Small horses can provide big boost to patients of all ages

VALRICO, Fla. - Six-year-old Finnegan is one of the children who regularly visits a farm of miniature horses and other animals in Valrico.

"They're called F.R.I.E.N.D.S and it's a group of Down syndrome children," explained April La Cava, the founder of Hold Our Horses, a non-profit which provides therapy through miniature horses.

"It's wonderful for the kids to come in and pet the animals and just seeing their raw emotion", said Kathy Boisseau, Finnegan's mother.

The goal of these specially trained animals is to provide a boost of encouragement.

"We started acquiring a few cows, we got a few donkeys, we got a few miniature horses and I thought this would be a great opportunity during this time to get acquainted with the horses, train them for therapy visits at the nursing home facilities, hospitals," continued La Cava.

She said the animals are a reminder of her late mother and nursing home patients like her who emotionally benefit from this kind of support. 

"My mom was an animal person. You can put a smile instantly on their face; you can just see them come alive again. It's very sad when they're in the facilities and there's no one there and some cannot maneuver forks, and the horses will just walk to them and they can just touch their hand on them and you can see the smiles on their faces. It's very, very rewarding to the patient and to us we just enjoyed it," said La Cava.

Therapy visits for these animals can involve a special kind of horseshoes.

"It has grips on the bottom so that when they go in the facilities they don't slip," La Cava pointed out.

And rigorous training.

"They learn not to bump into things, they learn to go up to the wheelchairs and they'll put their heads in their lap so that they can touch them at the wheelchair," said La Cava.

These small horses have helped Finnegan make big leaps. 

"For Finnegan, physically, it helps his core strength, his walking ability. I feel like he feels independent. He gets to walk the horses, he feeds the horses, the excitement lights him up," Boisseau offered.

"I think it warms your heart it still gives you hope that there's kindness and love in this world," La Cava added.

LINK: For information about Hold Our Horses, visit www.holdourhorses.org