Riding Home: The Power of Horses to Heal

by Tim Hayes, Robert Redford (Introduction)

Overview

Equine therapy has long been a staple activity for special-needs children and adults, and its physical benefits are evident. In Riding Home, Horse Nation's must read book of 2016, Tim Hayes uses his own vast experience working with horses combined with scientific research to show us how and why horses and our relationships with them are also able to heal our emotional and psychological wounds.

Riding Home provides riveting examples of how equine therapy has become one of today’s most effective, cutting-edge methods of healing where so often traditional therapy and prescription drugs have failed.

The natural ability of a horse to accept, without judgment, a soldier with PTSD who has seen or done horrific things, and by so doing, express compassion and benevolent acknowledgment—often preventing suicide—is extraordinary.

At-risk youth in equine programs find that horses don’t judge or criticize them, allowing them to express painful feelings for the first time.

This is a book for horse lovers, but also for parents of teenagers who might be slipping into violence, crime, and drugs. It is a book for loved ones of soldiers returning from the war, a book for families of autistic children, and truly anyone who needs help or has lost their way. It is accessible, moving, and shows us a way to approach healing from an entirely new perspective.

Horses help us discover hidden parts of ourselves, whether we’re seven or seventy. They model relationships that demonstrate acceptance, kindness, honesty, tolerance, patience, justice, compassion, and forgiveness. This amazing power of horses to heal is accessible to anyone.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250106179
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	10/04/2016
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	304
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.10(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

TIM HAYES attended The University of Vermont and holds a B.S. Degree in Psychology. Before his career as a horseman, Hayes had a long career in Film and Television. He has worked as a cowboy for the Joseph Black & Son Cattle Ranch of Bruneau, Idaho and as a riding instructor at Deep Hollow Ranch in Montauk, NY. It was there that he began teaching Natural Horsemanship, the approach often called, "Horse Whispering." For the past fifteen years, Hayes has been a nationally recognized Natural Horsemanship Clinician. He teaches and conducts clinics throughout the U.S., Canada and Mexico. He is also a visiting instructor of Natural Horsemanship in the Department of Animal Science for both The University of Connecticut and The University of Vermont. He has appeared in the 2006 award winning Cablevision’s TV Documentary "Natural Horsemanship with Tim Hayes" and has been profiled in numerous other media outlets, including The New York Times.

Table of Contents

INTRODUCTION – 5
CHAPTER 1. Wild Horses – Wild Men – 10
CHAPTER 2. The Nature of Horses – The Nature of Humans – 23
CHAPTER 3. Horses Healing Humans – Bodies and Minds – 55
CHAPTER 4. Horses Don't Get Divorced…Today's Youth at Risk –74
CHAPTER 5. A Trail Less Traveled – My Journey With Horses – 96
CHAPTER 6. The Walking Wounded – Horses For Heroes – 117
CHAPTER 7. Horses, Humans, Trauma and PTSD – 137
CHAPTER 8. "I Wish People Had Ears Like Horses" –148
CHAPTER 9. What Draws Humans To Be With Horses?– 163
CHAPTER 10. Austin – 182
CHAPTER 11. The Evolution of Horsemanship – 200
CHAPTER 12. Riding Home – 219
NOTES – 225
BIBLIOGRAPHY – 241
APPENDIX – 255
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS – 263

Editorial Reviews

Tim Hayes is a great storyteller, blessed with passion for his subjects, horse and human. The lessons you’ll take away from this beautiful volume of healing and love between man and nature will stay with you for a long time.” —From the Foreword by Robert Redford

“Riding Home is essential reading for horse lovers and everyone who works with people who need healing.” —Temple Grandin, author of Animals in Translation and Animals Make Us Human

“Hayes makes a convincing case that his beloved equine companions are man’s best friends. Hayes will turn even non–horse lovers into equine-therapy believers.” —Booklist

“Hayes’s obvious love for all things equine is evident throughout . . . An educational analysis of the bonds between horses and humans.” —Kirkus Reviews

From the Publisher

Learn how horses can heal people and the power of equine therapy. Riding Home is essential reading for horse lovers and everyone who works with people who need healing.

author of Animals in Translation and Animals Make Temple Grandin

2014-11-29
Exploration of the healing relationship between humans and horses.Drawing on his lifetime of experiences with horses, including his friendship of more than 17 years with a gelding quarter horse named Austin, Hayes examines the intricate connections between these four-legged creatures and humans. He explains the three basic factors that motivate horses—"survival, comfort and leadership"—and places them in the context of a horse's interaction with humans, who are considered "predators." Despite their initial fear, horses overcome their hesitancy and develop long-standing connections with both children and adults. The author explains how this allows humans to accept their own fears and often leads to healing and greater life fulfillment. Through personal interviews and stories, Hayes covers the various aspects of using equine therapy for children with autism, war vets suffering from PTSD, inmates in prison for violent crimes, and those exposed to domestic violence and abuse. The author also discusses the benefits of horse riding for those with physical ailments and disabilities such as cerebral palsy and Down syndrome. Hayes' obvious love for all things equine is evident throughout, especially when he relates his own moments of fear, such as when faced with a 20-mile ride through unknown countryside with only his horse to lead him in the right direction. "This remarkable creature can not only continue to serve humanity but can help heal our wounded, remind us of our connectedness to others, and ground us with love for ourselves and for all living things," writes the author, who provides a long list of equine resources with ample information for those interested in exploring equine therapy for a variety of ailments. An educational analysis of the bonds between horses and humans and how they can "bring feelings of self-awareness, joy, wonder, humility, and peace of mind."

Kirkus Reviews