Justin Medve
Special to the Beaver
When life gets tough, sometimes a helping hand can make a difference. Other times, a helping hoof can do just the same. At Charmed Horse Assisted Wellness Centre, you can find both.
The home of horse-assisted therapy invited Stone Mills Township firefighters and the public to ease stress with the instinctual companions at an open house demonstration on Saturday.
Equine specialist and business owner Donna O’Connell said that a horse’s natural ability to read emotion makes them particularly suited to work with people seeking comfort or coping with hardship.
O’Connell explained that a session typically involves bonding, metaphorical thinking and sometimes props or boundaries.
“The mental health provider focuses on the client and their wellness, and the equine specialist focuses on the horses and what they’re doing,” she said.
“The horses, they tell you pretty quick what’s going on,” O’Connell added. But equine specialist and O’Connell’s daughter Katie McKay says simply listening is sometimes enough.
“You might tell the horse a story or how your day has been,” McKay said. “We find just being around the horses is what helps the most,” she added.
Stone Mills emergency first responder Noreen Desforge gave her thoughts after making friends with the three specially-trained horses that took part.
“Everybody has stresses in their life. When you work a full-time job and a part-time job that can take you away at any hour of the day, there’s always other commitments you may have made that you have to cancel on,” she said.
“You get around a horse and there’s just this gentleness to them. Some people are more hesitant about them because they’re larger animals, but being face-to-face with them really helps me,” Desforge said.
Volunteer Cynthia Chapman said she shares similar feelings of comfort.
“They actually love to please,” Chapman said. “They’re a beautiful, very kind animal. They’re like a great big dog.”
Several Canadian Forces Base Kingston soldiers also made the trip for a demonstration in the afternoon. Kids were able to spend time brushing and petting horses or taking part in crafts and face painting between shows.
A barbecue and silent auction with proceeds donated in part to Community Living Kingston and District were also available.
O’Connell said she hopes all visitors find a comfort similar to the one she had when moving to the land almost a decade ago.