Therapeutic Riding
Having a disability does not have to preclude a person from riding horses. Therapeutic/Adaptive Riding is recreational horseback riding, and horsemanship, lessons adapted for each individual’s ability. At Hearts, we utilize equine-assisted mounted and unmounted activities to facilitate healing and learning for individuals whose minds, bodies and spirits will benefit from the connection between people and horses.
Therapeutic riding is proven to be transformative for individuals with a wide array of diagnoses and challenges including neurologic, orthopedic, developmental, and acquired disabilities, as well as sensory and mental health issues. Some of the many benefits of horseback riding include:
- Strengthening muscles
- Improving balance and flexibility
- Enhancing head control and eye/hand coordination
- Strengthening expressive and receptive language skills
- Improving concentration, patience, and self-esteem
- Increasing compassion and a sense of belonging
Adaptive horseback riding also provides recreational opportunities for individuals with disabilities to enjoy the outdoors, as well as an avenue to bond with their horse, instructor, volunteers, and peers.
Riders are enrolled at Hearts on an annual basis. Tuition fees are for 45 weekly lessons, and is pro-rated accordingly. Potential participants must be a minimum of six years old. All applicants will be evaluated for eligibility and potential contraindications to therapeutic riding.
As more and more people start to understand the magic of therapeutic and adaptive riding, interest in participating in our program has grown exponentially. Over the last several years, the Hearts staff has been steadily growing our program, adding new riders every month, and ensuring we have the right horses to support our participants. We are incredibly grateful for all the interest and support from the Santa Barbara community!
At the same time, our waitlist has reached a point where we aren't able to confidently determine a time frame for new participants to start in the Therapeutic Riding program. Effective immediately, we are putting a hold on all new inquiries so that we can focus on existing riders, and processing the current waitlist. We anticipate reopening in August 2026. Thank you for your understanding and continued support!
