Celebrating 20 Years of Pioneering Psychotherapy Incorporating Horses
The Congressional Horse Caucus will have its field meeting at Eagala 20th Conference in Lexington, KY.
Eagala is celebrating their 20th Anniversary conference, February 26-29th. Over 600 Eagala members from across the U.S. and 18 countries will gather in Lexington to network, learn and celebrate the past 20 years, the current landscape and create clarity for the next 20 years in the rapidly growing Eagala Model approach. The Eagala Model teams a licensed mental health professional, qualified equine specialist and horses to effectively work with clients addressing mental health issues.
As part of the conference, Eagala is proud to host the Congressional Horse Caucus. On Saturday, Feb. 29th, 10:30 am – 12:30 pm, on behalf of Eagala CEO, Lynn Thomas, and with the support of the American Horse Council, members of the Congressional Horse Caucus will be attending a live, hands-on demonstration with horses and a panel discussion at the Lexington Convention Center Heritage Hall East room. The panel will talk about the impact of incorporating horses in mental health services for Veterans with PTSD and re-entry transitions, suicide prevention, substance abuse recovery, rural mental health issues and other mental health needs in which horses can have a positive impact on treatment outcomes.
In attendance will be Horse Caucus Co-chairman Congressman Andy Barr (R-KY 6), a member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, who has been a strong advocate for this method to improve the lives of veterans and horses, including retired racehorses. He has led legislation funding equine-assisted services for mental health issues through the Veterans Administration Adaptive Sports Grant, and co-sponsored the IMPROVE Well Being for Veterans Act (H.R. 3495) – a veteran suicide prevention bill to provide grants to community organizations that interact with veterans who may not seek care at the VA, and includes access to equine-assisted services.
Photo courtesy of EAGALA
Invited to participate in the panel includes members of the Congressional Horse Caucus, leaders in the horse and equine-assisted services industries, and veterans and others who have benefited from these services. It will be moderated by Eagala Legislative Director, Ellen Stroud. Horse industry and mental health leaders are invited to attend. Contact [email protected] for information. Visit https://www.eagala.org/conference for Eagala conference information.
