Therapeutic Horse Riding
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- Meeting ‘Ginger Ann’ and ‘Corbally’
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- After 15 minutes…
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- Sam sitting on ‘Corbally’
Today Sam had his first therapeutic horse riding lesson. Accompanied by his older brother Ben, both boys had their first experience of sitting on a horse. We were all a little nervous, especially when we saw the size of the horses up close but once they were in the saddle everyone began to relax. They learned how to make the horses start, stop and turn left and right. With two girls guiding the horses and Anna, the coach giving instructions the boys soon relaxed. As Ben learned to lean forward, Sam was encouraged to balance without holding on and to twist and wave. The time went by so quickly that there were two disappointed faces when Anna said ‘That’s it’. On our way out I was reminded to book for next week!!
Therapeutic horse riding is beneficial for people with special needs. It develops muscle strength, balance and co-ordination. It is also helpful for posture and works on tight muscles. A great work out without realising it! On top of that was the feeling of success and well being that comes with achieving results.
We took our lessons at the Festina Lente, the name means hasten slowly in Latin. It is a non-profit charity and works to provide a range of training, occupational, learning and employment opportunities for people whose needs are not being met in the mainstream services.