Missy Reynolds Modalities II April 23, 2014

Reflection on Hippotherapy
Topic: Hippotherapy Guest lecturer: Brenda Lyman, OTR Location: SLCC OTA Program Length of presentation: Almost two hours. Hippotherapy is a modality of Occupational therapy. It is defined as a therapy treatment strategy that utilizes equine movement. The words hippo and equine mean horse. Hippotherapy is lead by an occupational therapist that has been educated in the equestrian specialty. The therapeutic benefits of hippotherapy can be to improve ROM, strengthen upper and lower extremities, sensory integration and proper posture through positioning. Some diagnosis that would benefit from hippotherapy are: CP, neuromuscular dysfunction, SPD, developmental delay and more. When a child with cerebral palsy is put on a horse their body alignment improves. A child with sensory processing disorder can benefit from the trot movement of the horse causing proprioceptive input. Before this lecture I thought hippotherapy was only about putting a child on a horse for fun and creating social participation. I had no idea there was a much more scientific purpose to it. The different movements of the horse provide different interventions to the rider. Now that I know more about it I can see how hippotherapy can improve the quality of life for people with disabilities. I cannot see myself working in hippotherapy because I am horribly allergic to horses. I will

definitely refer future clients or patients to hippotherapy if I think they would benefit from what it has to offer.