The nonprofit Pennsylvania Warhorse, which offers personal connections with horses to help people heal from trauma, held an open house Nov. 16 so people could meet the animals and learn more about its services.
Donna Simpson is the organization’s founder and executive director, starting in 2019.
“I saw a need for veterans other than typical therapy of sitting down and rehashing what’s happened,” she said. “If you tell us enough, it wouldn’t bother you so much. It doesn’t work that way — it bothers you more.”
Pennsylvania Warhorse is available to veterans and first responders for free.
Being able to pet and interact with animals slows heart and breathing rates, Simpson said, so it can be beneficial for people who have experienced high levels of stress or have trouble sleeping.
Simpson said each program starts off with safety parameters. Participants need to learn horse behavior and safety procedures, especially because the animals are so large.
Then, they can sit in the stables or help care for them. Their level of interaction is dependent on what the people and the horses are comfortable with.
“Some of them just come and sit in the aisle and take in the ambiance of farm life and others are in the stalls,” Simpson said. “Some of them, they’ll close up the ring and they’ll unhook them and they’ll run around and the horse is chasing them, and then they turn around and chase the horse, and they do little obstacle courses.”
The open house was the first event held at their new location — 1709 N. State Route 934.
Simpson said she was happy with the turnout throughout the day. She said many people stopped by to learn about the program and get to pet the animals.
Marcus Riddell, who is on the board of directors and participated in the program several years ago, said he served in the Navy for eight years in the 2000s and was a volunteer firefighter.
He said he mainly had trouble sleeping, and caring for the horses helped.
“It completely changed my sleep habits. The stress was gone,” he said. “It took about six months. It doesn’t happen overnight, but with constant work, it comes around.”
But their interactions also helped the horses heal from their own traumas.
Lt. Dan came to Pennsylvania Warhorse as skinny, badly cared for, and with an injury to his right hind leg. Riddell said he taught the horse how to hug, and now he loves attention from humans. Before, he wouldn’t let anyone touch his head or face.
“It’s just the bond you get with a horse,” Riddell said. “Before he wouldn’t trust anybody because he was abused. Now, he has the trust bond built up.”
Lt. Dan is in training with Riddell to be a Civil War reenactment horse.
Information about Pennsylvania Warhorse is available on its website. Anyone interested in participating should contact the provided phone number or email address to learn more.
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