Medicine Horse Program

Since 2000, Medicine Horse has been making Equine Assisted Therapy affordable and accessible to the Boulder community. Donations provide quality care for our horses and develop new programs.

Testimonials

Our child was severely injured in a skiing accident in 2007 when he was 10 years old. After three major, reconstructive surgeries on his hip, miles travelled in his wheelchair and weeks and weeks of painful physical therapy, he was almost as good as new…..as least physically. We thought the worst was over but that's when the horrors of PTSD started to creep into his life, followed closely by a deep depression that was almost as debilitating as his injuries had been.

It's so difficult to watch a child suffer from depression - how can the world look so bleak to someone so young? We had to do something. After seeing countless psychotherapists and specialists, the depression continued relentlessly and cruelly. Our child was not responding to any kind of traditional "talk therapy" - in fact, it seemed to make him feel worse. That's when a friend suggested we call Medicine Horse on Arapahoe Road.

Our son began twice-weekly sessions with a fantastic, young therapist who just seemed to "get it" and could sense how he was feeling at each and every session. She paired him up with a patient, sensible and truly miraculous horse called "Starlight" who was equally empathetic and gentle with her new handler/rider. Together this trio worked their magic and very gradually the smiles started to return to our son's face! His confidence grew and soon he was working with different therapy horses and getting to know all their moods and habits - they were all so different yet so alike in that they could "sense" and accept our son's changing moods - with no explanations required.

That was three years ago and we are still spending time at Medicine Horse although in a very different capacity. Our son is the proud new owner of his own horse we keep at Medicine Horse. Together he and I spend many hours helping where we can around the stables in an effort to "give back" to this truly special place. We know there's no way we can ever repay what has been returned to us……. but we continue to try.