Hippotherapy at Dynamic Strides Occupational Therapy (DSOT)
Play with Me OT has expanded to include a hippotherapy sector of occupational therapy!
PMOT now has a partnership with Dynamic Strides Occupational Therapy, where all sessions are offered on the Dynamic Strides Farm with Nicole Kemerling MS, OTR/L and tailored to each child's individual goals
What is Hippotherapy?
Occupational Therapy Using Hippotherapy
Occupational Therapy Using Hippotherapy
Occupational Therapy Using Hippotherapy
Our occupational therapy services use hippotherapy as one of many skilled clinical tools to help children build foundational abilities needed for daily participation.
Each session is led by a licensed occupational therapist who intentionally uses the horse’s movement to target individualized goals related to:
- Sensory processing and regulation
- Postural control and core strength
- Balance and coordination
- Motor planning and sequencing
- Bilateral coordination and crossing midline
- Visual-motor integration
- Fine motor development
- Attention, engagement, and readiness for learning
- Participation in daily routines and activities
Hippotherapy is always part of a broader occupational therapy plan of care and is never a stand-alone service.
American Hippothrapy Association
Occupational Therapy Using Hippotherapy
Occupational Therapy Using Hippotherapy
The American Hippotherapy Association (AHA) defines hippotherapy as:
“the purposeful manipulation of equine movement as a therapy tool to engage sensory, neuromotor, and cognitive systems to promote functional outcomes within occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology services.”
Hippotherapy is a clinical treatment tool used within occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology services. It is not recreational riding or horsemanship instruction. Instead, it is a highly skilled intervention where a licensed therapist uses the movement of a horse as part of a child’s individualized treatment plan.
For more information, you can also visit the American Hippotherapy Association here: American Hippotherapy Association, Inc.
The Power of Hippotherapy
Occupational Therapy Using Hippotherapy
Hippotherapy vs Therapeutic Riding
Hippotherapy provides a level of movement input and neuromotor engagement that is difficult to replicate in traditional clinic settings.
What Happens in Just One Minute
- Continuous rhythmic movement closely resembling human walking
- Repetitive, gait-like pelvic motion in all three planes
- Hundreds of automatic postural adjustments from the trunk, head, and pelvis
- Ongoing vestibular and proprioceptive sensory input
- Constant balance and stability reactions without conscious effort.
In just one minute on a walking horse, the nervous system is receiving high-frequency, coordinated movement input that closely mirrors the foundational patterns of human gait and postural control.
Hippotherapy vs Therapeutic Riding
Hippotherapy's Impact on Sensory Processing and Nervous System Regulation
Hippotherapy vs Therapeutic Riding
Hippotherapy:
- Provided by a licensed occupational therapist, physical therapist, or speech-language pathologist
- Used as a clinical intervention to address functional goals
- Focuses on improving participation in daily occupations such as play, learning, self-care, and regulation
- Requires specialized training in the therapeutic use of equine movement
Therapeutic Riding:
- Focuses on horsemanship, riding skills, recreation, or sport
- Typically led by riding instructors rather than licensed medical professionals
- Not considered a clinical therapy service
Only licensed therapy professionals with advanced hippotherapy training are qualified to provide hippotherapy as part of a treatment plan.
Hippotherapy's Impact on Function & Development
Hippotherapy's Impact on Sensory Processing and Nervous System Regulation
Hippotherapy's Impact on Sensory Processing and Nervous System Regulation
The repeated neuromotor and sensory experiences gained during hippotherapy sessions support skills that directly carry over into daily life, including:
- Walking and mobility foundations
- Postural stability for sitting and attention
- Handwriting and fine motor control
- Coordination in play and sports
- Self-regulation and behavioral control
- Engagement in learning and classroom tasks
Hippotherapy's Impact on Sensory Processing and Nervous System Regulation
Hippotherapy's Impact on Sensory Processing and Nervous System Regulation
Hippotherapy's Impact on Sensory Processing and Nervous System Regulation
Hippotherapy provides rich input to the vestibular (movement), proprioceptive (body awareness), and tactile (touch) systems.
These sensory systems play a key role in:
- Attention and engagement
- Emotional and behavioral regulation
- Body awareness and spatial orientation
- Readiness for learning and participation
- Ability to organize and respond to movement demands.
The rhythmic and predictable movement of the horse can help support a more regulated nervous system state, improving a child’s ability to focus, participate, and interact successfully with their environment.
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What does Hippotherapy look like at DSOT x PMOT?
Our Approach
Why We Use Hippotherapy in OT
Why We Use Hippotherapy in OT
Our focus is always on function. Hippotherapy is not about riding a horse—it is about improving the underlying skills needed for independence in everyday life.
By combining skilled occupational therapy with the unique movement of the horse, we create a powerful, individualized treatment experience designed to support meaningful and lasting progress.
Why We Use Hippotherapy in OT
Why We Use Hippotherapy in OT
Why We Use Hippotherapy in OT
We incorporate hippotherapy because it allows us to address foundational neurological and motor skills in a way that is highly engaging, meaningful, and difficult to replicate in a traditional clinic setting.
Many children demonstrate increased:
- Motivation and participation
- Regulation and attention
- Body awareness and coordination
- Confidence in movement and interaction
These improvements often carry over into daily life activities such as handwriting, dressing, play, school participation, and social engagement.
During a Typical Session
Hippotherapy & Traditional OT
Hippotherapy & Traditional OT
- Thousands of automatic postural responses are activated
- The core and trunk muscles engage continuously for stability
- The brain processes constant sensory input for balance and orientation
- Motor planning systems are repeatedly challenged and refined
- Bilateral coordination and midline integration are consistently required.
This level of repetition and variability is what makes hippotherapy such a powerful tool for developing foundational skills.
Hippotherapy & Traditional OT
Hippotherapy & Traditional OT
Hippotherapy & Traditional OT
If you believe your child may be a good candidate for hippotherapy, but dont want to totally forgo traditional OT services we can offer many hybrid approaches to intervention!
- Hippotherapy sessions always include some elements of traditional OT, depending on the child's need. For example, the child may use the horse to warm up prior to handwriting tasks.
- We can add traditional natural environment OT sessions to their weekly schedule in addition to hippotherapy sessions.
- Hippotherapy intensives can be integrated into traditional OT plans of care.
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