The horses (part 2 of my own, personal therapy animals)

Before I introduce to you, my friend and her horses, I would like you to know a little story behind why I was fearful, nervous and/or anxious around certain horses.  I used to work (and volunteer) at a riding facility, where a new horse had just arrived the night before.  It was early July, and there were summer camp kids who would be arriving shortly, and my boss had asked if I could bring the new guy out to the pasture.  She had told me he was "a little pushy," but overall a good guy and that if I didn't feel up to it, she could bring him out while I grabbed another horse.  I was fine with bringing him out.   Anyway, as I was approaching the pasture, there were some guys fixing one of the fences and they had started a drill.   Not knowing what to do when the horse decided to spook (half rear and backing away-due to the fact of being a prey animal), I held onto the lead line.  Once I managed to calm the horse down, I put him in the field.  At this point my whole body was literally shaking uncontrollably, I looked down at my left hand, only to notice that I had a huge rope burn.  Only then, did I find out how terrifyingly strong horses are (and scary they could be when they were nervous and scared), and have since been very anxious and slightly nervous around most horses.  I did my best to get right back in there, handling the horse that had spooked, although at every tiny little thing he did wrong (which he didn't really do anything wrong, perhaps accidentally stepping on the back of my boot, or snorting-which would surprise me) I felt I was over reacting thus making things worse.  Not only did this experience affect how I was with horses on the ground, but also in the saddle.  When I rode, if the horse cantered too fast, or would spook at something I would immediately react and pull them back to walk or trot and would be scared to ask for more. (Stopping or slowing down a horse that is spooking is not the correct thing to do, as it is nurturing their fear of said object or item.  What you are supposed to do, is stay calm and urge them on, perhaps circling a few times near the "spook site" to show them that the object/item can't hurt them.)  The following is a video of the walk, trot and canter transitions (for those of you who may be slightly confused as I ramble on about things most non-horse people wouldn't know).

Anyway, when I first met my friend and her horses, it was winter and there was about 6 inches of snow on the ground, and I had barely ever ridden bareback (no saddle), and her mare (female horse), Kalypso (aka Kali) is strange with anybody besides her owner, but I got on and rode bareback, it was actually quite a bit of fun. I got to know her, and grew to love Kali, but she scarred me sometimes (mares are moody) and she would pull a few stunts every now and then, no big deal, I still rode her sometimes.

Kali and I getting to know each other.

Kali giving kisses.  

One thing I learnt is that no matter how mare-ish (moody) she can be, she is such a sweetheart and loves to give kisses.  The more comfortable I became with her, the more comfortable I felt with other horses.  

Beavis letting me sit backwards.  

  

Second time standing on Beavis (last fall).

Now, my friend's gelding (castrated male horse), Beavis, is the complete opposite of Kali, he doesn't spook, he's so laid back you might even call him a little lazy (although he's not really lazy, he usually responds to leg cues) because of his reluctance to move, and his constant obsession with grass (although it's kinda funny to see how many steps he'll take before trying to grab a bite).  Because of this however, I did things with him that I never thought possible, I gained confidence, became less nervous because he wasn't nervous (although it should be the other way around, him being calm because I am calm), I became a better rider (boy-o-boy is his trot the hardest thing to post or sit because he's so bouncy) and became less fearful of the things that could go wrong, instead I focused on the things that were going right.   All of that though, is what I would like to call the "Beavis Charm". Because of all the things just mentioned ( I must also mention my friend, as she is never lacking support and is kind enough to let my ride her horses, so THANK YOU!) I was able to stand up on a horse ( 3 or 4 times so far), ride a horse at a walk backwards (really awkward, but so much fun) and just have fun in general, whether it be cleaning stalls or playing with the horses.  

All in all, spending time with and around horses (including the barn, and the fresh air, as opposed to city air) as well as, Molaki, Jinx and Shelby gives me a sense of being at home.  The horses and my pets are like my personal therapy animals, there to make me laugh, cry (because I'm laughing so hard), let me think things through without any judgement and always there to offer comfort or anything else that I may need. Where there are animals is home, for me and that is something that will never change, ever.

Molaki, Jinx and Shelby (Part 1 of my own, personal therapy animals)

For today, I wanted to take a break from the official therapy and service animals and focus a little more on those closer to home.  A lot of people have a pet (or more than one) of their own, myself included, and I thought it would be more fun to write about my own pets. I have a dog, Molaki, 2 cats, Jinx and Shelby, 4 budgies, 3 brothers (just joking, or am I?) and my friends horses. In one of my first blogs I mentioned that our own pets are like our own personal therapy animals and this is why I think mine are for me.

Molaki jumping.
Photo credit goes to my
friend who took this, this
past summer.  

Molaki is a almost 9 year old Golden Retriever named after a Hawaiian island (courtesy of my mom who fell in love with Hawaii).  He is hilariously cute when you get mad at him, which in turn makes you laugh at him rather than staying mad at him, it really is impossible to stay mad at him.  He is great at relieving anxiety, because of his capability to make me laugh, especially after a long day.  He also likes to go for runs, which is often shown when he decides to bolt, like he did the other day.  What is really strange though, is that the other day, my brothers were out four wheeling with a few friends, and when they found him, he decided to run in the middle of the entourage of quads.  He also likes to have fun jumping and playing, which is nice, not only because you forget about your stress or anxiety, it also makes me more active, and when he is having fun, so am I.

Jinx on the fence.
The reason this made me
laugh so hard is because
of his lazy leg just dangling
there.

On the other hand, we have Jinx, my almost 2 years old domestic long hair cat who is constantly getting into trouble although it is not exactly his fault. I seriously shouldn't have named him Jinx.  Here is why, about a year ago, he most likely fell out of a tree, cut his leg on a branch (while falling down) and being distracted by the cut, didn't land properly on his leg.  He broke his right hind leg at the hip.  He ended up needing surgery, and the day after, not even ten minutes after getting home, he's trying to climb furniture, so we had to lock him in the bathroom where he wouldn't be able to hurt himself further.  He was deemed a "cone kitty" (which made him hilariously lovable) and during this time we discovered one of his many hidden talents.  He was able to take the cone off of his head.  Nursing him back to health was a very funny and short-lived (because he is so active) adventure.  I really got a kick out of him this past fall when he was sitting on a fence.  Because of his surgery, his right leg is a tad shorter than his left and he can be sometimes a little lazy with it.  Anyway, the way he was sitting on the fence was so adorable and funny that I had to run inside and grab my camera because it made me laugh so hard.

My sweet cat, Shelby is of the Domestic Short Hair breed (aka DSH) and is approximately 11 or 12 years old.  She is a hunter, although she is becoming old and arthritic and doesn't hunt as much anymore.   She is very sweet, and loves to cuddle if she knows you, but if she doesn't, have fun trying to find her.  She also has an odd little quirk, she loves to play on the stairs (which are carpeted).  She will literally "run" (or worm her way around) sideways on one stair, and then go to the next and do the same.  Very strange if you ask me, but very funny to watch (if I find a video, I will post it in a future blog), because it makes you wonder what she is playing with and why it seems to keep her occupied for such a long time.

Molaki, Jinx and Shelby are capable of making anyone want to laugh or cuddle, and they leave me, for the most part, stress free. It is days spent with my pets (and my friends) that I am the happiest.  They just seem to have a way of doing the silliest little things that, they somehow know, will get your attention.

Most Unusual Service and Therapy animals (part 2)

Hello all, and welcome back to part two of my blog about unusual service and therapy animals! I thought it would be a good idea to start were I left off, so I figured it would be best to recap the unusual service animals that we saw in my last blog. So far, I have shown to you, Redrock the Boa Constrictor (personally, I think I might be just a little worried and/or frightened for any owner if I saw a snake beginning to constrict around someones neck, even knowing if it was a service animal) , the Capuchin monkey (who knew monkeys could provide us with an extra set of hands), and Sadie the Parrot. All very unique service animals.

For this next animal, it is astounding how big, fluffy and furry they are, care to take a guess? I think, when I 

say this, it goes for most people, what a surprise it would be to see a llama and alpaca in a hospital visiting the elderly and various other floors with children and adults.  These two are Rojo (the llama) and Napoleon

(the aplaca) and no matter where they go, everyone seems to enjoy a good smile and laugh when they're around.  In the video, you will be able to see the 

impact they have, on everyone in the hospital whether

 it be the staff or the patients, as well as their owner, who is delighted with the reactions everyone has concerning these two silly looking animals. (All information is narrated in the clip)

Another impressive therapy animal are dolphins.  In Antalya Turkey, a doctor, by the name of Murat Kemaloglu, includes swimming with dolphins as a part of his patients therapy. ( Dolphin Therapy 1) Often the swim will encrease awareness to the world around him or herself.  Also, the sonic waves emitted by the dolphins play a huge roll in the physical and psychological healing process. (Dolphin Therapy 2)

Does anybody else find it interesting that dolphins have such capabilities when it comes to assisting and healing people?  Perhaps even more captivating that llamas and alpacas make great therapy animals?  These animals have caught my eye because of how unique and unheard of they are when it comes to the service and therapy animal world, and they have certainly given themselves a great job title, and made themselves at home with that title.