Hippotherapy can be used in a variety of ways. Hippotherapy can help patients who experience neuromusculoskeletal dysfunction to regain strength, balance, sensory normalization and a variety of other components which allow them to be more functional.

We've seen Hippotherapy used as a medicine of helping people to overcome trauma and psychological illness, as well as physical conditioning. These wild mustangs really are miracle workers on four legs.

It's hard to say exactly, to the full extent, how the healing happens. But, we know that as a horse moves, it will move the patient in the same three-dimensional pattern (anterior-posterior/lateral dissociation/rotation) that is used by the human for normal ambulation. Repetitive movement, as in riding the horse often, allows the neural pathways of the central nervous system to redefine themselves. Hippotherapy enables the neural pathways to remember patterns of behavior and strengthens the neurological, skeletal and muscular body in the process.

To be a good horse for Hippotherapy purposes, a horse must be sure footed and have walking gate that matches the needs of human movement. Not all horse fit this bill, but amazingly enough the wild mustangs do. This is because these horse were allowed to learn the skills of surefootedness naturally. The wild mustang is extremely aware of it's environment and this innate ability is fundamental to good horse medicine required for Hippotherapy.

If you'd like to learn more about Hippotherapy and the wild mustangs as healers, visit the 7 Thunders Ranch website. We support their efforts and hope you will too.

Other website that provide excellent information are:
www.horsemedicine.org
www.narha.org
www.nceft.org

Great links to see

Mustangs | Native American Indians and Mustangs | Decline of the Mustang | Mustangs as Healers | Mustangs on the Land | Save the Wild Mustangs | Wild Mustang Home