Elisabeth Svendsen Trust

Following Learning Development Week (21-27th June 2010), EST Leeds tells how donkey riding therapy has been instrumental in helping a young girl learn to walk and find a new sense of self-confidence. At the age of two, Abigail Preece was not yet able to crawl and struggled with a range of developmental delays that prevented her from interacting with children and adults outside of her family.

Abigail has low muscle tone and learning difficulties which caused social difficulties and problems with balancing and learning to walk. Now aged five, she has been attending the Leeds EST for the last three years and has amazed her family with the improvements that the riding sessions have made.

Mum, Carol, recalls: “When Abigail started receiving riding therapy she couldn’t walk and constantly needed me to accompany her with activities. She was very withdrawn and wouldn’t interact with other children or join in with their activities or games.”

“Since we began coming to EST for weekly riding sessions I have seen enormous changes in what Abigail is able to achieve. The riding sessions are tailored to include activities that focus on developing Abigail’s core strength and flexibility. Her physiotherapist is delighted with the improvements in her muscle tone, mobility and posture – she is now able to run around like every other child which is wonderful to see.”

The riding sessions have also given Abigail the confidence to enjoy activities in which she would previously been unable to participate. She can now use the stirrups to climb on to the donkey, hold the reins during riding and engages with the educational elements of each session such as naming colours and matching pictures together. She has also become confident enough to interact with the other children at the centre and has managed to form strong friendships.

Abigail often rides with her sister, Isabelle, at the Saturday club and in school holidays. Carol says: “It’s brilliant that the girls can do an activity together that they both enjoy, Abigail is always excited about visiting the centre to ride the donkeys and asks most days if it’s ‘donkeys today’.”

Over 170 children attend the EST Leeds centre each week and visiting provides support to Carol and other parents in similar circumstances. Carol says: “While Abigail is receiving her riding therapy with the centre’s expert staff, I get the chance to talk to other families, share experiences and swap information about what kind of support is available, which is extremely useful to me.”

To find out more about the work of The Elisabeth Svendsen Trust for Children and Donkeys please call 01395 573133.