For Baltimore County Seniors, Interacting With Horses Is Therapeutic

The Glen Meadows Retirement Community in Baltimore County, Md., has partnered with a local farm to improve seniors' lives with visits in which they interact with horses, reports the Baltimore Sun . Notchcliff Farm houses 19 horses. Glen Meadows residents do not ride the horses, but feed and brush them, watch farriers change their horseshoes, and enjoy riding demonstrations by their owners. "Petting the horses and just interacting with them is similar to like working with service dogs or service cats," says Glen Meadows fitness director Jennifer Perkovich. Maryland Therapeutic Riding Program Director Kelly Rodgers adds that being around such animals can give senior visitors an emotional lift. "So many of our volunteers say it's therapeutic to them . . . being able to interact with the horses and learn from them — they teach us so many things," she notes. Horse-assisted therapies have been shown to help people with physical impairments and psychological conditions, including anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder, and substance abuse.