Ben had his consult visit for Hippo Therapy this morning (no, he won't be ridding a Hippo, it is therapeutic horseback riding to help with balance and hips). We were lucky enough to get a spot in the extremely sought after program that starts this spring. Many of our CHARGE friends have participated in Hippo Therapy and have had wonderful things to say about it.
This morning we went over all the paperwork, learned about the program, got a tour of the facility and met the pony Ben will be riding. I'm very excited for Ben to start his therapy and I'm really hoping he takes to his new four legged friend Dixie. He freaked out when he got close to her eating some snacks and wanted to be taken away. Sitting on the saddle will also be challenging for him because that is quite a stretch for his tight legs, but really good for him if he can tolerate it. I'm going to get trained to be a volunteer so I can walk next to the horse and therapist when Ben is riding since he will need me for suctioning of the trach (they don't want people walking with the horses unless they have gone through training - can't say I blame them). Until the sessions start, we will be showing him lots of pictures of horses! Hopefully that will get him more familiar when it comes time to ride.
While we waited in the lobby, we tried Ben on one of the wood horses with saddles.
Ben preferred to ride his car and just look at the saddles.
This is the room where they get the riders ready.
Can't ride a horse without a helmet...
Or one of these, whatever they are...
Here are the stables - Ben's horse was outside in a coat (it was COLD).
The name tag marking Dixie's stall.
And here she IS! Hi Dixie!
The indoor ring for bad weather days...
And the outdoor ring.
7 comments:
I give Ben a couple more times on the wooden horse and he'll be ready for mechanical bulls. I'm thrilled that Ben is being given this opportunity. To Ben I say, Hi Ho Silver or in his case, Hi Ho Dixie.
Love, Grandma D.
What an amazing opportunity! We can't wait to hear more about Ben's adventures with Dixie Darlin'!
Hi Amy....I love the picture of Mike with Ben! Talk about a deer in the headlight look! I can only imagine what he is thinking, LOL. Hopefully this will help get him closer to the day he can walk, I know he can do it. He is a strong little boy. See you tomorrow morning.
Kim
Eva LOVES her riding and I am so happy we can continue with it. If Ben learns to sit on the horse it will really help his legs be not so tight.
Have a wonderful time and I can not wait to see pics of Ben on Dixie!!
Hugs,
Crystal and Eva
PS Do they have a helmet small enough for Ben? Our place did not so we bought Eva one and we bring it every week.
Katie used to ride Dixie, too! The things in the picture below the helmets are waist straps. They buckle one around the rider, and then it has "handles" on the sides that the side walkers can hold onto to help the rider balance.
I'm thinking about taking the training sometime this spring so I can volunteer there in the summer.
Can't wait to see Ben there!
Aunt Jen, Uncle Aaron, and Cousin Elle said...
That is so cool! I'm sure it will take Ben some getting used to, but I think he will end up loving his pony Dixie. Those pics are adorable. Where is that place? I'll email you some pics of Elle on that horse when we went to see my brother at that campground at Halloween. He's always loved riding horses and he'll get a kick out of these pics. Keep us posted!
:) Love you all!
Wow, that's exciting! Can't wait to hear how it goes. Maybe one of these days we'll have to give it a try with Luke.
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