A Volunteer for Equine Assisted Therapy is someone who can help with the program in a variety of ways to include Leading during sessions, side walking, helping with preparation of sessions, encouraging students, equine maintenance as needed and many other roles. Volunteers play a huge part in the success of the students and instructors. People also find that Volunteering is therapeutic.
There is nothing more rewarding than seeing someone who you have assisted reach their goals. The excitement on their face, and knowing you played an influential role in achieving that goal
makes it all worthwhile.
Volunteers are needed to help instructors and managers keep everything flowing. They play an important role in ensuring that all equines are taken care of during and after sessions. Instructors are focused on the students, so it is important that the volunteers be a second set of eyes and ears for the instructor to ensure the safety of the equine and the students.Benefit or service that is offered here, icons will be made to match the benefit or service to offer a complete.
A volunteer will play any role necessary based upon their experience. There are always things happening within our barn, rather it is EAT related or Horse care related we are always doing something. Horse care duties could include, but aren’t limited to Bathing, grooming, saddling, cleaning feet, unsaddling, washing down after working when hot, working with obstacles. EAT duties could include but aren’t limited to side walking, leading, helping with exercises, encouraging the student throughout the lesson, setting up the arena, helping with horses.
A side walker is there to ensure that the rider is stable in the saddle. They will walk or jog beside the student while riding and hang on to either a gate belt or their leg. The side walker is also the one who helps a student if and when they fall. They are not to try to stop the fall but are to simply slow it down so the student doesn’t get hurt. Once the side walker has the student on the ground the instructor takes the situation from there.
