How does hippotherapy differ from therapeutic riding?
In hippotherapy, the therapist uses the horse as part of an overall treatment plan to achieve specific functional goals, such as improving postural control, balance, sensory integration, and/or walking. The therapist works closely with the family to carry over gains made in therapy into daily routines. The focus is on improving function. The therapist has extensive training in understanding disabilities, and how to improve function as it relates to the disability. The therapist focuses on empowering the family to take part in guiding, leading and transforming disabilities into functional skills. In therapeutic riding, the instructors use equine activities to achieve cognitive, behavioral, psychological and physical goals while teaching adapted riding skills. The focus is on mastering riding skills.
