Navajo is our elder statesman who recently retired from his job as a therapy horse due to age related ailments. He is somewhere in his late twenties, and he came to us from rodeo play days, which he despised. When Navajo realized that we would never ask him to turn another barrel, he fell in love with his job! Navajo is loved by us all, and we dearly miss him in therapy. He is happy grazing and getting some love from anyone who stops to see him at the fence. We are grateful for the 8 years of service Navajo gave our program!
Lacy is a registered Rocky Mountain horse, and she is the first therapy horse we had for our program. She is an extremely intuitive horse. She senses when a child is very fearful or very fragile and automatically takes care of him or her. Her gait provides the rider with a smooth lateral motion. Lacy is excellent at the trot for children who do not need big movement. Lacy is 21 years old and is a wonderful ambassador for our program.
Our therapy horses are highly cared for and loved by our staff, children we serve, and their families! Our horses are carefully chosen for their temperament, and the type of movement they produce. All of our horses are specifically trained for their unique role within therapy sessions and are guided by horse handlers, with an additional side-walker for assistance, to optimize safety and effectiveness.
Lady Blue is a registered Rocky Mountain horse who is seven years old. She has such a kind spirit, but she did not make the cut as a therapy horse. Blue is an absolutely beautiful chocolate color, and everyone loves to look at her. She comes to the fence and visits anyone who wants to pet her.
Meet our Therapy Horses
Little Red is a former rodeo horse. When she came to our program, she ran barrels, poles, arena race, and flags. She has even been to the Little Britches National Finals rodeo. She is such an amazing little horse! On weekends Red would run her heart out at the rodeo, then turn that switch off and become a wonderful therapy horse during the week. Red no longer participates in rodeo events, but she continues to be a vital part of our program. Her movement is great at the trot. It is not smooth, like Lacy, but is exactly what some patients need. Little Red is a quarter horse, and her small size makes her such a wonderful therapy horse.
Spirit Reins Equine Center, Inc.
Grantham is a beautiful Gypsy Horse of America. He came to our program a few short months ago and has become a great asset to our program. Grantham possesses a natural affinity to humans. He loves children and always tries to please. His size is one of his best features! We are very excited to have him join our program.
Hank is our clown horse! His owner has graciously allowed us to use him in our hippotherapy program. Hank has been taught to play "jump rope," so he likes to untie himself and twirl his lead rope! He also likes to pick up a towel if one is left lying nearby and twirl it in circles. Hank is a very calm horse who doesn't get disturbed by anything and has been a great asset to us.
Chigger came to our program in 2014. He is our "personality" horse and has wonderful movement. He loves to test his handler to see if they are paying attention with little nudges and fake nips! Chigger is our rock solid horse who can be counted on not to spook in spooky situations, such as a deer jumping up when we are on our trail in the woods! He is a quarter horse in his early teens, and we hope to have him in our program for a long time.