Equine assisted therapy centre “Friends of Zita”

07.07.2016

Two years already Equine assisted therapy centre “Friends of Zita” works for the success of its cause - helping children with specific needs. The association is a non profit organization with the purpose of helping the psychiatric and physical improvement of children with disabilities. “We help children with specific needs to play, learn and work with the rest of us, who live without the burden of being different“ Says Veselina Feldman, chairwoman of the association and main trainer in the therapy sessions.

For the last year the therapy centre is proud with children who significantly improved their social skills. Amongst the horses, some of them spoke their first words and others improved their physical functioning, explains Veselina Feldman, who herself is a mother of two children, author of many scientific publications and international horse therapy articles. She practices horse riding since she was 10 years old. She has 5 years of experience in horse jumping competitions in club “Varna” and a bachelor degree in Psychology and a master’s degree in Clinical psychology from NBU. Her work combines the passion for horses and psychology in one – Equine assisted therapy for children with specific needs.   

- Why is this cause and not just everyday work?

- We are specialists, trying to make way in Bulgaria, for yet unfamiliar and not typical practices, that are widely acknowledged in the world with their effectiveness in the improvement of the social, linguistic, emotional, cognitive and physical condition of children with specific needs. Equine assisted therapy is a method that has positive effect on all children. Through communication with the horses the children learn trust, care, connect emotionally, love, be conscious, come out of their shell, be understood even without words. I admit we wouldn’t have made it without the support of friends, families and organizations. Indeed the support that we receive is of great importance for our motivation to move further.  

-Tell us more about your success.

- We built a professional foundation, leaning on the already approved international experience in the equine assisted therapy field. After participating in an international training, association “Horse therapy” now has its specialist with an internationally acknowledged certificate from EAGALA - leading American organization in the field of equine therapy. In 2015 we received funding from two projects. One with the assistance of foundation “Reach for change” in partnership with Nova TV and the other with Municipality of Sofia through program Europe. 102 children with autism, cerebral paralysis, social and linguistic disorders got involved in the therapy sessions. What we see is that we can truly help and our struggle has a meaning. The joy on the children’s faces and the smile of their parents is what motivate s us to keep on going.

Let’s take the case with Boby for instance. He is 9 and has autism and mental retardation. His parents were desperate.. They  have tried everything and nothing gave a result. They thought that there is no way to improve their son’s condition. Boby is difficult. He can’t or perhaps doesn’t want to look after himself, he doesn’t speak and does not follow any rules or instructions, although there are indications that he understands most of them. His behavior has two aspects. He is either sad and whining covering his years in full isolation from the surrounding world, or he jumps and shouts in euphoria, doing things that endanger his physical state. Working with him is hard, but after a few sessions we managed to capture his attention and he started, even vaguely, to follow some rules. Boby likes to ride and to be around horses. His favorite thing to do is playing with straws while the horse is near, pushing and sniffing him. Boby started to initiate communication with the horse on his own and the biggest success is that for some time now he tries to speak to us. He tries repeating what we say.  He even says “aide” to tell the horse to move and tries other verbalizations related to the communication with the horse. We owe this miracle to the great potential that this unique therapy has. The kids start trusting the horse, communicates with him, in this process the children more easily express themselves and their problems and we as specialists observe and direct this process.

- How many children do you work yearly with?

- This year we have planned to work with 100 children. Again we have an approved project in partnership with the “People with disabilities association”. Thanks to this project, kids from two municipality centers will participate in the sessions. We still receive support from Nova TV, “Reach for change” as well as ING Bank. Our next challenge is building up an equine therapeutic centre, that answers to the world standards and conditions of work.

- Why did you named the centre “Friends of Zita”?

-Zita is our first horse. We started working with her in 2014. She is the most experienced mare. We count on her and her intuition and I must say that she is doing wonderful job with the kids.

- Where can families and organizations find you?

- The center is situated in Ivanyane village near Sofia. For the construction of a big and modern center we need a lot of resources and support, but we are optimistic that we will succeed in creating the place. The area will include gazebo for the parents to relax and observe while the kids are busy. Covered manege where we could work, ramp and equipment for improving of the kid’s physical condition. The whole space needs to have special ground cover with access to the different installations. We have a team of experts and horses, but we need constant support for the equipment, trainings, horses and maintenance.

Everyone who wants to help and support us and get involved in what we are doing can do it by connecting us. Everyone who wants to visit us is more than welcome. Here we you can witness magic – the magic of children smiling, lots of light, hope and equal chance for those who need it more than we do.

To learn more about the association visit: https://www.facebook.com/veselina.feldman?fref=ts