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Horses heal, teach
WALLA WALLA, Wash. (AP)--Consuelo Cortez knew that 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 with kids, 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.
Cortez, 27, can attest to that. During her equine exercise, it was her job to get the halter on the horse, she said.
"When they told me to put the halter on, I had never done that. I was just going to put it on, no matter what."
Easier said than done. Facing down one of her biggest fears, Cortez was amazed when the animals readily came up to her in the arena.
But the target horse didn't seem to be aware of the plan, she said. Battling frustration, Cortez kept trying to get the headgear in place.
Eventually, the young mother and would-be horse handler had to look to an experienced professional for directions.
And that's when it hit home, Cortez said. This was exactly like dealing with her children at home--she would have to back off and wait for the horse to be ready for her. It would take patience from all the partners to accomplish the goal.
"The horse felt my frustration, just like my kids." And, sometimes, everyone needs help from someone who has been there before, Cortez said.
The lesson seemed tailor-made for the day. Cortez had expected 8-year-old son Miguel to join her in the ring. The boy had refused, preferring to stay benched and withdrawn. "Right now, he's not thrilled with the idea. He's fearing the unknown.
"Basically, he's shut down," she added, looking at her youngster as he hung his head and refused to make eye contact.
To facilitate the sort of therapy Cortez and others need, the Howells began more than a year ago to assemble a team of professionals and train their horses for therapy work.
Andrea Dorzab, with a master of social work degree, is the program's therapist, while reading specialist and special-education teacher Jan Baker deals with life skills, anger management and special-education needs.
Another counselor, LeAnn Filan, will soon be on board; Helen Michaels and the Howells are the horse professionals. Bernice Garza is secretary and translator.
The team is equipped to address mental-health issues, physical therapy and learning and behavioral issues, Howell said. All equine-assisted learning sessions are staffed by a certified educator and a horse professional, while psychotherapy work is staffed by a social worker and a horse professional.
Haylee Ropp, 10, could care less about credentials. The homeschooled student's only concern was getting the upper hand on her horse partner. It was her first time trying a team approach, she said. "It looked easy, but it was actually difficult."
Haylee's job was to take the horse and lead it--unhaltered--to the center of the arena, Dorzab said. Although her teammates had gear on another horse, Haylee didn't realize she could ask for their help or to use that horse. Problem solving is something Haylee struggles with, Dorzab said.
Haylee, however, seemed to realize that about herself during the exercise and finally figured out how to get a horse from Point A to Point B, the therapist added.
Haylee agreed. "I just kept doing it and never gave up. Once I got it over with, it felt pretty good."
The youngster learned something that should come in handy in her own life. "When horses don't do what you need them to do, you have to be patient and wait until they are ready," Haylee said. "But if you need them to do something, you have to make them understand that."
Haylee's self-revelation was no surprise to Baker. "Things kids are going through or have gone through just spill out when they work with horses," the teacher said.
Adults, too, it would seem. Based on what she learned in the ring, Cortez signed her children up for Teaming for Success. "I'm hoping for healing and for progress for us as a team. We'll keep trying as long as it's needed."
Cortez hopes that will be as much a lesson as those that come from the horses.
"There are a lot of young moms out there who don't look for help," she said.
Date: 6/7/05
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