04/11/2025
🐴🌟 Celebrating Developmental Educator Week! 🌟🐎
This week, it is DE week and also a week to highlight the incredible work Developmental Educators do, and the transformative journeys we share with our participants.
Today, I want to share a special story about one of our therapy horses, Doc.
It took Doc over a year to truly connect, unlock his feelings, and build the deep trust needed to become more than just a riding horse. Through patience, consistency, support, time and gentle encouragement, Doc has grown into a healing, energy-sharing, co-therapist horse showing us all just how magical horses can be.
🦄🐴Why is this so special?🐴🦄
Horses are prey animals their instinct is to stay alert and ready to run. Their legs are their power, their safety. When a horse chooses to lay down, it’s the ultimate sign of trust and vulnerability.
Doc’s journey reminds us that trust and emotional safety take time to build, for both participants and animals. His willingness to lay down beside someone is a powerful, non-verbal message: “I feel safe with you”.
Therapeutic magic happens when we sit quietly with a horse like Doc. Both horse and participant must slow down, self-regulate, and be present in order to do this. Horses mirror our emotions, supporting us to learn about our own feelings and responses.
Moments like these support self-awareness, mindfulness, and emotional regulation. They empower us to build trust, confidence, and meaningful connections.
As a DE I celebrate:
😊The patience and dedication it takes to build trust.
😊The power of animal-assisted therapy to unlock growth and healing.
😊The magical, healing presence of our therapy horses, who teach us every day about connection, vulnerability, slowing down, trust and resilience.
🎉Happy Developmental Educator Week🎉
🐴Here’s to all the DEs, participants, families and therapy animals making a difference, one magical moment at a time 🐴
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