Sunday, February 26, 2012

Not just horsing around … psychologists put their faith in equine therapies | Society | The Observer

Not just horsing around … psychologists put their faith in equine therapies | Society | The Observer

Not just horsing around … psychologists put their faith in equine therapies

Health professionals say horses can reflect our emotions to bring relief from addiction and stress

Tracy McVeigh
guardian.co.uk, Saturday 25 February 2012 11.08 EST


A horse will move away from an angry person and follow someone they trust, says one therapist. Photograph: Marcelo Del Pozo/Reuters

In a Sussex field, a large bay horse is galloping around, tail held high. This magnificent creature is one of a new army of animals that is helping therapists to treat everything from addiction to autism to post-traumatic stress disorder.

Reports last week showed that dogs, already known to be invaluable helpmates for blind, deaf, diabetic and epileptic owners, were also being trained to help dementia patients.

(for the rest of the article, please click the link at the top of the page)

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