Sensory
Boundaries
Starting on the ground
Just walking into a equine facility can overstimulate many senses, so we use this to start working through perceptions and triggers. Starting on the ground is the first step in sensory work. Then we move to hand/motor skills on the ground and eventually on horseback.
The key to promoting motor skills is to provide activities that are at the “just right” level- not too challenging as to invite failure, but also not too simple as to be boring.
I have designed many fun fine-motor activities to develop skills such as
Opening buttons buckles or laces
Stabilizing with one hand while manipulating with the other
Scanning the arena to locate needed puzzle pieces
Motor planning to steer with reins and pull to stop
Pointing in photo album to choose animal picture to sing about
Playing catch with a pillow case stuffed with foam (easier to control than a ball)
Eye hand coordination to string large donut shapes
Developing pincer grasp to pull squeeze pins off the mane to insert in container
Placing cloth ring over pole promotes motor planning skills and using hands together
“Hippo” is the Greek word for horse. According to the American Hippotherapy Association, “hippotherapy is a physical, occupational, and speech-language therapy treatment strategy that utilizes equine movement as part of an integrated intervention program to achieve functional outcomes…..Equine movement offers well-modulated sensory input to vestibular, proprioceptive, tactile and visual channels….Equine movement can be used to facilitate the neurophysicologic systems that support all of our functional daily living skills”.
Fun Sensory Trails
Sensory integration treatment is based on the theory that vestibular, proprioceptive and tactile stimulation promote sensory processing and adaptive responses (such as coordination). Riding on a horse provides intense vestibular, proprioceptive and tactile stimulation-as the rider experiences up and down (vertical) movements, side to side (lateral movements) and diagonal movements in response to the horse’s gait.
Personal Space and Boundary work
Horses are extremely aware of energy and they know when they are pushing on you energetically and they know when you know and they know when you don’t know that is happening. They feel when your energy field is weak and contracted or expansive and strong and this tells them a lot about you before you ever even lay a hand on them. An expansive strong energy field doesn’t have to mean an intimidating one, if a person is centred an energy field can be extremely large and powerful and yet absolutely soft, warm, friendly and inviting.
A lot of times when horses feel worried or insecure they will expand their energy field in self-defence and in an attempt to take control of the situation. At other times when they are insecure they may contract their energy field like when a dog cowers. There is a body language and posture change that goes with each change in thought, emotion, intention and feel of the energy field. The energy field just mirrors the thoughts and emotions because thoughts and emotions are energy.
They can teach YOU how to control your own space again!
