This program is designed for persons with special needs.
“Lessons are designed with the individual rider in mind.”
- Riders have an evaluation as to their specific needs for optimum benefits of participating in the riding program.
- The age is primarily young children over the age of five, and is also open to ages upward.
- A physician’s note and recommendation is required.
- Therapeutic horseback riding improves upon the social skills of people with disabilities who may have difficulty interacting with others. This improvement starts with the bond that is naturally built between the individual and the horse during the lessons that are given.
- Horses stimulate the senses in a number of ways that are beneficial for people with certain disorders such as those which fall within the autism spectrum. The rider’s vision, hearing, sense of touch and smell are all stimulated by the sounds, smells and the feel of the horse itself. When the horse is in motion, the stimulation is to the student’s tactile senses. This creates both sensory enjoyment and/or appreciation for the act of riding.
Under the guidance of our trained instructors, horseback riding provides an excellent form of physical and emotional therapy.Our main goal is improving our rider’s body function through the movement of the horse.
Along the way, our program nurtures an improved self-image for each rider. This is accomplished through reinforcing existing abilities and challenging riders to strive for greater achievement within the scope of each individual. Even the most reluctant rider soon discovers that horseback riding is fun as well as beneficial. Each lesson consists of riding instruction, exercise and games on horseback. Parents of riders are enthusiastic in describing the physical progress and improved self-confidence in their rider. We feel our students truly benefit in mind, body and spirit. BOH-PEP is NOT just any pony ride!