After volunteering for 5 years at a Dallas-area Equine Therapy center, Charles Fletcher founded SpiritHorse in 2002 offering one-on-one therapeutic riding, free of charge, to children and adults with disabilities. At this time, there were no specific industry methods that addressed such a wide range of diagnoses. Fletcher’s primary concern was to develop a healthcare program “to assist individuals
with special needs in reaching their full potential through interaction with horses.”
Between 2002 and 2008, our Corinth center provided approximately 88,600 lessons, reviewing and perfecting our methods. From 2009-2011, two studies were conducted to measure the effects of our therapy on individuals with Autism. The first by UT Southwestern Medical Center Department of Psychiatry, the Autism Treatment Center of Dallas & others, the second by Virje Universitiet, Amsterdam. The results of both were staggering – the Autism rating of all participants were found to be positively affected, and 9 children were even rated non-Autistic after 10 weeks of intervention; results were measured “Significant” which is the “Gold Standard” of statistical analysis. Both were published in various, peer-reviewed journals, and these studies stand witness to the power of the therapy we offer through the SpiritHorse Program. More information and links to these studies can be found at our website, www.spirithorsenews.com. Over the last twelve years, at our location in Corinth, our strategic location within the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex has allowed us to serve 10 counties surrounding our facility. The reach of this healing, however, is not limited to our main center in North Texas. Officially operating as SpiritHorse International since 2010, there are now 519 SpiritHorse-certified Instructors and 80 SpiritHorse centers worldwide: 63 across the United States, one in Central America, one in South America, four in Europe and one in South Africa. Through these other centers, SpiritHorse’ therapy program serves roughly 5,000 worldwide.
