The Mane Connection, LLC

12/04/2024

Researchers found equine-assisted intervention horses more touch-sensitive than riding school horses, suggesting the need to revise handling techniques.

09/24/2024

09/11/2024

Honor. Remember. Reflect.

🕊️

09/05/2024

Keep planting those seeds 🌱

https://x.com/ontspecialneeds/status/868051746207223808?fbclid=IwY2xjawE-in1leHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHXAfHJWwKPkqUZHJcG2oy_dAn5Ju4uwTr1I-w-cLuEau9mHjiDKGhKeEag_aem_h0kdKiJ9FIdbjgU4BdEyig

08/09/2024

Mental health programs and services incorporating horses are gaining more and more traction everyday. It is is a safe, dynamic and effective option for those in need.

Horses help encourage perseverance, respect for life, and maintenance of positive and empathetic attitudes towards ourselves and others.

With the appropriate care, people can flourish, grow and heal 🤍☁️🌿🍃✨️

08/08/2024

Understanding the Triangle of Self-Talk can be a powerful tool for personal growth. 🌟 The way you talk to yourself influences your view of yourself, which in turn shapes your behavior. Positive self-talk leads to a healthier self-image and positive actions. Let's break the cycle of negativity and foster a positive mindset! 💬💖

07/04/2024

🤍🤍🤍

Why HORSES for Human Therapy and Personal Development?

Horses are prey animals. They survive by being excellent at reading the smallest non-verbal communication of each other and potential predators.

They read our body language on a subtle level. Think not just body language but electromagnetic fields, pulse, heart beat and secretions of hormones etc.

Horses are constantly checking whether they need to run away from danger or if cornered, fight the danger.

They do this by automatically always checking for any incongruences in people’s body language. If a predator is at rest rather than actively hunting, their flight response lessens. Often horses will not choose to cooperate if someone’s emotions and body language is incongruent. When someone is congruent with their true emotions, the horses begin to become interested. As horses are highly congruent in their behaviours they have no social constructs like we do, of ‘proper’ behavior to encourage them to mask their emotions and behaviors.

Horse’s respond to what your body is really saying, not what your voice or simple body language is suggesting. Instead, horses will seem to react to the human’s incongruence exactly in the moment.

BUT WHY IS THIS INFORMATION USEFUL FOR EQUINE ASSISTED SERVICES?

The brain of the horse has a much larger limbic system.

One of the limbic system’s function is to process and regulate emotion. By having a larger brain area, they are naturally better than we are in this and from them we can learn how to alter our neural networks to be able to be better at processing and regulating emotions.

The brain of the horse has a much smaller neocortical area.

One of the main functions of the neocortical brain is perception. We have a very large neocortical brain and see the world through a perception lens. Meaning that our experience of the world has many layers affected by past narratives and stories. We have evolved to have a larger front of our brain, which enables us to complete complicated tasks, and yet with this comes complexity of how we view the world. Horse’s instead operate from older parts of the brain, which respond to the here and now. Their lives revolve around the present, which in turn allows for greater congruency. We can learn how to do this better from them by creating stronger neural networks in the older parts of the brain, allowing for more balance between complex thinking and congruently living in the here and now.

Horses have more mirror neurons than other animals.

Mirror neurons at the simplest level, enable us to connect with others and is why we often yawn when others do. At the most complex level, they help us understand the mental states of others. Horses connect to others in a way that we perhaps cannot yet actually comprehend, as our brains do not have that level of mirror neuron capacity. However, we can begin to imagine, and strengthen our own neural networks to learn to resonate with others better, as well as have more empathy for others and ourselves.

Horses have a much larger electromagnetic field (heart) and gut system than us.

By having a larger heart and gut system than humans and most other animal assisted therapy animals, they have a larger and more powerful area to collecting intel from others. This helps them to connect the herd together and sense the intentions of a predator. When in the layer of connection with each other, horses can sense each others heartbeat, pulse and hormone secretion. They help to regulate each other by matching each others slower heartbeat when no danger is nearby. We can experiance this heartbeat synchronicity also in their presence, helping us to experience their regulation loop.

As horses are more in tune with their complex and sensitive systems than humans, they provide an instant biofeedback system from the networks. This is often referred to as the horses mirroring emotions and feelings.

Instant biofeedback refers to how horses immediately alter themselves to the environment. We are able to tap into their biofeedback and get immediate information on how congruent we are at that moment. Horse’s know when we are being incongruent with ourselves, so we can ask the horses whether we can use their feedback as a safe place to explore our emotions, our experience of the world, our trauma.

06/22/2024

What does “showing up” mean to you?

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Horses give us their best day in and day out. Some days there best will look different than others day though.

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Remember to be gentle and kind to yourself. Do the best you can on the given day. Take it a day at a time.
Your best can look different day to day! 🫶🏼🤍

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Showing up for yourself vs. showing up for others is also a whole other perspective!

06/16/2024

We see you. 🫶🏼

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06/16/2024

Ruby is as shocked as we are - this coming week is going to be hot! 🥵🔥

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Sessions will continue but will be kept low key and will have plenty of water breaks!
Oh, and don’t worry about Ruby - she demands to be in front of her fan all day. 😉

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06/15/2024

We know horses are great for our health, but here’s some evidence -articles and studies below.
Horses ARE expensive, lessons are a safe way for most people to dip their toes in the water and gain benefits without the commitment of an animal to care for full time.

Though expensive, the benefits are huge, and used in therapeutic settings all over the world.
If you’re thinking about lessons-here as some great reasons to give it a try

Why sign your child up for lessons? Even if they aren’t ready to show, don’t want to show? Even if you know you’ll NEVER own a horse.

Did you now horseback riding enhances motor skills? It’s true!

Did you know being around horses, and nature in general lowers blood pressure and heart rate?

Did you know riding actually enhances reaction time? It actually makes your reflexes better.

For all these reasons horses are great, and more than just pricey hobby. I swear they’ve helped with my severe ADHD, I cannot meditate, calm my mind, or focus well outside of training without some medical intervention.

Horse sessions have expanded my patience, my regulation of emotions by necessity, forced me to have some socialization due to be barn, improved all non verbal communication (and due to human proximity-verbal as well).

Many people get right into horses without a forethought to the cost and time that goes into the care that can also be stress inducing.
As kids found out a camp, a FREE horse would run $1000+ in the first month of care and equipment to get started.

While we absolutely encourage and support new horse owners, we’ve heard too many stories about ownership gone wrong, unmet expectations due to lack preparation. But good news is you can just TRY a lesson. Comment for a discount code with our assistant instructor.

If one day you want a horse:
Lessons, then leasing for a taste of partial ownership, and then horse ownership is a safe path. We’ll help keep you from being surprised.

Horseback riding seems to improve cognitive abilities https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2017/03/170302115822.htm

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6057413/ Short-Term and Long-Term Effects of Riding for Children with Cerebral Palsy Gross Motor Functions
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8959353/ The Short-term Effects of Hippotherapy and Therapeutic Horseback Riding on Spasticity in Children With Cerebral Palsy: A Meta-analysis
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7004954/ Changes in Motor Skill Proficiency After Equine-Assisted Activities and Brain-Building Tasks in Youth With Neurodevelopmental Disorders

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7967314/ Effects of a Therapeutic Horseback Riding Program on Social Interaction and Communication in Children with Autism

https://www.additudemag.com/equine-therapy-adhd-horseback-riding/amp/
Study: Equine Therapy Paired with Brain-Building Exercises Improves Motor Skills in Children with ADHD and Autism

This article list a few studies at the bottom https://autism.org/horse-therapy-autism/

06/12/2024

Just because you cannot physically see your growth - doesn’t mean you quit! 💪🏼📈

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Keep watering everyday and eventually you’ll be able to see the progress and growth! 🌷

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We are all on our own journey of growth. Let us help you with it! 🫶🏼

themaneconnection.org

06/10/2024

⭐️ Happy Monday ⭐️

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If you’re having the Monday blues we hope this puts a smile on your face. 🫶🏼

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Our schedule for July is filling up and the schedule for August is officially open.
If you’re interested in Equine Assisted Learning or Horseback Riding Lessons - give us a call. 📞

themaneconnection.org

06/05/2024

To those of you who may not know, we are also a provider through OhioRISE! ⭐️

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If your child is affiliated with OhioRISE & interested in the services we offer, let’s get you on our schedule! 🗓️

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Check out what qualifies children for OhioRISE⬇️

https://managedcare.medicaid.ohio.gov/managed-care/ohiorise/00-ohiorise #:~:text=OhioRISE%20aims%20to%20shift%20the,most%20complex%20behavioral%20health%20challenges.

06/04/2024

Did you know, The Mane Connection is an approved education service provider for the Afterschool Child Enrichment (ACE) program? 📚

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If you’re interested in seeing if your child can qualify, check out education.ohio.gov/OhioAce - keep a close watch for if they open applications back up.
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If your child is already qualified and would like horseback riding lessons, get in touch with us! 📞

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Our goal at The Mane Connection, is to bring Riding Lessons and/or Equine Assisted Learning services to those who these typically would not reach. We are striving to keep expanding that reach with every step we take.
We are doing it for you! 🤍🐴

themaneconnection.org

06/03/2024

🫶🏼 TATOR TOT 🫶🏼

The most ornery mini donkey you’ll ever meet! 😆
He’s probably one of the most favorite “employees” we have!

Tator Tot loves….
🐴 All the horses
🐎 To run free around the farm & pester all the horses
🤍 To be loved on!

Tator Tot dislikes….
👂His ears touched
🚔 To be confined in a stall all day

05/24/2024

Next up on the introductory list is…

LADY ✨👑

Some of lady’s favorite things..
• Turnout time 🐎
• Carrots 🥕
• Attention of any kind 🤩