Photo by Gillian Vallis. Photo courtesy Lissa Pohl.
Experts from several organisations that offer services using horses to benefit people have come up with clear guidelines on the terminology used for such ventures. Lissa Pohl, from the University of Kentucky, outlines the thinking behind the process.
Over the past 50 years, services that incorporate horses to benefit people have diversified and expanded. Along with the exponential growth has come the proliferation and use of unclear and imprecise terms for naming and describing these services.
This, in turn, has generated many serious problems that include confusion and inadequate protection of consumers, reimbursement obstacles for certain types of legitimate therapy that incorporate horses, misinformed policies and barriers to scientific advancement through research.