Since 1982, EATSF and its horse heroes have provided service to more than 2,300 individuals with disabilities. Four therapeutic programs are executed with the aid of 11 specially trained horses serving more than 130 students each year. Joyce, mother of twins with Cerebral Palsy, puts their experience into words. "Horse therapy has a been wonderful for our girls. It has helped Faith and Hope get stronger and increase their balance. They both have a long way to go, but they have come so far."
Keeping our 11 horses healthy and properly outfitted is expensive. The annual cost for maintaining a horse in our program for one year is about $7,500. This includes feed and supplements, veterinarian, farrier and dentist check-ups, plus saddles, tack or other equipment needed throughout the year. Our horses receive exceptional care. They are fed, exercised and groomed on a set schedule. Every Friday morning our horses are schooled and desensitized, preparing them for mounted and unmounted work.
Your donation supports a horse like Ginny that can help a participant on their path to independence. Ginny is an 8-year-old Clydesdale/Percheron cross with a background in trail work. We pair participants with our horses based on several factors, including weight, movement and personality! She has worked hard to get used to having input from a mounted participant, a volunteer leader and sidewalkers. On the ground, Ginny is working on her manners, like standing steady for grooming and tacking.
You will impact both the lives of children and adults with disabilities and our horse heroes by providing therapeutic horseback riding and other equine-assisted activities. Maintaining a healthy herd is paramount to the success of our students. Thanks to working with our horses, our physically challenged students will have increased their motor skills, balance, coordination, and reflexes. While those with cognitive challenges may experience improvement in their verbal and social skills.
This project has provided additional documentation in a PDF file (projdoc.pdf).
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