The Connected Horse Project was founded in 2015 to offer opportunities and understanding of human-animal connections for people living with early-stage dementia and their care partners—typically a spouse, friend, partner or family member. The Connected Horse workshops provide the opportunity for people living with an early-stage dementia or Mild Cognitive Impairment diagnosis, along with their care partners, to be together and experience horses in non-riding activities.
The power of the human-horse connection helps both participants to feel relaxed, confident, and happy, and also learn about self-compassion, stress reduction strategies, communication and awareness practices. They are also activated for the the journey ahead. The work with the horses and the facilitators helps the participants to gain clarity, adjust patterns, define changing roles and release emotions such as fear, grief, and negativity while learning to be fully present in the moment.
Our experiential model allows for each person to have personal engagements with horses, the environment and each other. Our unique dyad model invites the person living with dementia and his/her care partner to participate together.
For over 50 million years horses have survived because of their ability to work collaboratively and adapt to change. They are nonjudgmental partners who often act as mirrors, teaching us to stay in the moment and trust the strength of the herd.
Connected Horse facilitators bring awareness to these instinctual characteristics while encouraging participants to build their own awareness regarding their responses to the horses and others. In addition, participants can learn skills that help them self-regulate emotions, improve verbal and nonverbal communication, strengthen relationships and adapt to changes.
The connections between people and horses have proven to be therapeutic in many populations. Together, researchers from the University of California, Davis School of Medicine’s Alzheimer’s Disease Center and the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine, Center for Equine Health are studying the effects of our equine-guided activities to further understand and develop programs that benefit everyone involved.
Quantitative and qualitative findings from the research conducted at UCD and Stanford University to validate the Connected Horse program indicates reduced feelings of depression and anxiety and increased positive perception of social support for care partners as well as a greater sense of reciprocity, awareness, hopefulness and appreciation of one another. Trends for improved mood as well as improved sleep in both members of the dyad were also noted.
The Connected Horse offers human-animal connection, engagement and understanding through its innovative workshops and research, which encourage and support individuals living with dementia diagnoses, care partners and professionals. The connection between animals and humans is a nonjudgmental, unconditional interaction. The human-horse connection is especially powerful, as the behaviors of horses often reflect the energy or emotions of the human participants. Their individual responses can lead to a deeper understanding and self-compassion on the part of participants.
Our work is solely focused on the relationship between people and horses. Through our equine-guided workshops we are supporting people affected by dementia and their care partners.
We are committed to: