Hello from Seoul, South Korea (Part 1)
I arrived in Seoul on the 24th of November for a two week visit after having received invitations from the Korean Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship , Grace Stables, the American Red Cross, and Humphrey American Army Base in Korea. I thank each of these organizations for their invitations and for so warmly welcoming me to […]
A Greeting for the New Year
Short Story: Sarah Has Cerebral Palsy (Part 2)
Sarah who had cerebral palsy and partial blindness was growing up and was spending more time alone. At the age of six, whether in school or at home, she would be placed in a chair or on the floor while classroom activities took place, or her mother took care of her sisters or cleaned the […]
Short Story: Sarah Has Cerebral Palsy (Part 1)
Sarah was six years old and had severe cerebral palsy and partial blindness. She was unable to move or walk by herself and needed full help with all her activities of daily living. She could lie on the floor and play with a mobile toy from above, but even this was difficult as she needed […]
A Balanced Year
Looking back at the past year, I am asking myself the question, “have I had a balanced year, materially, spiritually, physically and socially”? These are my answers. Despite a year of Covid-19, and lockdown, I have found a way to stay afloat, give my husband who has severe dementia the best possible care, and keep […]
Human-Horse Relationships: Horse Language and Behaviors
The memory of my life with Sara convinced me to write this article, which attempts to explain the importance of understanding horse language, behaviors, and how they value their space.
Sara was in my life for thirty-seven years and was my constant companion who taught me a great deal about horse communication and how to think positively about life. Writing this article, I am offering some practical tips which may help those who wish to enjoy the company of their horses, take care of them or participate in various types of horseback riding activities. If you can spend time trying to understand the language, behaviors, and how they value their space, you will find that you can communicate with horses, enjoy their relaxing companionship while building that precious human-horse bond.
The Human Horse Bond/ Therapeutic Riding Horse/ Benefits
The horse’s ancient bond with humans established a level of communication, (behavioral, emotional, cognitive, and relational), whereby both the horse and the human can reconstruct the content of the message sent by the other. All horses, and that includes the therapeutic riding horse, have developed a type of functional readiness that encompasses skills like preparedness, communication, […]
My Human-Horse Bond
My bond with horses story began at the age of three years. It was a time when I had not been influenced by TV, as we did not have one. I was too young to listen to the radio, but I was old enough to listen to my parent’s stories, see pictures of horses, unicorns, and Pegasus […]
The Fear Factor: An Important Issue for Safe, Equine Assisted Activities Therapy (EAA/T)
Fear is “hard-wired into our brains and represents a genetic wisdom designed to protect us from bodily harm. It activates a survival system in our bodies that immediately bypasses our rational mind and moves us into “attack” mode. This state of alert causes us to perceive almost everything in our world as a possible threat to our survival. In this state, we tend to see everyone and everything as a possible enemy. Fear exaggerates and distorts our thinking as we narrow our focus to those things that can harm us and becomes the lens through which we see the world. (Neimark, (011)