Here are some tips for conditioning your horses! As I am emerging from my third post partum time and starting to ride my horse again, I realized she needs just as much conditioning as I do, and found these great notes from a seminar I went to several years ago by Jec Ballou at the … Continue reading
EAL Activities from HorsePowerTR
For those of you looking for more EAL style activities, here are some ideas from a program at HorsePowerTR. They provide a blend of unmounted and mounted TR and EAL activities for a group of Naomi House residents who have complex histories including trauma, victimization from sex trafficking, childhood abuse and drug addiction. Thank you … Continue reading
4 Ground/EAL Activities
I haven’t posted activities for Therapeutic Riding (TR) lessons in a while, and I’ve also received some inquiries about ground activities for Equine Assisted Learning (EAL) lately, so here are some new ideas! I found these in a huge stack of resources I photocopied from a friend a few years ago and am not sure … Continue reading
Terminology II – “The New Optimal Terminology for Services that Incorporate Horses to Benefit People”
Recently multiple equine organizations in the US have worked together to recommend an “optimal terminology” for working with horses in ways that benefit people in this country. Since this blog reaches quite a few people involved in the adaptive and therapeutic riding industry, I thought it would be important to share a summary of the … Continue reading
Horse Birthday & Treat Recipes for Fine Motor Skills
While looking up ideas for a post about ceremonies in your lesson program, I came across ideas for horse birthdays and realized that making birthday cakes and treats for horses is a great way to practice motor skills, following directions, hand-eye coordination, as well as just have fun! So here are some recipes I want … Continue reading
When To Cancel Riding Lessons Due To Cold
It’s been wintery here lately, so it seems fitting to make a post about when to cancel riding lessons due to cold! It’s a topic that comes up every winter in the online forums, so I was excited to find a lot of responses and personal experiences from which to source the content of this … Continue reading
How to Balance Being a Riding Instructor and Having Kids
This post is about balancing being a riding instructor and having a family! Once again I was inspired by a recent post in the Riding Instructors’ Forum Facebook Group asking how do coaches, trainers, barn owners, small business owners, etc. who are also parents of small children balance it all? This has actually been a … Continue reading
The Ultimate List of Equine Groundwork Lesson Activities
And we’re back! It’s a new year, there’s a new baby, and here’s a new post for you! I’ve recently been inspired to share with you a wonderful list of equine groundwork lesson activities based on a recent post in the Riding Instructors’ Forum Facebook Group. I see this question asked a lot on Facebook … Continue reading
Male vs Female Saddle Fit for EAAT
I’m excited to share with you what I’ve learned recently about male vs. female saddle fit and how it might affect instructing adaptive and therapeutic horseback riding lessons! Last week I tried to attend the CHA’s virtual annual conference – I say tried because I had the kids and really only got two sessions in, … Continue reading
A Modified Independent Mount
Quite a few years ago I saw a therapeutic riding student do this modified independent mount and thought it was very clever. I recently found the graphic I drew of it and wanted to share! If I remember correctly, this particular rider had a disability that weakened the muscles in her back and legs, so … Continue reading