I got a chance a couple of weeks ago to briefly talk to Karin and tell her what a PROFOUND effect therapeutic riding has had for Novee. Not only does Novee feel horses to her core (it frightens me at times how much she loves them), but it has positively affected her core strength, muscle strength, vocabulary, speech quality, and motor planning. If we would've known what just one year of riding would've looked like, we would've never believed it. Goodness, even that first night when we came just to see what vaulting even was and she got on that horse and did things we didn't even think were possible for her. When she started riding a year ago she didn't even have core strength, her hands often didn't work the way she wanted them to, her muscle strength in general was poor, her coordination was inconsistent at best, she had just started using language and was exploring sounds, she was developmentally delayed and she significantly struggled with motor planning. While she struggles with some of these issues to some degree, she has improved so much. 9 months ago she was diagnosed with Developmental Coordination Disorder and Childhood Apraxia of Speech (along with a feeding disorder and a GI disorder) so she'll always need therapy to some degree, but the difference that the therapy she has been so fortunate enough to receive at Legacy Stables we can never express enough gratitude for. So Thank You, to all of you for what you do. My family will always be strong advocates for equine based therapies as we have first hand seen the magic.
Thank you again for everything. It has been a wonderful year of learning and watching such amazing growth. I am still just astounded with the progress Novee has made and the passion she has for horses. She brushes and sits on her toy horse she has affectionately named "Pippa" every day. read more