Safety
The emotional and physical safety of program participants, staff and horses is of paramount importance to us. We address safety at several levels. Every activity that is planned for a client undergoes a thorough safety review. Our staff are highly trained professionals and always work as a team. We follow industry wide standards and ethical guidelines which mandate that the team consist of a licensed mental health professional and an equine professional. Our horses are gentle and sound and have been assessed for their appropriateness for this work. This includes a daily assessment, as horses, like people, have good days and not so good days.
Deep Respect for the horses, the staff, the facilities, the natural surroundings and most importantly the self provides the foundation for all of our work here at The Osage Corral. It is the lens through which we approach safety as well. We believe that if program participants and staff practice deep respect at all times, everyone will remain safe. Just a few examples of how respect can impact safety include:
- We respect the child (and the horses) by providing them with the instruction and information they need to safely and confidently engage in equine activities.
- We respect participants by teaching them to understand the horse’s non verbal communications so that they can accurately respond to that communication and be safe. Teaching children about horse body language begins on day one!
- We respect the facilities and ourselves therefore we will not swing on barn doors or run in aisles and risk injury!
In fact, our only “rule” at The Osage Corral is that we act at all times in a respectful manner. We have found that even the most distressed children respond well to this maxim because we begin by treating them with respect!