I’ve always been an animal lover, so when I came across an article about Equine Assisted Psychotherapy in one of my professional journals a few years back I was more then a little excited. As I was reading the article I flashed back to a childhood memory. Some friends owned a farm in Southern Ontario just outside of the city we lived in and my sisters and I got to spend part of the summer holidays there. We were definitely free-range kids roaming around the woods, building forts and hanging out in the barn, climbing up to the rafters and jumping off into the piles of hay below. And then there was the horse. The adults just said go ahead and ride but watch out for gopher holes. I don’t remember if there was tack or if we road bareback but I do remember riding that horse. Riding that horse with no fear and feeling totally free. The sensation of movement on the back of such a powerful animal and the desire to just go faster and faster.
It was an evocative memory and it kick started my journey into the horse world and my determination to develop the Wise Mare program. Five or six years ago, aside from my childhood experience, I had zero experience with horses but intuitively I knew that working with them could be a powerful therapeutic tool. But before I could introduce horses into my Vancouver counselling practice I actually had to learn about them and develop some equine skills.
We’re all used to the romantic pictures and videos of horse and rider moving together in harmony manes flowing as they canter gracefully through the countryside or on the beach at sunset but let me tell you for someone stepping foot in the barn for the first time the reality is much different. Handling those huge animals on the ground when you’re inexperienced is not easy and they can smell a beginner a mile away. So can the veterans at the barn, keeping their distance and shooting knowing looks your way. Welcome to the world of feeling completely awkward and incompetent. Particularly, when the old school horse selected especially for you decides she would rather not move today when you try to take her out of her stall. Lesson number one, how to convince a 1000 lb horse to actually move, sigh.
Even so, I was one of those people who got hooked on horses. I love a challenge so I hung in there through all the ups and downs. The days when the barn staff were doubled over in laughter to see a halter installed upside down on one of the horses or the times I had to pick myself up and dust myself off after being dumped unceremoniously on the ground by the nice gentle school horse who had simply had enough of her unbalanced and inexperienced rider. Ultimately, in spite of dire warnings from family and friends about my eventual financial ruin, I let my heart over rule my head and I bought Rosie, a 15-year-old American Quarter Horse. Bomb proof, I was told. Maybe so, but she was definitely not a push over and that would be an understatement.
I learned pretty quickly that if I wanted to gain my mare’s cooperation I needed to become someone she could respect and trust. This is no small feat when you’re dealing with a chestnut mare! It requires that you become a confident, calm and assertive leader. Keep in mind that you’re dealing with a 1000 lb animal with a mind of her own and very clear ideas about what she thinks is best. Convincing a strong willed mare to do anything she doesn’t want to do requires a crash course in strength and confidence. Learning to overcome anxiety and fear just goes without saying and becoming focused, aware and perceptive keeps you and everyone around you out of harms way.
Ask anyone who knows horses and they’ll talk about how intriguing and intelligent they are. In my own quest to learn about horse communication and behavior I find myself increasingly drawn to their beauty, strength and uncanny ability to teach me things about myself that I’m not aware of. Learning about them and working with them continues to challenge me on many levels and my own personal journey through the equine world has given me the insight and ability to incorporate my knowledge and experience into my Vancouver counselling practice. Welcome to Wise Mare. I invite you to take the amazing journey into the world of Equine Assisted Counselling and Learning. It might not be easy but as they say, nothing worth having is.