Of Course, Of Course

Perhaps you remember that line from Mr. Ed's theme song? A horse is a horse, of course, of course, he'll give you the answer that you endorse....I'm tired of talking about the same old things at Shrink Rap, so here's a horse of a different color. And you thought ClinkShrink did all the bad punning!

Over on the Clinical Psychiatry News website, there's an article by M. Alexander Otto about a study done in a state hospital in New Jersey on Horse Therapy. Otto writes:

In all, 32 patients worked with three specially trained therapy horses for 10 weeks in a corral built on campus for the purpose. They didn’t ride the horses, but instead saddled, brushed, and put them through various activities.

The weekly sessions lasted about an hour; the horses couldn’t tolerate much more. "It was hard work" for them, Dr. Schleifer said.

The project was part of a larger trial in which patients were randomized to either horse therapy, dog therapy, standard care, or off-ward group therapy, just in case the mere act of taking patients to a different part of campus – necessary for the dog and horse groups – made a difference in violence.

You can surf over there if you'd like to read more. I found it disturbing that this treatment was being tried if it bothered the horses.