NYT: Massage, facial, pedicure… equine therapy?

A New York Times article reports that spas around the country have begun adding horses to their service menu.

Equine therapy, long a part of drug rehabilitation and psychotherapy programs across the country, is increasingly offered at spas as a supplement to massages and facials. At most of them, participants do not ride the horses, but learn to relate to them to achieve personal goal.”

Therapy options range from mounted experiences to working with horses on the ground to participating in barn chores like stall cleaning and feeding.

Programs profiled in the article include the Equine Journey at the Inn at Bay Harbor in Michigan, the Travaasa Spas in Texas, and the Miraval Spa and Resort in Arizona. The equine workshop at the Inn at Bay Harbor costs an extra $250 a day, and Miraval’s more-intensive four-day program is $600.

When you start thinking about your horse as an on-call therapist, it makes that board bill seem like a bargain.

Read the full article here.

Thanks to Liz Fletcher for the tip!