer to her – slowly working her way through the group of people to greet Kristy.  

Kristy turned to greet Shawnee but she was still blocked by the group; up until this point she had not talked to the group directly. She stated that she wanted to touch Shawnee – the group parted slightly to let her stretch out her hand but remained a wall between her and the horse.  They stayed that way for a while,the group trying to get the horses to move by pushing on their necks, bodies and rump – with Kristy on the outside.  Then Kristy spoke up again, “I really want to be next to the horse.”   The group looked at each other and then at us – we shrugged our shoulders and said nothing.  Shawnee answered the question for them. 

Shawnee pushed through two people and came to a stop directly in front of Kristy – knee to knee with her.  She stood there as Kristy reached out and rubbed her chest then put her head all the way down into her lap, placing her forehead against Kristy’s check.  After several moments Kristy spoke softly to Shawnee and moved her chair forward into her and said “Come on,” Shawnee started to back up. 

Then another “unique” horse moment come up – Shawnee the lowest pecking order horse (one that stands up to no one) shifted into an alpha of the herd – if any other horse tried to get near Kristy she would pin her ears, swish her tail, back up to them and strike at the ground with a rear hoof.  When we asked Kristy what she thought those behaviors were about she simply stated, “She is making sure I am safe, I feel free right now!” 

After the demo was over, Kristy and Shawnee spent another 15-20 minutes together in the ring – with her leading and wheeling Shawnee all over the arena on her own.  When they were done Kristy asked if she could work with Shawnee if she came out to ride in our program – the answer was of course yes. We had just witness that special moment when a horse and a human choose each other.

She asked if she could continue to work with her on the ground and learn more about that part – I was surprised by this, as normally it is a struggle to keep people on the ground.  I stated yes and asked what she liked about the “ground stuff” – the answer was simple and profound. “I can do the ground stuff on my own – without having to have people around me.  I am completely free with Shawnee, she picked me.” 

What a wake-up call this experience was for me!  Even with our therapeutic riding program and my personal history of starting my professional career 10 years ago on therapeutic riding side I have never put the two pieces of our program together.  We have had special education classes out to the barn for Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) activities but they have all been independently mobile.  On that day Kristy opened my mind and pushed boundaries I didn’t even know existed – reminding me of the power of the EAGALA model for all types of populations.  It also was yet another reminder that it is moments like these that I do what I do!