07/27/07 Hippotherapy

The power of a horse never ceases to amaze me. I'm Jeff Keane; I'll be right back to tell you why. When you think of the power of a horse right away you have to be thinking about their physical strength. I know I sure have lots of times  like I didn't think he could throw me that high, I didn't think he could run that fast with me trying to stop him, or I didn't think he could slam me into the ground with such authority. But, that's not the power I'm talking about today. I'm talking about hippotherapy. No, it's not like being in a mud bog with a playful hippopotamus and seeing if you can escape without getting mashed. This is using the Greek word for horse to define the use of horses for therapeutic reasons. An article by Becky Newell in America's Horse magazine told the story of eight-year-old Elly Lutz. Elly was born deaf, which also gave her related balance problems. Elly's hearing problem was helped with a hearing aid, but her balance problems were helped by two teenagers  seventeen-year-old Abbie Kauffman and her thirteen-year-old horse. Elly started taking riding lessons from Abbie and Elly's physical therapist was impressed enough to give Abbie some special exercises to help Elly's balance. Abbie was not a newcomer to hippotherapy, her horses and special education classes had helped her overcome a learning disability years before. Sure, you might say, these girls could have overcome their problems without horses, but anyone who has been around horses knows how much their calm, inner power can help in tough times. I'm Jeff Keane. America's Horse July 2007