​Preparing a horse for work in hippotherapy and LVE

Preparing a horse for work in hippotherapy and LVE

In all equestrian disciplines, similar requirements are imposed on the horse. It doesn’t matter if you are into sports, teaching beginners, riding in a carriage, performing in a circus, or getting a horse just for fun. In any case, the basic list of “jobs” of the horse is about the same.

On what three pillars does the whole equestrian world stand? First of all, this is the attentive attitude of the horse to the person, the absence of aggression. It is also necessary that the horse, on demand, execute the commands of the person and correctly respond to the signals coming from him. And, finally, an important role is played by the courage of the horse, its ability to cope with its fears, trust a person and behave adequately even in force majeure situations.

Each sports discipline, as well as each area of ​​uXNUMXbuXNUMXbapplication of “horsepower” has its own specifics. I propose to consider one of the most specific areas of cooperation with a horse – hippotherapy and therapeutic (adaptive) riding. Perhaps, it is in this area that maximum discipline and responsibility are required from the horse, because we are talking not just about children, but about those children, in working with whom there is no room for error.

In advertisements for the sale of horses, similar phrases are often found: “Age horse with health problems, light step work is recommended, it is perfect for hippotherapy.” But let me immediately dispel the myth about the free life of a hippotherapy horse! People who think that work in hippotherapy is easy are deeply mistaken. In fact, this is a colossal burden on the horse – both physical and moral. What is so terrible about rolling a child for half an hour?

If we are talking about children with problems of the musculoskeletal system and such a diagnosis as cerebral palsy, then it must be borne in mind that this disease is often accompanied by constant muscle spasms (or the patient’s muscles are basically clamped). Since hippotherapy classes are conducted without a saddle, and in the case of LVE, some patients are physically unable to sit in the saddle, the horse’s back experiences all the “charms” of the child’s spastic reactions. It is not easier to work with children with psycho-emotional problems, with autism spectrum disorders. Many of them are not averse to “jumping” on a horse’s back, they fidget a lot, hang from one side or the other, and so on … Therefore, for training, a horse is needed not only with a completely healthy back and lower back, but also with inflated muscles, which will allow him to withstand such overloads without damage. I will also note something else: to work with patients with problems of the musculoskeletal system, a horse requires a wide amplitude step without arrhythmia, so a lame horse cannot be used for hippotherapy.

And what about the psychological state of our four-legged partner? Many children scream, kick and punch the horse, try to jump off… Some may even bite the animal. And we are not talking about working with objects, when the ball given to the child can fly not into the hands of the instructor, but between the ears of the horse. An experienced hippotherapy horse will endure everything, but he will not be able to accumulate stress in himself for a long time. To give vent to emotions, all hippotherapy horses must be worked before classes: with an experienced handler, for 40-60 minutes. In the case when the horse, for one reason or another, went to hippotherapy unworked, after the lesson it must at least be driven on the cord.

Real hippotherapy classes, despite the prevailing stereotype, are not just bareback riding. A professional lesson lasts from 20 to 40 minutes and includes a set of exercises, selected individually for each individual child. Games and gymnastics with a ball, rings, skittles, gymnastic sticks and hoops are usually used, as well as riding in different positions, exercises for balance, fine and large motor skills. The session may include walk controls and short trot reprises. With children who do not hold their back and head, the instructor sometimes personally mounts the horse in order to more effectively complete the tasks.

But let’s talk about the horse. I will not focus on which horse is best suited for hippotherapy (this is a topic for a separate article). Let’s imagine that we already have a “spherical horse in a vacuum”: a short, tightly built animal with good movements, strong legs and a pumped back. This horse has a calm, friendly disposition, but the instinct of natural fear of new objects and situations is not alien to it. Even if it seems to us that the horse is absolutely calm, the preparation described below will not be superfluous. Moreover, even for an experienced hippotherapy horse, it is useful to conduct “retraining” from time to time. I also note that the strategy presented below can be used with any horse, regardless of their specialization.

And now let’s consider in detail: what tasks are set for the doctor horse and how to bring up calmness, attention to what is happening and stamina in a horse.

1. Safety from all sides

First, we are dealing with children from whom any reaction can be expected. Even with the strict control of parents and teachers, the child can break free, run up to the horse from behind and pull the tail. At the same time, you need to be 120% sure that the horse will not wave its hoof off – even just out of surprise.

Let’s give another example: a child lies on a horse, facing the tail. Hands hang down freely. If a child is 10-12 years old, his arms are already quite long. He may have a natural desire to hold on to something to maintain balance. And the horse just below the makloks, where the groin begins, has such tender, but such comfortable places to grab … Of course, the instructor and his assistant must control the child’s hands, but, as they say, there is a hole in the old woman.

So, the first thing that is required of the horse: it must allow itself to be touched in all places. Not only to the owner or the bereator, but to anyone. Touch not only gently and lacquerly, but also pinch, pat, even pat quite hard. Does it sound tough? May be. However, the safety, life and health of our little rider depends on this skill of the horse. After all, even when a child is simply feeding or stroking a horse, he can suddenly grab her by the ear or by the tender nose.

Quite a few articles have been written about how to train a horse to touch in all places. If we are dealing with a hippotherapy horse, this should be given close attention. After the animal is completely ready to perceive tactile influences of various strengths, I sometimes test the horse in the absence of children: approaching from behind, I sharply slap on the croup, pull on the ears, on the tail. I teach that if I pull him by the tail, he should back down or take him sideways – in the direction where I pull him. It is important that preparation and rechecking take place in the absence of children and after you are completely sure of the adequate reaction of the horse you are working with.

Once I witnessed an unpleasant scene: during hippotherapy, when a boy was sitting on a mare (it’s good that he was wearing a helmet!), The horse was held by a groom, and an assistant stood on the other side; the trainer, (she is also the horse’s handler), came up from the side and “friendly” slapped the mare on the rump. The horse gave the goat and threw off the child, as no one expected such a harsh and sudden reaction. Therefore, it is better to regularly return to training sessions so that the horse is absolutely positively tuned to any human actions.

I will note one more important point: if I approach the horse from behind to pat it on the back, I understand perfectly well that the animal can still hit. However, I’d rather be me than a small child. I can always explain to the horse that this behavior is unacceptable. Please note: you must be fully aware of your actions and their consequences, and, if possible, observe safety precautions.

If some unforeseen situation arose right during the lesson, it is necessary at the same second to immediately correct the actions of the horse, but do this as imperceptibly as possible for the child. It is absolutely unacceptable to call out to an animal during class. By and large, the only thing that the groom can do is to pull the reins on the horse. At the same time, it is necessary to control the force of the impact: it should be such that the horse understands his mistake, but does not twitch under the child too sharply. Even if the groom comes with a whip, he cannot use it otherwise than lightly patting the animal on the chest or shoulder.

If the horse under the child still behaved badly, it would be useful to simulate the same situation in the absence of children and their parents: put an experienced rider on top, asking him to do the same actions that the child performed. If the horse repeats his mistake, it is permissible to punish him. However, many horses perfectly distinguish when a child is sitting on them, and when a healthy person is sitting on them. And they show character only during hippotherapy itself. Here, the groom is required to pay close attention to all the actions of the horse in order to prevent an unpleasant situation as much as possible.

2. Attentive attitude to what is happening

At first I wanted to title this part “clear execution of commands.” But I realized that without comments, this phrase will not reflect what exactly I want to say. Let me explain. The child on top can give a variety of chaotic commands. He can shout “Step!” or “Stop!”, can drum on the horse’s sides with his heels, beat the animal with his hands or toys. The knight must not only endure all this, but also be able to distinguish between commands that should be carried out and commands that should be ignored. If we are talking about therapeutic riding (the level when the child learns to control the horse himself), confused commands with reins and legs are added here, and the horse’s task becomes more complicated: he has to filter the random movements of the rider, but at the same time immediately respond to commands that are close to correct .

There is another nuance here. If a part-time hippotherapy instructor is the groomer of this horse, the animal must distinguish when it needs to respond to the command of its groomer, and when it does not. Imagine the situation: a lesson with a child who does not pronounce words well. The instructor addresses the child: “To go further, you need to tell the horse: step!” At this moment, both the horse and the groom must stand. Further, the child tries (or does not try) to say something. The instructor repeats: “Say: step!”. And now, after several unsuccessful attempts, the child says something that suits the instructor. At this point, the horse should move.

Or another situation: the child says “Step!” again and again, and the instructor requires some other word or action from him. The horse should not respond to commands given at the wrong time. But when the child completes the task, he can say “walk” again, and the horse will move. How do animals learn to distinguish between these moments? Perhaps, according to the emotional mood of the instructor, according to the smallest changes in his posture, intonation … In fact, horses are surprisingly sensitive creatures; when they understand the logic of what is happening, it becomes easy and interesting to work with them. My regular horse and I have worked together to such an extent that, without the help of a groom, he distinguishes commands that need to be answered from “white noise”.

How to develop a horse’s attention to activities? Yes, it’s much easier to keep her concentration when you’re alone. And here – you, a child, a groom, an assistant … Of course, a qualified groom takes control over the behavior of the horse. However, the horse still requires a lot of attention. For example, she must clearly know what is happening from above, what toys are currently being worked on. If exercises are performed with the ball, we take the ball, making sure that the horse also sees it. If we give a child a ball from somewhere behind the back, and the next moment he throws this ball at the horse’s head, the animal may shirk. But if the horse is aware of what is happening, his fear will be reduced to a minimum. Once I was walking with a mare as a groom, and a child threw a ball so that it rolled between the horse’s ears and fell into my hands. I was surprised at that moment even more than the mare.

In order for the horse to remain interested in what is happening, to be ready to listen to our commands and to the commands of the child, you need to listen to it more often. It is bad when a person who is far from horses works as an instructor. The instructor and the horse, ideally, should be a well-coordinated tandem – and not only during the hippotherapy classes themselves. Everything is beneficial here: work on the ground, and elements of dressage and show jumping under the saddle, and field walks, and swimming … Even simple daily manipulations, such as cleaning and saddle, lay the foundation for the behavior of the horse during training.

It is important that the horse has the same positive attitude towards different people, and not just you. And by one movement of the eyebrows I understood that now I need to be “soft and fluffy”. Suppose, at the moment when the child feeds it from the hand (with mandatory instructor insurance!), The horse must endure his inept “scratches”. And, if the animal coped with its task “perfectly well” – it will not be superfluous to do something pleasant for it. If there is absolutely no time, sometimes it is enough just to praise the horse from the heart after the lesson is over. Believe me, this is a great reinforcement of your relationship!

3. Anti thriller

An absolutely necessary quality of a hippotherapy horse is the ability not to be frightened. I would like to emphasize that courage in this case is considered precisely as a skill that can and should be developed by periodically re-examining the horse in this subject.

Some horses are naturally indifferent to all kinds of “scarecrows”. However, it is also necessary to carry out preparatory work with them, since the most unforeseen situations arise during classes. Terrible moments are of two types: when a child acts as a source of discomfort, or when, while the horse’s attention is focused on the child, an external stimulus intervenes.

It is better to accustom the horse to everything that you only have enough imagination for. Starting from flying plastic bags, balls, rings and other toys used in the classroom, and ending with such items as a drop-down umbrella, balloons, etc. In addition, it is necessary to accustom the animal to any actions of the rider: waving arms and legs, screaming, sudden changes body position, transplanting into different positions and so on.

A lot of material has been written about exactly how to work with fears. I am only emphasizing that the hippotherapy horse must be familiar with all possible and impossible situations. Here, again, it is better to play it safe. When I took my first horse, I conducted an “anti-stress” training with him for about a month – I taught him to different objects, such as a ball, rings, etc. The exam for him was the day when I drove him on the line and threw all these objects at him. His tasks were not to react in any way to what was happening and to change paces, focusing only on voice commands.

It is very important to properly prepare the horse for a variety of movements on his back. Because even for a horse that is running a dressage for a small prize or jumping show jumping, it can come as a complete surprise if the rider changes sideways or backwards, or abruptly swings his legs and arms. And in the course of classes with special children, such situations occur almost every day.

An obligatory stage in the preparation of a hippotherapy horse: one experienced rider sits on top and portrays a child, the second leads the horse, and the third plays the role of an instructor, and, if necessary, an insurer. It’s great when all three are “in the know.” In my practice, there was a situation when I was sitting on top, the horse was led by an experienced groom, and the instructor was a person far from horse psychology. We have recently begun to prepare this horse for classes with special children. The day before, we accustomed him to the ball, gave him a sniff, threw him not far from the muzzle. And so, at the next lesson, the “instructor” on the move, from behind, without any warning, threw me the ball. The horse twitched slightly, but then it took several times longer to accustom him to the ball. But the man simply did not know, he simply did not think, he decided that if we showed the horse a ball yesterday and she sniffed it, then the training was completed.

Work with scary objects should be carried out gradually. In no case should you force a horse, even if you need to prepare it “right here tomorrow.” Remember that not only the effectiveness of classes, but also the health of the patient depends on the mental state of your four-legged partner.

Speaking of the psyche: I highly recommend trips to the field for hippotherapy horses, at least once or twice a week. Not just a trot and a couple of canter lifts. It would be nice to give a full run on a free rein until the horse throws off all the accumulated physical and emotional stress. If there is no way to go out into nature, you can do the same on the parade ground – properly stretch the horse, give it a rein and start it at a frisky gallop, without touching the animal with the controls for several minutes.

Also very well relieves stress exercise in freedom or, in extreme cases, on the cord. Depending on the number of sessions with special children, the horse should have moments when he can run as he wants, without fulfilling anyone else’s requirements. The work schedule for such a horse might look something like this:

• mon – day off;
• Tue – work under the top;
• cf – exercise in the fields;
• Thu – work under the top;
• fri – exercise in freedom or on a cord;
• Sat – work under the top;
• sun – work in freedom or exercise in the fields.

This approximate schedule reflects the proportion of direct work and exercise for the release of accumulated emotions. Some coaches are more focused on working under the top towards dressage. I think it is important for the hippotherapy horse to have more time to move the way he wants to. And discipline, reaction to commands and courage can be worked out along the way, paying more attention to everyday manipulations. Of course, daily long walks in the company of their own kind are of great importance …

Of course, we must not forget that each horse is an individual. During hippotherapy, we demand the almost impossible from her: to become a reliable and safe simulator that clearly and unquestioningly fulfills our requirements. This can only be achieved if we treat the horse as a partner with due respect and give him time and space to fulfill his needs.

Ksenia Krotova, certified hippotherapy instructor, author of the book Horse, Rider, Instructor: How to Understand Each Other?

• Brodyaga 26th of January 2020

  Thanks a lot! A very necessary topic. Answer