Equine therapy
Here at Unique Care Group we are lucky enough to have access to our own equine yard. We have a fully qualified BHS instructor who leads our equine therapy sessions. Having access to our own yard provides the opportunity for our young people to work closely with our ponies, which especially helps our young people who are anxious and fearful.
At our equine yard we have two ponies
Little Bow
Little Bow is one of our resident ponies. Little Bow is 10 years old and is a grey miniature Shetland. Little bow is very friendly and loves a brush and a cuddle from our young people.
Minnie
Minnie is another one of our resident ponies. Minnie is 8 years old and is a standard Shetland. She stands about 9hh high and is skewbald in colour. Minnie is great at agility, but also loves to stand to have a brush and a cuddle. Little Bow and Minnie both love the odd apple and carrot.
Developing awareness
Equine Therapy can help our young people understand their own emotions and develop levels of self-regulation which can help them in their everyday lives. Working with our ponies can help our young people to develop a self-awareness and an awareness of others which helps them to improve their resilience and self-esteem. Our ponies enable them to feel and experience learning, which makes it easier for them to take information on board. Some young people can have difficulty bonding emotionally to others. It can be hard for them to make eye contact, communicate what they are feeling, and express themselves. So rather than verbal communication, these young people can experience communication with our ponies. They can brush them, hug them, feed them and pat them. By learning to care for our ponies, they associate the care they provide with feelings and an emotional bridge is constructed. lead to social and communication skill production with other people in their life as well.