CAROUSEL HORSE

About the Book

Spirit Horse II is the original of Carousel Horse. No single person is in the book. Each character is a mix of different riders, trainers, and volunteers. Some of the incidents really occurred, but are mixed with others that are similar, and some are fiction. Horses were an integral part of healing for the author, following a high-fever staph infection that left her very disabled. The ranch is a conglomerate of many programs run over the years by the author and other equine therapists. The author, while working with a severely abused horse one day, realized that if that animal could live in the small cage of a stall and still learn to trust her and build a new life, so could the author. That is the basis of Spirit Horse. The healing of the author started a program that has expanded to include working with psychiatrists, therapists, physical therapists, special education teachers, and parents, as well as veterans, first responders and their families. Spirit Horse II has joined Horses4heroes to provide vets ride free, a national effort of many member stables and programs to just provide a calm, peaceful moment in the lives of our veterans and their families to help them as they rebuild their lives after experiencing war. Horse owners, performance barns, and therapy or trail-riding stables are urged to join this project to share with our hometown heroes and their families the healing of horses. Whether just grooming, feeding carrots, or riding, horses have healed the author. Anyone who owns or works with horses is urged to join Horses4heroes and give a moment of your joy to others who surely have earned our help and respect.

About the Author

The author is the training director for National Homes for Heroes/Spirit Horse II equine therapeutic and healing riding programs. She developed EquiTherapy©™ and AquaTherapy©™ for her clients. These programs are taught with the therapists for the riders and/or the doctors and physical therapists for the riders. Many of the riders are there just to ride. They are able-bodied and have had incredible terrors to overcome in their lives. Healing riding is described as being with your horse. The author has many horse owners who donate their time and their animals to the programs so that should there be an emergency, there will not be a large number of animals without a place to be, or be cared for. A Native American, the author was the first of her nation’s women to complete law school. A high fever disease caused brain injuries that caused eight years to pass for her to be able to walk and talk well enough to walk hot horses for her younger son who was becoming a horse trainer. Volunteering in equine therapy programs and in programs with psychiatrists and psychologists who worked with high-risk kids, she combined the two—with great results. Following a shutdown due to cancer, the programs are now being restarted. The author is a member of Horses4heroes, a national network of horse facilities that donate time to veterans and their families for a ride to help them heal and find a place of peace horsemen know is on a horse. This book is donated to National Homes for Heroes/Spirit Horse II to raise funds for housing and new therapeutic riding programs for veterans and high-risk youths.