Horse Equine-Assisted Therapy: Welfare for Therapy Horses

Equine-assisted therapy (EAT) benefits human participants, but the welfare of the therapy horses themselves is sometimes overlooked. Understanding their needs protects horses in therapeutic settings.

Key Facts

Equine-assisted therapy encompasses hippotherapy (physical therapy using movement), EAT for mental health, and therapeutic riding
Therapy horses work in close proximity to people with behavioral, emotional, and physical challenges — this can be stressful
Well-run EAT programs monitor horse behavior and welfare closely, rotating horses and respecting their behavioral signals
Therapy horses that show signs of learned helplessness (shutdown, lack of behavioral response to stimuli) are in poor welfare states
Horses naturally communicate discomfort through ear position, tail swishing, eye expression, and muscle tension — these signals must be respected in therapy settings
The Professional Association of Therapeutic Horsemanship (PATH) sets welfare standards for member EAT programs

Welfare Considerations

Therapy horses occupy a position where their role in helping vulnerable human populations may inadvertently lead to their welfare being deprioritized. The economic and emotional investment in EAT programs can create pressure to use horses that are showing welfare problems, to maintain programs beyond the horse's willing capacity, or to override horse behavioral signals in favor of human therapeutic goals. The most ethical EAT programs explicitly prioritize horse welfare as a prerequisite for human benefit — a horse in good welfare provides better therapeutic outcomes than a distressed one, creating alignment between equine welfare and program effectiveness.

What You Can Do

Support EAT programs that are PATH-certified and have documented horse welfare monitoring protocols
When visiting or participating in EAT programs, observe whether horses show positive engagement or signs of stress
Advocate for horse welfare standards that require behavioral monitoring and rotation in therapeutic settings
Donate to EAT programs that explicitly invest in horse welfare alongside human therapeutic outcomes