This Horses Make Miracles pilot program called “Equus Embrace” began in 2020 and focuses on enhancing and improving the lives for families and children affected by mental health concerns due to the pandemic. This program proved to have positive benefits when facilitated by certified therapists to include the variety of issues presented that year; especially in areas of feeling isolation, uncertainty, trust, communication, confidence, social skills, and impulse control. Our work with horses healing humans who have tried and not benefitted by traditional talk-therapy find that they are more suited to this body-based somatic form of therapy. Throughout the pandemic with social distancing, the wearing of face coverings and quarantining were words we had not familiar with. many folks missed hugs. We can hug horses however and that was the initial inspiration for starting up the Equus Embrace program.

With continued guidelines and protocol in place this experiential program has served clients in our surrounding communities and address emotional issues such as anger, depression, anxiety, and frustration. In the spirit of inclusiveness, sustainability, transparency, and collaboration we plan on reaching all demographics in our surrounding communities. We measure the effectiveness and success of our programs by the positive life changes we consistently see with not only our participants but with our volunteers, interns, and ourselves as well. Besides our desire to stay on a smaller scale giving our participants a more personal and quiet experience, we are blessed with three of the greatest of resources; our dedicated volunteers; many of whom are masters level students in Counseling Psychology, our experienced and passionate facilitators and our therapy horses. These special equines are naturally trained to be safe, gentle, patient, and responsive to the humans that meet them. Sometimes the progress participants make and the benefits they receive can be shown with statistical data. Other times, it is the small stories that make the benefits to our clients so satisfying.