Therapeutic Riding Instructor

Therapeutic riding is a specially designed horseback riding for the physically and/or mentally handicapped. To be a certified therapeutic riding instructor, one needs to obtain certification through the NARHA (North American Riding for the Handicapped Association) in therapeutic instruction of the disabled. If the instructor plans on working with children, a background in child psychology will be beneficial, many of the kids with physical disabilities will also have learning disabilities or lack of interpersonal skills. An instructor must be good with people, especially children if he or she chooses to work with disabled kids.

The instructor will need to be able to design lesson plans that will benefit each child individually. The range of disabilities may be great, with kids suffering from physical or mental disabilities. To be a therapeutic riding instructor, one must have an extensive knowledge of horses. Not only must this person be able to determine if a horse has potential as a good therapeutic riding horse, he or she must be able to care for these sometime aging horses. They must also be familiar with the anatomy and physiology of a human body, as well as the disabilities that can hinder a person. For much of this background, a degree in Equine Science is beneficial, but not necessary, only certification is an absolute requirement. Other fields that could be of benefit would be the social work, child psychology, and hippotherapy. This job is very emotionally rewarding because it improves the lives of many adults and children.

Most of the people that work with therapeutic riding programs are volunteers, but there are paid positions also. Many therapeutic riding instructors have two jobs, such as running the barn they own and manage, and teaching lessons to the disabled. Fees charged can average about $50 dollars per lesson once a week. Due to the added requirements to service each client, group lessons are difficult and severely limited in number. Income is therefore dependent on the number of clients and tends to vary.