Animal Communication and EFT in Therapeutic Riding Centers

The animals in Therapeutic Riding Centers serve a very important purpose. And, they have a lot to say about that!

I have spent a lot of time working with the people and animals in therapeutic riding centers. In fact, I worked so much with Little Bit Therapeutic Riding Center in Redmond, Washington, in the early 2000’s, that I taught my animal communication classes out of their main classroom several times. I also took students of Communication with all Life University there to have their “finals”, which consisted of communicating with the working horses there.

I have spent time working with the horses of Sire just outside of Houston among the many places I’ve been blessed to work out of.

What I have experienced is that while these horses love their job, it is still a job and there often is a lot of pressure that comes with the job. Imagine that an animal that ends up in a therapeutic position, has a big “pleaser” in them. And because of that, they don’t self monitor when they’ve given too much.

I’ve seen horses that feel like they need to give more. I’ve seen horses that get naughty. I’ve seen horses that get a little shut down. I’ve seen horses that have nothing left to give.

By giving them a voice and helping them express all of that, they can come to their work refreshed. And when you add EFT (Emotional Freedom Technique) then you have a relief beyond words!

It’s always a great pleasure and honor to help these animals that help so many.

Here is a story that I share in my book, Communication with all Life (Hay House):

I will, however, work with non-verbal humans. That comes down to babies and people that have no ability to communicate. Little Bit, a Therapeutic Riding Center in the Seattle area, has used me for non-verbal kids. I started out just as their Animal Communicator to help their horses when they were having challenges in the Therapeutic Riding Therapy program. And then the work moved to non-verbal children.

One very bold physical therapist, Debbie, used my skills for a few kids, starting with “Stephen.” Debbie knew that Stephen was going through something. However, she was entirely too close to the situation to identify the actual cause.

Stephen had been born with his spinal cord wrapped around his neck. At the time that I met him, he was 13 years old and his hormones would, or should, have been kicking in. Many people suspected that the hormonal shift was the cause of his seeming discomfort in life. While it may have fueled some of his distress, Debbie had a sense that something more than hormones was disturbing Stephen. She just couldn’t pinpoint what it was.

Stephen’s mother didn’t necessarily believe in Animal Communication or telepathy, so we did it very casually during one of his riding sessions. Stephen was lifted on to his favorite horse, a Fjord Pony, for his therapy. A Fjord Pony has a very flat back, perfect for a Therapeutic Riding work, particularly for people with no control or use of their limbs. Not only that, this noble Fjord pony loved his job: he lived to make a child like Stephen feel safe, loved, and dignified.

We slowly walked around the arena. Stephen was attended to on either side by assistants and led by a volunteer. Debbie the physical therapist continued her physical manipulations to stimulate his body.

I walked alongside and mentally started. I have my own way of slipping into an animal’s world so this was a true challenge; I thought I’d start by considering how I’d talk to a typical kid. At the same time, I needed verifiable information so I wasn’t making assumptions about him and reporting my opinion. I asked him what kind of work his Dad did. In my head, I received the picture of a hard-working man and heard the word engineer. As we walked past Stephen’s mother I asked if her husband was an engineer. Startled, she almost yelled, ”yes;” the subtext being: how did you know? The minutest smile glimmered in the kid’s eyes for a second.

While continuing down the long side of the arena, Stephen and I maintained the connection we had established. Like an animal I’m connecting to, I asked him mentally what he liked to do. He flashed me a picture of an airplane and a computer.

As we passed the mother again I asked if he’d been flying recently. Now she seemed annoyed and responded, “We just went to San Francisco.” Slowly the mother revealed that he loved the flight because he had a window seat. Also she confirmed Stephen was fascinated by computers.

All-rightee, now we’re talking. What Stephen eventually revealed was that he had recently changed classes and that’s what was upsetting him. The change brought up insecurity about not knowing people in this class. He was depressed because for years he had felt comfortable with his situation with the classmates who knew him.

His mother confirmed that he had indeed changed classes. She knew now that she needed to talk to his teachers about making sure that he felt more included. It proved helpful enough to Stephen’s mother that they continued to use my services.

In fact, years later, his mother requested my help, as it was clear that he was physically very uncomfortable. What we all discovered was that a piece of equipment that was inserted to keep his bodily functions going was creating the discomfort. He’d had a growth spurt, and now that piece of equipment was pinching him. They were able to surgically move the piece in such a way that he regained comfort.

Join my Book Club, starting May 28!

Together, we will be reading and discussing my first book (where this story about Stephen is from): Communication with all Life: Revelations of an Animal Communicator. It will be fun to discuss a chapter per week and immerse ourselves in the teachings of the book. We will meet in my private Facebook Group: Learn to Communicate with Animals with Joan. Join here: http://bit.ly/joanrbookclub.