Programs
Our clinically proven program puts those with neuropsychiatric conditions like PTSD, autism, anxiety, and depression into a healing environment using horses, small social animals, and movement-based activities. In these activities, specific movements activate the cerebellum and prefrontal cortex, helping participants achieve emotional regulation, communication, learning, and more.
Learn more about our programs below. Applications can be sent to kaylee@smilinggoatranch.com. Our team will review your application and reach out to schedule a consultation session.
Who We Serve
Autism
A 2019 U.S. government survey revealed 1 in every 45 children, ages 3 through 17, have been diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder. We meet the needs of the community by executing recreational programs for autism families that did not have access for reasons of behaviors, size, income, and learning style. The Horse Boy Method was developed by following children with autism, and has been backed by research.
PTSD
The VA reports 11-20% of veterans deployed to Iraq and Afghanistan experience PTSD each year. Healthcare costs for a veteran with PTSD are 3.5 times as much as care for those without the disorder. In the U.S., 8% of women and 4% of men will develop PTSD at some point in their life. We work with individual veterans and non-veterans as well as veterans’ organizations to provide individual, family, and group services.
Depression, Anxiety, Grief, & Recovery
NAMI reports that 1 in 5 adults and 1 in 6 youth experience a mental health disorder each year. Less than half receive treatment. We work with individuals of all ages experiencing depression, anxiety, and grief, as well as local grief groups and substance use recovery centers to provide individual, family, and group services.
What We Do
Family Sessions
We provide 1-hour weekly sessions for individuals and families. Each individual session or family “playdate” is tailored to the family’s needs as well as the child’s or adult’s specific goals. Playdates may include sensory work, back-riding, long-lining, small animal time, playground play, or other activities. During these sessions, we do not require children to ride horses or teach horsemanship skills, but rather focus on the interests and goals of the child and how we can best meet them through our programs.
Groups
Smiling Goat Ranch partners with local autism services, veterans’ organizations, recovery centers, and grief groups to provide equine- and animal-assisted therapy services. Groups may include sensory work, trail rides, small animal time, breath work, art therapy, or other activities led by our staff and outside therapists.
We also work with groups from local schools and youth services organizations to provide custom experiences.
Community
Special holiday events are held seasonally to promote community among the families we serve and provide a welcoming space for kids to celebrate as they are. These include Easter, 4th of July, and Halloween. Our staff, volunteers, families, and animals all join in on the fun during these celebrations! We also hold multiple annual fundraising events.
Special Programs
Junior Volunteers
Returning for 2023, our junior volunteer group provides an opportunity for youth ages 11-14 to connect with peers and develop leadership skills while helping care for animals and working on projects around the ranch!
This drop-in program is open to youth with and without neuropsychiatric diagnoses and will be offered throughout the spring and summer. Space is limited and registration is required. Email Kaylee for more information.
IGY6 -
Coming Soon!
IGY6 is an all-new program at SGR created by veterans for veterans. This program is designed to provide support for PTSD, anxiety, and depression. Participants will be paired with another veteran and an animal for a series of four on-site sessions as well as regular check-ins. Trained facilitators will teach about human-animal bonds, mindfulness, and more in a safe, non-judgmental space.
Sign up below to be notified when registration opens.
“We need more places like Smiling Goat Ranch where they apply out-of-the-box methods to help those suffering with mental health issues. Their clinically proven program puts those with [neuropsychiatric] conditions like PTSD, autism, anxiety and depression into a healing environment. There is so much potential to help people where they integrate the outdoors and the healing qualities of animals.”
— Lt Colonel Dick Merritt, U.S. Marine Corps (Ret)
How It Works
Sensory Work
During sensory work, our team guides you through various body-to-body positions on a static horse. The common thread between neuropsychiatric conditions from autism to anxiety is elevated cortisol, also known as the fight-or-flight hormone. Cortisol affects mood, sleep, immune response, and much more. Sensory work is the first step in reducing cortisol.
Back-Riding
During back-riding, a staff member rides a horse with the child in front of them. Alternatively, a staff member can “long-line” a child/teen or child and parent. Long-lining allows those with no horsemanship experience to ride independently, while the horse is directed from behind. Through the motion of the horse’s movement, the rider experiences an increase in oxytocin, the tend-and-befriend hormone. Oxytocin has been shown to help improve communication, social behaviors, and learning in those with neuropsychiatric conditions.
Communication & Learning
For kids and adults with neuropsychiatric conditions like autism, communication and learning can be difficult. The oxytocin produced by back-riding and other activities can make these easier. As someone progresses through the stages of the Horse Boy Method, we focus on a variety of these skills - from academics to self-advocacy. When we are fully immersed in an activity we enjoy, like riding on a horse, learning becomes not only achievable but also enjoyable.
Movement Method
Horses are only one tool in our program at Smiling Goat Ranch. Other activities, particularly those that incorporate rhythmic movement, can activate the sensory system and create oxytocin in similar ways. Flipping, swinging, or spinning in aerial silks, rocking in a hammock, climbing and sliding on the playground, playing music in the yurt, running in the grass, or brushing ponies can all be tools for healing as well!
Recreation Therapy
Recreation therapy is a process using recreation and activity-based interventions to help individuals improve health, wellbeing, and quality of life. While it may look like all fun and games, recreation therapy interventions are designed and chosen intentionally to work toward the person’s goals.
Smiling Goat Ranch incorporates recreation therapy into all of our programs, with the help of our CTRS. Additionally, all activities are based in the Horse Boy Method of equine-assisted therapy and learning. These activities are not only fun, but also backed by research!
“Life changing is the only way to describe it. The team uses Declan’s favorite toys and games to push him into doing things that in other surroundings are scary. But the environment at the ranch is so welcoming that he feels comfortable in trying new things out (which for an Autistic child is HUGE)!”
Smiling Goat Ranch in Action
