In April of 2024, Staunton Farm Foundation awarded Bella Terra Stables a grant to help support individual therapy sessions and learning programs. With the help of Staunton Farm, Bella Terra Stables continues to spread its magic across Allegheny County.

Amber Power, equine professional, and Ilse Eisele, mental health professional, combined forces and began working together in 2019 running an Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy program out of Rock Creek Park Horse Center in Washington, D.C. Early in 2020, all programming had to be shut down. 57 horses were without a home. And Amber and Ilse’s dreams seemed to evaporate.

But when inquiries about the Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy program poured in as the pandemic began to affect the mental health of so many in the area, Amber and Ilse went on the hunt for other barns that might allow the program to continue. ​After weeks of searching, Amber’s father said, “Why don’t you just come home! Your grandparent’s farm is empty and it would be great to have horses there again.”

So they traveled to Pittsburgh with eight horses that weren’t able to be rehomed. And they made magic.

Read below to learn more about Bella Terra Stables and how the amazing women who run it are creating a new space to heal.

Innate Need for Connection

Being herd animals, horses have an innate need to connect with other horses. Humans too, have an innate need to connect with one another. Because we share this commonality with horses, we find that horses will often connect with us on levels we could not imagine possible.

Horses are also prey animals. One of the greatest gifts they possess is their ability to pay close attention to their surroundings. That attention to even the most subtle cue and nuance has ensured their survival in the wild. They carry this gift of unbiased awareness with them into the backyard barns, riding schools, and therapy arenas, and it is this awareness that enables them to sense human emotions. Horse’s reactions to human emotions and feelings are reflected back to us through their movements and actions.

When you step into the arena at Bella Terra Stables for Equine-Assisted Therapy, you have to be fully present. You’re sharing the space with this large animal that’s very aware of your energy and mental state. If you’re nervous or anxious, they will be too. The horse might run around, or even go lay down in a separate area to regulate their emotions. They’re actively acknowledging how you feel, and though it’s perfectly safe, in that moment, there isn’t really an escape. You’re forced to confront it.

This horse-human connection and interaction lay a strong foundation for therapeutic exploration, growth, and healing.

Pause. Communicate. Stay United.

Aside from regular therapy sessions for anyone who needs them, Bella Terra Stables’ horses fuel their learning programs which are therapeutic in nature. But it’s never one-size-fits all when it comes to helping children heal and find their voice.

A group of students from Braddock became the first class to test out Thrive, the Equine-Assisted Learning program. Each child was experiencing their own immense amount of grief due to gun violence. After six weeks of working with the horses, their final test was to build an intense obstacle course and guide three of their horses through it.

How do you get a one thousand pound prey animal to make it through a very intimidating obstacle course? After lots of chaos and failed attempts, the students came up with three strategies:

1. Stop yelling at each other
2. Communicate and make a plan
3. Stay united.

They were told to look back at those three things and realized … that’s life. You need to pause, communicate, and stick together. And you can get through anything.

The kids from Braddock are just one example of the magic this program provides. Bella Terra currently works with seven school districts in 10 communities providing everything from emergency crisis response sessions where they bring horses to the schools and help regulate big emotions, educating students on what it takes to be a horse trainer, group therapy sessions, leadership skills workshops, and more.

To learn more about Equine-Assisted Psychotherapy or to bring the Equine-Assisted Learning program to your school, visit www.bellaterrastables.org.