No student is ever left alone with his or her horse. Each horse has a person who leads him around the ring, and there are persons, appropriately called sidewalkers, who walk on either side of the student while they are astride the horse. Through exercise all muscles in the body are involved when riding, including the lungs and cardiovascular system. Balance is improved because the three-dimensional swinging gait of the horse causes a gentle, but continual displacement of the rider' s center of gravity. Leslie points out that neuromuscular stimulation is provided by the undulating movements of the horse, and that the bonding between rider and horse is an immeasurable benefit.
Horses are social creatures who readily bond to humans.
And most children love horses. Even those who may be fearful at first soon develop a deep fondness for the horse. We've found this bonding, this relationship between the students and the horses, to be basic to the development of communication. Both Laura Fulton and Janice Bevel agree with Leslie that the horseback riding is beneficial to the students, as both women have children enrolled in the Academy. Laura's 13-year old daughter Samantha has been an Academy student for about four years, since her therapist told them about it.