I want to share one special moment that I was reminded of the other day during a team-building session in which someone asked for an example of how the horses do their job as four-legged therapists. 

We were working with a little boy who had been removed from his home and was having trouble with the transition — new home, new school, new rules, and not sure what to feel about not being at his old home. His goal for the day was to build a physical representation of what his “world” looked like and what the transition was like for him.

The little boy “built” his world: First he built a box with poles on the ground in the shape of a house, with another pole connecting to a box shape made out of tires. He then made a series of cones and other objects along one long side of the arena that led to three hula-hoops on the ground. We asked him to share with us what his course represented. He explained that the pole box was his old house; the connecting pole to the tire box was when he didn't know where he was going to go; the tire box was his new house (but it didn't really feel like a house); the cones and other objects were all the “chaos” he was feeling right now; and finally, the hula-hoops were where things would be safe. 

He was directed to walk two small ponies through the course while sharing with them what it was like for him each step of the way.

Over the next 20 minutes I was able to witness what can happen when a client is genuine — “in the moment” with horses — and when a horse does its job as a four-legged therapist.

The little boy spoke softly at first, with both ponies moving in as close as they could to him, one on each side. They followed him freely — no halters, no lead ropes. The ponies stood quietly next to him as he told his story about his old home. He turned and walked along the connecting pole between the two “houses” and the ponies again followed him, mirroring his movements. They stood again on either side of him as he shared with them what it was like in his “new” house. As he turned to enter the “chaos” portion of the course, both ponies stopped and literally ran in different directions away from him and the “chaos.” He spent the next several minutes running after the ponies from one end of the arena to the other. He finally turned to the treatment team and his social worker and stated that he could not do it. When asked what the issue was, he replied, “They don’t want to walk over there any more than I do…”

We then asked what he needed to be able to get through the chaos in his world to the safe place at the end. He thought about it and answered “I need help, and someone I trust.” “Okay,” we said. “Who is that and what does help look like?” He thought again and then responded, “My [social] worker can help me.” We sent the two of them back out into the arena to work together and to gain the “trust” of the ponies, who were still split apart on both sides of the arena. They approached the larger pony first and the little boy changed his approach to a slower method. He started to describe to the pony what he was doing, what he wanted the pony to do, and what was at the end of the “scary” part — a safe place.  The pony shifted away at first but did not run off as he had previously done. With the direction of the boy and the support of the social worker, the pony, “Blue,” remained still and allowed them to approach him and pet him, and he responded to their request to move by once again following the boy. Once Blue started to follow the boy, the other pony came over and fell in line behind Blue.

The little boy once again had both ponies following him, and he was telling them all of the things he was worried about and scared about. The social worker was able to address those concerns and share with the ponies what the process was and what could happen to help address those concerns. As they shared this dialogue, they all continued through the course and arrived in the “safe place,” standing in the middle of the hula-hoops.

As the treatment team, we had created to place in which the client and his support system could literally practice and walk through what his transitioning world looked like. The little boy finished out the rest of his sessions with us, making huge strides along the way with improvements in school and his behaviors.