RESEARCH/LITERATURE
Literature to explore.
Books, articles and clinical research about equine-assisted psychotherapy that we would like to gather, study and bring into our practice.
A list to read and check over time.
Reviews
Reviews and meta-analyses
Stern C., Chur-Hansen A. (2019).
An umbrella review of the evidence for equine-assisted interventions.
Australian Journal of Psychology, 71(4).
A review of 13 systematic reviews (79 studies). The authors find the evidence still too weak to call these interventions best practice, and ask for stronger research.
Provan M., Ahmed Z., Stevens A.R., Sardeli A.V. (2024).
Are equine-assisted services beneficial for military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder? A systematic review and meta-analysis.
BMC Psychiatry, 24.
13 studies, 344 veterans: lower PTSD scores after treatment; most studies had a risk of bias.
Cornelius-White J.H., Joyce S.E., Taylor M. (2024).
Equine-Assisted Services for Veterans with PTSD: a Meta-Analysis.
Society and Animals.
18 studies (2013–2021) on equine-assisted psychotherapy and therapeutic riding for veterans with PTSD.
Fuller-Lovins S., Kanamori Y., Myers C.E., Cornelius-White J.H. (2023).
The Effectiveness of Equine-Assisted Mental Health Interventions for Youth: A Meta-Analysis of Controlled Studies.
Adolescent Research Review.
16 controlled studies, 1,009 young people: a moderate overall improvement; no clear effect on self-esteem or depressive symptoms.
Li J., Sánchez-García R. (2023).
Equine-assisted interventions for veterans with posttraumatic stress disorder: a systematic review.
Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1277338.
Asks for clearer descriptions of the interventions, more attention to horse welfare, and longer follow-up.
(2020).
Psychodynamic Based Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy in Adults with Intertwined Personality Problems and Traumatization: A Systematic Review.
International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17, 5661.
Authors still to be added.
Diaz L., Gormley M.A., Coleman A., Sepanski A., Corley H., Perez A., Litwin A.H. (2022).
Equine-assisted services for individuals with substance use disorders: a scoping review.
Substance Abuse Treatment, Prevention, and Policy, 17(1), 81.
Koca T.T., Ataseven H. (2016).
What is hippotherapy? The indications and effectiveness of hippotherapy.
Northern Clinics of Istanbul, 2(3), 247–252.
Clinical research
Clinical studies and reports
McCrea C.E., Tibbets G., Smith L.W., Campbell C.G. (2025).
At-risk youth receive similar benefits from equine-assisted psychotherapy and traditional psychotherapy; an applied analysis.
Frontiers in Psychiatry, 16.
94 adolescents: equine-assisted psychotherapy and talk therapy brought similar improvements.
Klontz B.T., Bivens A., Leinart D., Klontz T. (2007).
The effectiveness of equine-assisted experiential therapy: Results of an open clinical trial.
Society and Animals, 15, 257–226.
The page numbers “257–226” cannot be right (the end is before the start). To check.
Schultz P.N., Remick-Barlow G.A., Robbins L. (2007).
Equine-assisted psychotherapy: A mental health promotion/intervention modality for children who have experienced intra-family violence.
Health and Social Care in the Community, 15, 265–271.
Ewing C.A., MacDonald P.M., Taylor M., Bowers M.J. (2007).
Equine-facilitated learning for youths with severe emotional disorders: A quantitative and qualitative study.
Child and Youth Care Forum, 36, 59–72.
Tyler J.J. (1994).
Equine psychotherapy: Worth more than just a horse laugh.
Women & Therapy, 15(3–4), 139–146.
Lancia J. (2008, Spring).
Ascent from hell: EAP in the treatment of war veterans.
EAGALA in Practice, 2.
The original WindHorse Farm link (windhorsefarmllc.com) could not be opened. To find another copy.
Moore L., Wagner P., Jeffrey H. (2009, March).
Addiction programming model at its best.
Paper presented at the 10th annual conference of the Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association, Asheville, NC.
Nelson C., Dossett K., Walker D.L. (2024).
Equine-Assisted Therapy for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Among First Responders.
Psychological Reports, 127(5), 2203–2219.
Holm M.B., Baird J.M., Kim Y.J., Rajora K.B., D’Silva D., Podolinsky L., Mazefsky C., Minshew N. (2014).
Therapeutic horseback riding outcomes of parent-identified goals for children with autism spectrum disorder: an ABA’ multiple case design examining dosing and generalization to the home and community.
Journal of Autism and Developmental Disorders, 44(4), 937–947.
The horse
The horse's side
(2021).
Pilot Study of the Influence of Equine Assisted Therapy on Physiological and Behavioral Parameters Related to Welfare of Horses and Patients.
Animals, December 2021.
Heart rate, breathing and stress behaviour of two horses over 9–10 sessions.
Authors still to be added.
University of Guelph (2015).
Horse Welfare Focus of Equine-Assisted Therapy Study.
News article.
McDuffee L.A., Montelpare W.J., LeBlanc C. (2024).
Psychophysiological effects of equine-facilitated psychotherapy on Veterans with PTSD and their horse partners.
Journal of Military, Veteran and Family Health, 10(3), 135–147.
The land
Horses and the land
Ribeiro I., et al. (2025).
Semi-wild horse grazing as a rewilding strategy: Assessing effects on vegetation structure and composition in the Côa Valley, Portugal.
Frontiers in Ecology and Evolution.
Semi-wild horses kept the grass short, but did not control the shrubs. Horses help the land, together with other animals and people; they are not the whole answer.
Janeiro-Otero A., et al. (2024).
Application of remote sensing to understand the role of Galician feral horses in the biomass reduction of a shrub-grassland-dominated landscape.
BMC Ecology and Evolution.
Where the horses grazed in Galicia, there was less gorse, and modelled fire spread more slowly. In strong wind the effect mostly disappeared.
Global Rewilding Alliance, Fundación Montescola.
Wild horses in Spain are firefighters.
Article.
Galicia's wild horses and their part in keeping the mountains safer from fire.
Books
Books and manuals
Hallberg L. (2018).
The Clinical Practice of Equine-Assisted Therapy: Including Horses in Human Healthcare.
Routledge.
Kohanov L.
The Tao of Equus: A Woman’s Journey of Healing and Transformation Through the Way of the Horse.
New World Library.
Rees L.
Horses in Company.
The Crowood Press.
How horses live together when they are free.
McCormick A., McCormick M.D. (1997).
Horse sense and the human heart: What horses can teach us about trust, bonding, creativity and spirituality.
Deerfield Beach, FL: Health Communications, Inc.
Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association, Inc. (2004).
Equine-assisted mental health resource handbook.
Santaquin, UT: Author.
Kersten G., Thomas L. (2000).
Training manual, level II.
Santaquin, UT: Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association, Inc.
Kersten G., Thomas L. (2004).
UnTraining manual, level I.
Santaquin, UT: Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association, Inc.
Organisations
Organisations and terms
Eagala.
Equine Assisted Growth and Learning Association: the Eagala model.
Organisation.
PATH International.
Optimal Terminology.
Shared terms for services that include horses, with “equine-assisted services” as the umbrella term.
North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (2010a).
EAAT definitions.
Retrieved from narha.org.
The narha.org links no longer open. NARHA is now called PATH International (above).
North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (2010b).
NARHA.
Retrieved from narha.org.
See the note above.
