What is Equine Assisted Counseling?

Equine Assisted Counseling (EAC) is a collaborative effort between a licensed mental health professional and a horse professional working with clients and horses to achieve treatment goals. Because of its intensity and effectiveness it is considered a short term or “brief” approach. In EAC, the horses and structured activities often serve as metaphors or “storyboards” in that children often identify with what they see and experience. They often interpret the horses and the herd dynamics as representative of challenging people or situations in their own lives as they root for the underdog (horse!), express sympathy for the herd outcast or become angry with the herd leader as he uses his power to intimidate the other horses in the herd.

EAC can be used to address a wide range of mental health concerns and educational goals.

EAC is experiential in nature. This means that participants learn by engaging in activities with the horses and exploring the feelings, behaviors and patterns that emerge. Specific life skills are learned via a teach, model, practice approach. The focus of EAC is not riding or horsemanship. In fact, all activities conform to The Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association (EAGALA) model standards and take place on the ground. This approach has been compared to the ropes courses used by therapists, treatment facilities and human development courses around the world. But EAC has the added advantage of utilizing horses – dynamic and exquisitely sensitive living beings!