About Us
Who can it help?
Everyone can benefit from equine therapy if they enjoy being around large animals. For us at Stable Ground Therapy, we see clients who have: Autism, Anxiety, Depression, ADHD and typically youth aged 6 and up.
EAL/Group workshops through STaRS
What is Equine-Assisted Therapy?
Equine Assisted Therapy is a growing field where evidenced based therapies are being used alongside a horse as a co-counsellor. Horses are amazing at providing incredibly honest and direct feedback that happens in the moment. This is why they are commonly referred to as “mirrors.” Using Strength-Based Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) techniques, Applied Behavioural Analysis (ABA) and more alongside the horse, people can benefit from real time feedback and practice mindfulness with the help of the horses.
How does it work?
Horses are herd and prey animals, making them extremely social and in-tune animals. In the wild, horses work together to keep each other safe from danger. They use body language amongst the herd to recognize if there is a threat. Horses respond to non-threatening and calm energy in a calm way. This is why we say that horses mirror our emotions. This is a survival mechanism they have adapted and are able to do the same with humans. This makes them unique and incredible therapeutic animals and partners as their responses to us can help us become more self-aware and point out things we may not know about ourselves. Horses live in the present moment, they do not have anxiety about the future, only what is true for them in the here and now.
"To look into the eye of a horse is to see a reflection of yourself that you might've forgotten."
— Gillian Mears, Foals Bread