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Hippotherapy and Hand Activities

hippotherapy half seatHippotherapy is a treatment tool used to improve strength, postural control, balance and motor planning skills. Riding a horse provides powerful sensory stimulation that effects attention, emotions, language and motor skills.

Hippotherapy also promotes hand skills.

holdingtoys hippotherapyGrasping toys so that the child does not hold the handle
promotes balance and bilateral coordination.

hippotherapy pop it beadsPop-it
beads
develop hand strength,
motor planning, balance and bilateral coordination.

hippotherapy wandStabilizing the toy while placing rings challenges eye-hand
coordination, motor planning and balance.


hippotherapy reachingbackwardsReaching for toys challenges balance
and coordination. This girl is using a magnet wand to catch a  fish as she rides facing backwards. 


hippotherapy puzzleCompleting a puzzle or peg board develops
eye-hand coordination.
Activities can be placed on the horse's rump while the child faces backwards.
 
Playing while maintaining one's posture develops core strength and balance reactions. 


hippotheapy objectsintobasket





This boy is reaching to his side to retrieve another puzzle piece. 



hippotherapy basketSmall folding baskets are attached to the horse's handle with shower clips.


hippotherapy ringstackRing stacks develop eye-hand coordination. The child's balance is challenged as he reaches in different directions or stands up in his stirrups (2 point stand) while reaching for a ring.


hippotherapy animal boardThis reaching activity can involve removing the named animal picture (attached with velcro) or matching it to  the picture on the board.


hippotherapy basketballThrowing a ball into the hoop challenges balance while reaching to the side. Children can also stand with feet supported in stirrups while reaching for a ball held high up. Playing catch while the horse is walking

presents another balance and motor planning challenge. Catch can be played while sitting forward, sideways, backwards and
even while kneeling. 


hippotherapy sidesitwithtoyFacing sideways on the horse provides different sensory stimulation and works the lateral trunk muscles. Playing with this toy is helping this girl rotate her trunk and use both hands together.

hippotherapy side sit with ballPlaying catch while facing sideways is a great coordination challenge and fun social activity when facing another child on his horse.

hippotherapy hoopsShown here is one of the many types of target and toss activities that can be performed while sitting on a horse.



hippotheapy velcrobottleRemoving toys attached with velcro from a bottle is very motivating and promotes using both hands together. children develop eye-hand coordination as
they insert them into the enlarged opening on top.


hippotherapy conesCones can be hidden in  the arena so that children need to make the horse stop in order to retrieve them.




    
 


















                































































           




































































     
                    
    
 
 





















































































































































































   
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The following pictures provide examples of how hippotherapy
develops hand skills.

hippotherapy hands on handleGrasping the handle promotes
bilateral hand use. Handles
varies in size and are chosen
according to how much support
the child needs.







hippotherapy riding handsGrasping reins also promotes using both
hands but is more challenging since reins
do not provide support as a handle does.






steeringreinsChildren develop motor planning skills as
they pull the reins to turn left or right. I teach
the children to pull the reins to stop at junctions
and then we discuss which direction they
would like to go. Weaving around cones
provides another opportunity to steer the reins
and learn the association between pulling to
turn in the same direction. Controlling the
reins to steer also encourages crossing
midline and learning what it means to turn left and right.
 



hippotherapy lacing After riding for 10-15 minutes children are often
more focused and ready for a challenging fine-motor
activity such as this lacing board.






hippotherapy lacing boardThis lacing board is made from cardboard with
a picture of a horse attached with clear contact
paper. Four large wholes were cut for lacing.






hippotherapy zipper This girl is opening a zipper to remove
sunglasses from a case. She likes helping
her therapist get her sunglasses.





hippotherapy clothespinsThis girl is strengthening her arms and
pincer grasp as she reaches to remove
clothes pins. She also challenges her balance
and motor planning as she inserts the
pins into the basket attached to the handle.




hippotherapy towel with pocketsA towel is placed across the horse's rump.
It has a red pocket shown here sewn to
one side and a blue pocket sewn to the
other side.




hippotherapy opening buttonsThis child is opening "button squares". These
are made by sewing a large piece of plastic
(with punched holes) to a blue square cloth.
The red square cloth has a button hole cut.
Tape is attached to the button hole to prevent
unraveling. This child will open the squares,

place the red square in the red pocket and the blue square in the
blue pocket. He can do this while the horse is moving.

hippotherapy buttonsClose up of button squares. The red and
blue halves can be opened and sorted
by color.






hippotherapy strapChildren can work on fine-motor skills by
performing horse related tasks while off
the horse. In this picture a girl is hanging
up the horse's neck strap on a hook. 
Children may be able to clip or unclip the
reins, brush the horse, put away toys and
hang up the gait belt and helmet,




hippotherapy braided maneIndividuals with excellent fine-motor skills
may enjoy braiding the mane.





hippotherapy lotto cards and can Lotto cards are attached with velcro to a
board. Children pull them off and insert them
into the can. This activity encourages reaching
out of the base of support, language as children
name the pictures and motor planning to fit
the card into the slit.



hippotherapy canMany tasks can be made more exciting by
making them motorized. In this case the
brush from an electric toothbrush was
removed and inserted inside the can. The
sound and slight vibration holds children's
attention. Squiggly writer pens with the
points removed also work well.  These


can be inserted into the "Velcro bottle" shown at left and
inside ring stacks.

hippotherapy vibe ring stackUsing sensory toys helps motivate children,
increasing focus and visual attention. This
toy vibrates and lights flash (softly). Here
it is used as a ring stack. After working,
children are rewarded with holding the toy.



Pictures can be used for communication and visual
discrimination activities.


hippotherapy puzzle animalsPuzzles than have pictures in the board
are ideal so that children know what
to look for as they scan the arena looking
for the needed puzzle piece.





photo albumA child chooses an animal and then finds
the matching picture hanging on the wall in
the arena. The child might be asked to make
the horse stop in front of the picture, reach
up high to grasp it or simply make the
corresponding animal sound when passing

the picture. These activities teach the child to attend, scan the room,
identify matching pictures and follow multi-step directions.

Occupational therapists may use picture cards to provide directions
or ask the child to point to or remove a picture to choose an activity
such brushing the horse, playing with toys, going outside or staying
inside.


brushing  hippotherapy toys


hippotherapy outdoors  hippotherapy indoor arena

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©2008 Barbara Smith               

                
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