WALLA WALLA – Consuelo Cortez knew Chris and Harvey Howell were doing work with kids and horses.
Cortez, known as “Connie” to friends and family, has lived down the road from the Howells most of her life. But she had no interest in horses, and neither did her children.
On a recent spring day, though, Cortez was seeing her neighbors and their horses in a new light. For the first time, the single parent was trying out Teaming for Success, an equine-assisted therapy and learning program the Howells have put together.
Parenting three children doesn’t leave Cortez with a lot of free time or funds for luxuries like horses. To complicate matters, the family has issues related to her past marriage. Her children, ages 9, 8 and 5, display signs of the emotional trauma from that time, she said.
“There are self-esteem and anger issues. We have homework problems, too.”
Standing in a muddy riding ring at the Walla Walla County Fairgrounds may seem an odd place to address the situation.
It’s exactly the right place, said Chris Howell. The mental-health profession is finding out more and more that working with animals – especially horses – does something for the human state of mind that no drug or traditional counseling can touch, she said.
“Horses have an amazing power to heal and teach. They offer unconditional friendship,” she said.
The animals give immediate feedback to handler interaction and nonverbal stimulus, making them astute therapeutic guides, Howell said.
“The horses mirror what’s going on around them, whatever it is. You have to accept horses for who they are, and they give that back to you,” she said.
Which makes this type of therapy a natural fit for kids, who are also likely to reflect stress in their behaviors. “This has worked beautifully with a lot of them,” she said.
Howell gives plenty of credit to three of her equine assistants – Blackie, Tattoo Delight and Dance. “These horses have been children’s horses since day one.”
She gestures at an assistant darting under and around the animals. His apparent ease seems to underline Howell’s point – these horses are here to help, not hurt.
“Under, behind, it doesn’t matter. These guys stand stock still when kids are there,” she said.
While it’s not one-on-one counseling, equine therapy is an emerging field that uses horses as a tool for emotional growth and learning. The focus is not on riding or showmanship, but on working with the animals using skills such as nonverbal communication, assertiveness, creative thinking and problem solving, Howell said. When those traits line up, leadership, responsibility and confidence usually follow closely.
In other words, people of all ages learn things about themselves when in the ring with large, strong beasts who are of timid nature and on constant alert for danger, she said. And clients learn about others, as well, when everyone works as a team.
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