What do people think about when they are asked the question: What is role of a horse? Some may say that horses are for horseback riding or racing, while others may say that horses are for pulling a wagon. What about utilizing the assistance of a horse for psychotherapy? According to McVeigh (2012) equine therapy dates to 600 BC as documented by the Ancient Greeks. In 1875 it was documented that French physician Cassaign verbalized that equine therapy helped to treat certain neurological disorders (McVeigh, 2012). Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) is an emerging and innovative form of psychotherapy that is becoming an increasingly popular treatment for mental health issues (Lee, Dakin, & McLure, 2016). Experiencing and therapeutic change …show more content…
• Adherence to all applicable laws and regulations governing the professional’s scope of practice. • Licensure and/or registration to practice under a governing board/body or as a member of a professional association that requires strict accountability (EAGALA, 2017). First Component: Pretraining webinar provides introduction of foundation and key principles of EAGALA Model Second Component: Five-day Fundamentals of EAGALA Model onsite training which involves an experiential learning process that will provide students with tools to effectively incorporate horses into the mental health treatment process and personal development goals Third and Fourth Component: Post-training assessment and submission of professional portfolio After certification: Two hours of mentoring are provided EAGALA and the Global EAGALA Network are available to professionals (EAGALA, 2017). Practice as EAGALA Certified Equine Specialist • Requires 16,000 hours or equal to approximately three years full-time work experience of hand-on work with horses • Completion of at least 100 hours of continuing educations in the horse profession and equine science. To …show more content…
EAP is a category of experiential therapy. Experiential therapy focuses on the concept that experiencing is the catalyst for therapeutic change. The goal of EAP is to change the client’s negative experiences into positive experiences through connectedness with a horse through collaboration of a licensed mental health profession and a certified horse professional in a conducive environment. EAP assists the client to improve self -esteem, communication skills and relationships while addressing life’s challenges. EAP continues to require more
Since March 2013 I have been tending to the animals at Tam O’ Shanter Urban Farm at weekends, which demonstrates both my dedication to animal welfare and also my ability to work as a team. As the farm is a popular visitor attraction, communication skills are vital and I feel I have honed them significantly, which will be helpful when consulting with owners of patients in practice.
Equine therapy, as everything else, has its pros and cons. According to Meghan Vivo of Elements Behavioral Health, a drug rehab treatment center, equine therapy “can bring up unmet needs, fears, past trauma, and feelings of inadequacy or lack of control.” The use of these huge creatures can make people feel inadequate and the idea that another being has some control does not work for everyone. Therapy can be a long, extensive process and the results are not immediate. Patients do not always want to to wait for progress to be made, especially when that progress requires the patient to face his/her fears. Additionally, “trying to control or dominate will not work with a horse,” because horses are prey animals, so attempting to control a horse can worry the creature and, in response, the horse may act out. Horses are very clear about their boundaries and, for the most part, do not tolerate people crossing said boundaries. Riders must be careful around horses, wrong movements or upsetting a horse does not typically end well. To combat this, equine therapists and mental health professionals are well equipped to deal with horse-related injuries and emergencies and therapy horses must go through rigorous training to become certified. Patients and riders are also trained on barn etiquette and rules, such as no running or yelling around horses, no walking
As a horse trainer it is important for a horse to listen to what is being said by the trainer, because it will be difficult for a child to ride a horse if it is not properly trained. The way i will get my information is from horse books and magazines and a horse trainer
Therapists such as Natalie Norrell believe that horses play a key role in the process of healing people with special disorders and
White, N.A., and G.B. Edwards. 1999. Handbook of Equine Colic. The Bath Press, Somerset, Great Britain. p. 1-6.
These educational courses are necessary to train future appraisers in evaluating horses and developing and writing an appraisal. Training courses through the ASEA cost $995.00 for the basic course and an additional $595.00 for an advanced course. The advanced course is a more in-depth course than the basic one and qualifies for continuing education. Membership through the ASEA is required to complete the training courses; the total cost of membership is $395.00 (American Society of Equine
Most people are familiar with service dogs and have seen them in action. Animal-assisted therapy is similar service animals in that an animal-human healing partnership is being created. However, the difference is that therapy pets are typically used to treat a mental disability whereas people with physical disabilities use service dogs to help them in many ways. Therapy animals are used in a wide variety of places, such as, hospitals, prisons, nursing homes, therapy sessions, mental healthcare facilities, and even in people’s homes. These amazing animals are used on a wide variety of different disorders, but they are utilized mostly by people suffering from depression, anxiety, and PTSD. For people with these mental health disorders, everything in live can be difficult and challenging, however with the help of animal-assisted therapy, their mood, motivation, and life can dramatically improve. Anyone who hears about these brave, loving animals soon falls in love with them. From a medical standpoint, there have been many successful studies and the support for animal-assisted therapy still continues to grow in doctors and therapists across the nation.
Some medical professionals do not believe that mental health patients can benefit from therapy dogs and go as far as saying it is a risk far as to say that it is a to the patient and compromise the patients ability to take care of the dog. When people who suffer with mental health issues qualify to get a therapy dog. The mental health patient is tested to see if they are capable of taking care of the dog. Those in need of assistance should use therapy dogs frequently do to the part of the benefits to using these pets to improve mental and emotional health as and physical health. Therapy dogs are beneficial to people who suffer from mental health issues by providing companionship as well as support. Some people with mental health issues have a hard time trusting others and need someone to talk to; Service dogs are important because to make they people with mental health problems feel better and help people with these disorders deal with their emotions.
Like a normal veterinary technician, they are to help the veterinarian with health exams and surgeries. In order to become an equine veterinary technician, a person is to take a certified veterinary technician two year program. Prior to becoming certified, they must have familiar experience with working with horses. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, “the median annual wage for veterinary technologists and technicians was $32,490 in May 2016” (BLS.gov, 2017). Like other occupations, there are many benefits to being an equine veterinary technician which include health insurance, paid vacation days, or discounts for their own horses.
A bachelors degree in either equine sciences, animal sciences or equine management will help anyone who wants to work as a barn manager. It is also recommended that they take college level computer and accounting classes. People wishing to become barn managers should have as much experience working in a facility as possible, starting as an intern or assistant is a great way to learn about what the job is all about and how it effects all the horses and the other
In one way or another, I have been taking care of animals my entire life. Growing up, I was completely dedicated to animals, caring for what could be considered a mini zoo. Naturally, as a child, I was set on a career as a veterinarian. Like most children, I was naive about the veterinary profession, but I had plenty of people to warn me about its challenges. Albeit initially discouraged from becoming a veterinarian, my search for a meaningful career not only revived my spark for veterinary medicine but also gave me the maturity and experience necessary to succeed in it.
Starting back from the time I was only four years old, I have endured many moments with horses that led to my decision to become an equine veterinarian. From caring for my pregnant Palomino horse after she was attacked by my American Bulldog, to having to euthanize my Appaloosa horse, witnessing multiple equine colic incidents, and having a Quarter horse with navicular disease. Even at the age of ten years old, I was waking up on my own at 5:30 AM just to feed my horses. After trekking all the way to the barn in the extreme cold and six inches of snow, I was happily greeted by Cody, my Appaloosa. In that one moment, the early morning responsibilities and freezing temperatures faded away, and were replaced with a refueled passion for veterinarian medicine.
Levinson's, F. (2011, September 20). Horse Therapy - Changing Lives . Retrieved November 5, 2013, from Way of the Horse
For centuries, bonds between animals and humans have been stronger than ever. Many people could argue that their pet has become a part of the family. Over time, the bond that a pet and their owner have can become very similar to the bond between child and parent, sibling to sibling, etc. Many studies have been done that prove that the interactions between animals and humans are beneficial to the health of both individuals. Furthermore, the benefits of having an animal has become a large part of one’s health. Animal Assisted Therapy (AAT) is practiced in many facilities around the world, but the “lack of interest and knowledge of animal-assisted therapy are still widespread” (Altschiller 12). The therapeutic bonds between humans and their animals have helped many medical cases around the world.
Animal-Assisted Therapy (AAT), which can be provided in a group or individual settings, is designed to promote improvement in a human’s physical, social, emotional, or cognitive function. An article by Chitic, Rusu, and Szamoskozi (2012) provides an analysis in order to determine the value of AAT. Both dogs and horses that were trained for AAT were examined and studied to determine their effectiveness in treating patients with psychological disorders. The results showed that both therapy dogs and horses were valuable aids to the therapeutic process. The analysis suggests that proper training and repeated sessions were necessary for proper treatment of patients. In addition, certain disorders may benefit more than others in regards to AAT. For example, a child with ADHD may not benefit from a therapy dog’s presence, for it may worsen the hyperactive symptoms. On the other hand, a patient with depression may benefit greatly from the same animal (Chitic, Rusu, Szamoskozi, 2012). These findings are a perfect starting point to answering the research question: Do patients who engage in AAT display a betterment in their overall emotional well-being, as well as show improvement in their interpersonal interactions...