Partnering horses with humans | Sponsored by Sue Dixon

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I have had the privilege of delivering equine-assisted learning to hundreds of people over the last 5 years. 

Clients come to the horses for wisdom for a myriad of reasons. Some are looking for wisdom on better managing anxiety, sadness, grief, confidence, frustration, anger, and any other emotion one can think of. Some people just want to be in the presence of the majestic horse, look into its eyes, put their hand over its smooth coat and enjoy its company. Some clients come as a group from a workplace, some come as a family or as a couple to improve communication skills and share their thoughts and feelings. 

I firmly believe people have the answers to manage challenging emotions and situations in their life and their challenge becomes being able to access their own wisdom. Life can sometimes block us from accessing our innate wisdom, a mind cluttered with worry and anxiety about our future, our loved one’s future, work stress, and the list goes on.

When we are in the company of a 1500 lb animal, their presence is all-consuming and the clutter in our mind is tuned out because our focus is on the horse. This is the essence of mindfulness, being in the moment, being present. There are many distractions in life that keep us from being mindful and present —multitasking, social media, and anxiety are just a few of those distractions. I believe these distractions sometimes prevent us from accessing our own wisdom. 

Horses, as prey animals who have been on the earth much longer than we humans, connect with us when we are calm and mindful. If we are calm, the 1500 lb prey animal feels less threatened. With deep breathing and mindfulness, our heart rate slows down when in their company. The horse now feels safe and calm and shares its wisdom to enable us to access ours.

Equine-assisted learning is experiential in nature; one engages in an activity with a horse and through the use of open-ended questions the client is able to better tap into their own wisdom. Some of the questions I ask people after certain activities with the horse are; “is the action you are taking in your life giving you the desired results you are looking for?” Often people have “ah ha” moments, and say things like “no! I need to change my ……” Words I’ve heard people say after the word “my” are attitude, strategy, perception, plan, outlook, and path.

I have witnessed horses mirror back what a person is feeling. A child in foster care once stood in front of my horse, Danika. Danika yawned, the child yawned and together they stood mirroring yawns back and forth. I shared with the social worker that I believed Danika sensed exhaustion in the child. The social worker shared that the child doesn’t sleep well at night as they have anxiety about finding the washroom in the darkness of a house that is less familiar to them. The focus for the social worker when they left was to find strategies to help the child get a more restful sleep.

I look forward to sharing real-life examples of how I have witnessed horses helping people access their own wisdom in future articles.

Sue Dixon, owner of Partnering Horses with Humans, is a Certified Equine Assisted Learning Facilitator through Horse Spirit Connections and Cartier Farms (Dreamwinds), and a Registered Coach through Equestrian Canada. Sue and her beloved horse Egalie were the 2014 champions of the beginner division of the North East Trillium Hunter Jumper Association.  Sue has a degree in Sociology from the University of Waterloo.

Sue has 33 years of experience working at a local corporation with leadership in quality and health and safety. Sue’s role with Partnering Horses with Humans is that of facilitator; helping clients find their own wisdom by tapping into the horse’s wisdom. Sue operates her business out of two locations and offers services and workshops to individuals, coupl

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