Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

'Horses on the Hill' brings equine-assisted therapy to Price Hill

young child pets a horse's nose as an adult looks on holding reigns
Tana Weingartner
/
WVXU
BLOC Ministries' new Horses on the Hill facility will offer no-cost equine-assisted therapy to people who've experienced trauma.

BLOC Ministries' new Horses on the Hill facility will offer no-cost equine-assisted therapy to people who've experienced trauma. The grand opening of the six-stall horse barn is Saturday.

"Most — 95% — of those we serve in the neighborhood, our neighbors, have some sort of trauma in their life, from children to adults," says Dwight Young, executive director of the faith-based non-profit.

"Horses ... are proven animals to really help heal and bring about emotional healing and relational healing to people who have struggled with trauma in their life. Our counselors and our animals are all specifically trained and chosen to really work with people in a calm way to help them through that struggle of their life."

Young says BLOC has used horses for therapy in the past but the new facility will allow for year-round therapy and education. The $1 million project took several years to complete using private fundraising and assistance from the Dater and Duke foundations.

man with horse
Tana Weingartner
/
WVXU
Executive Director Dwight Young.

Why horses?

Horses are sensitive to their environment and to human emotions and intentions, explains Mackenzie Sharpshair, program director of Horses on the Hill.

She says horses can act as mirrors for the emotions people are experiencing.

RELATED: A veterinarian says pets have a lot to teach us about love and grief

"As an equine specialist, I can point to that in their body and say, 'Hey, can you see how their ears are flicking back and forth? You see their tail swishing? That means they're a little anxious. Are you having feelings of being anxious?' Then we can work through those feelings together, which is a really, really beautiful process."

She notes horses are non-judgmental. Plus, walking into a barn or horse stable may be a lot less intimidating for some people than a therapist's office.

The program will be unmounted to begin, meaning people won't be riding the horses.

man walks past three horse stalls
Tana Weingartner
/
WVXU
Horses on the Hill will offer no-cost equine-assisted therapy.

"It'll look different every single day, but [therapy] could look like grooming — grooming is proven to be very therapeutic. Leading, which builds confidence and helps you to understand where your energy is pointed, and how much energy you have in your body. How you're communicating to the horse — there's a lot of different exercises that can happen on the ground as well that we can implement into our program," Sharpshair says.

Young isn't ruling out riding options eventually, noting they might offer weekend lessons sometime in the future. For now, though, they're focused on helping those in need.

RELATED: The Cincinnati Zoo is creating a massive behavioral database to better understand its animals

He estimates there could be as many as 300 people on-site per week.

"It's not pony rides. It's not a petting zoo. It realistically is a therapeutic center, certified (and) partnered with. We take Medicaid, Medicare," Young says, adding the counselors are licensed. "It's a serious way to help people cope with trauma and get on with their [lives] and be successful."

The first horses just arrived this week. Sharpshair says staff, counselors and the animals will need some time to get settled in and prepared but she expects to begin welcoming clients by the summer.

two people lead horses
Tana Weingartner
/
WVXU
Dwight Young and Mackenzie Sharpshair lead two of the horses around the barn.

Other programming

Horses on the Hill covers 10 acres in Price Hill, tucked at the end of Ross Ave off of Glenway.

Along with the stables and riding barn, the property includes a farming garden to be used for therapeutic work. There are also plans for honeybees, orchards, birdhouses and more, according to Young. He envisions partnering with school clubs that are forming in the neighborhood, including 4-H and FFA, Future Farmers of America.

RELATED: How animals 'predict' stuff like the Super Bowl and weather

"We also [will] have trails all built through the woods here on the property that they can walk and talk and get out of the [city]; even though we're in the dead center of their neighborhood, you still feel like you're not in the city," says Young.

A grand opening open house is set for March 25 from 5:30-7:30 p.m., with a ribbon cutting at six o'clock.

Horse looks out of a stall
Tana Weingartner
/
WVXU
The first therapy horses arrived in Price Hill this week.

Senior Editor and reporter at WVXU with more than 20 years experience in public radio; formerly news and public affairs producer with WMUB. Would really like to meet your dog.