Our Philosophy and Mission
Throughout civilization, horses have been our partners, however our relationship with them has often been a reflection of how brutal and disconnected we are as humans. Yet we are attracted to horses for their beauty, power, freedom and spirit because these are qualities we not only want to be connected to but want to be ourselves.
We have chosen to connect with horses mostly by demanding from them rather than by allowing them to teach us their many gifts including leadership, trust, community, relationship, communication, harmony, forgiveness and simply living in the moment.
In some cultures, people believe horses are what connects the physical world and the spiritual world. They believe horses are messengers who have the ability to teach us what we once knew about ourselves but have forgotten through the storms of life. In that way, horses help us discover the magic in all of us.
When we go inside ourselves and acknowledge who we really are, we discover the freedom to be who we were meant to be. We discover our gifts and talents that may have been hidden. We forgive and let go of what might have been holding us back to reaching our fullest potential. We discover our magic.
Horses Helping People
Through educational and structured activities done mostly on the ground, we give participants the opportunity to connect with horses on a variety of levels. The activity itself may seem mundane such as grooming or feeding. Maybe there is a more structured task to complete individually or as a group. The results however can be extraordinary. Through this experiential learning process called Equine Assisted Learning (EAL), people of all ages learn about leadership, communication and team building without actually realizing they are being taught.
In the course of performing the tasks behaviors and interactions reveal themselves which are then useful for the growth of a single person or the group as a whole. Some activities do involve learning about riding and horsemanship, however our emphasis is to develop a connection with horses and an understanding that horses have even more value through on the ground interactions.
People Helping Horses and Other Companion Animals
Another aspect of our program is to educate people that horses have other valuable uses even if we do not ride, drive, show or compete with them. They are companion animals like our dogs and cats but much bigger of course. They also have their own language. We must learn their language to be most successful with them.
In the past, when a horse became a “pasture ornament,” it had no use, was an added expense and may be sent to a new home or an uncertain fate. People sometimes have what they refer to as a troubled horse that needs to be trained or “fixed” in some way. The truth is that the trouble is probably more often with the people. Watch any show on Animal Planet regarding problem dogs and cats and the same is true. Once the owner understands the animal’s language and makes a few changes in what they do, seemingly insurmountable problems can disappear. Through education, we hope to have fewer horses facing an uncertain fate by helping people see the many ways horses have value and deserve to continue to have the love and support of their human family.
Although we do try to help other animals in need as we can, we are not a rescue. Our primary goal with animals, especially horses, is to give them new value by developing and utilizing their skills as teachers of the human spirit.