Linda Kohanov - Epona Equestrian Services

The Tao of Equus: A Woman's Journey of Healing and Transformation Through the Way of the Horse

Riding Between The Worlds: Expanding Our Potential through the Way of the Horse

The Way of the Horse: Equine Archetypes for Self-Discovery

Rappaport, J., Wilkinson, W. (2004). People we know, horses they love. US: Rodale Publishers.

Raber, K., & Tucker, T.J. (Eds.).(2005). The Culture of the Horse: Status, Discipline and Identity in the Early Modern World. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Chapter by Landry, D. (2005). Learning to ride in early modern Britain: or, the making of the English hunting seat.

Brooks, S. M. , & Webb, N. B.  (2006). Animal-Assisted Psychotherapy and Equine-Facilitated Psychotherapy. Working with traumatized youth in child welfare. New York, NY, US, Guilford Press: 196-218.

Various helping methods, including individual, family, and group approaches, have been employed over the years in working with children in the foster care system. In the past 25 years, a growing body of evidence has emerged that demonstrates how psychotherapeutic work within the human-animal bond can uniquely benefit children. Anecdotal vignettes, clinical examples, some doctoral dissertations, and a few research studies have documented the effectiveness of this developing field. Although humans and animals have coexisted for centuries, we have barely begun to explore the myriad benefits of the human-animal interaction. Some of the pioneers who saw the value of bringing people and animals together recognized that animals seemed to provide avenues for building empathy, rapport, feelings of acceptance, nurturing abilities, mental stimulation, touch, socialization and stress reduction. This chapter discusses animal-assisted psychotherapy and equine-facilitated psychotherapy with traumatized children and adolescents. Case examples of youth with severe traumatic issues that demonstrate clinical work are provided. The examples presented offer a theory of how to assist in building a relationship between a person and an animal.