Our Vision
Our vision is to provide a high quality, goal-orientated therapeutic riding service by integrating skilled riding instruction with natural horsemanship techniques.
We currently have an average of 65 children and adults attending riding therapy sessions each week. With a little more assistance with funding and a few more volunteers we could increase this to 100 riders per week.
We have amazing facilities, wonderful horses and dedicated volunteers - we would love to see the centre's business grow to a 40 hour, five-day-a-week operation, and are working hard to make this a reality.
If you would like to help, please phone (09) 4387521 or e-mail us at info@rdawhangarei.org.nz .
What do we do?
Although the primary aim of any RDA Group is to teach functional riding skills, these skills are transferable into rehabilitation and training in aspects of daily living. They can also be used as a means to achieve specific personal goals. Riding provides a gentle rhythmical and symmetrical exercise in a healthy outdoor atmosphere and is an exciting, challenging and rewarding activity. The therapeutic use of the horse involves a team approach amongst the medical and educational professionals, the riding instructors and volunteers, and the client. All are united by the horse, which becomes the single motivating factor
Equestrian activities can be used as a form of therapy to assist development in physical, psychological, cognitive, perceptual and behavioural areas.
Therapeutic riding can be classified into three primary fields:
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Physical/physiological |
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Educational/remedial |
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Sport and recreation
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Individual Programmes
An individual programme may utilise an integration of all three areas, however, each can be practised as a specialty. A programme can involve:
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Learning adaptable riding skills, aimed towards independent functioning, riding and horse control (this includes involving the rider in all aspects of horse care and stable management); |
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Using the horse and its action as a 'tool' to influence the rider's body movements rather than the rider controlling the horse. This involves techniques such as 'hippotherapy' and 'rhythmic facilitation'. The rider may be positioned in various ways on the horse to gain maximum movement, that is, sitting forward (classical), backwards, lying across or prone (face down) or lying supine (face up) along the horse |
The Trained Therapy Horse
The trained therapy horse is a strong, warm, flexible, responsive and undemanding animal. Its action is three dimensional, with movement up and down, forwards and backwards, and side to side, and corresponds to the physiology of the human walk and its course and rhythm. While riding, the adjustment of these rhythms alternately activates and relaxes the muscles of the trunk, pelvis, lumbar, spine and hips.
| Benefits for riders
Other benefits include:
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