Equine Assisted World with Rupert Isaacson

 ✨ "It's not the breed, it's the brain." – Nik Lewis  Rupert Isaacson speaks with Nik Lewis of Horses R Us NZ, an equine facilitated learning program near Taupo in the Central North Island of New Zealand. For about eight years, Horses R Us has worked with young people and adults, including neurodiverse clients and clients working on social-emotional goals or riding, with no set parameters. As Nik...

Rupert Isaacson speaks with Dr. Amanda Minervini, founder of EAGLE (Equine Guided Learning And Healing Experience), a nonprofit equine program in Colorado Springs, and professor at Colorado College. EAGLE began taking shape during the pandemic, in response to a worsening mental health crisis. It was built around the preferences of one horse: Jimmy, an off-the-track Thoroughbred who raced as a stal...

✨ "I think the horse and the animal is kind of an anchor that keeps you in the present." – Krisztina Molnar Deep in the forest near Debrecen in eastern Hungary, a six-year-old foundation has become a home for animal-assisted therapy of every kind: clinical equine-assisted psychotherapy, work with neurodivergent children, family therapy, group therapy for children, adolescents and parents, and ses...

 ✨ "Well, I'm an engineer. I collect data." – Laila Rahmatian  Laila Rahmatian is an autism mom and former NASA engineer, originally from Houston and living in Indianapolis, Indiana when her son Donatello was diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder in October 2024 — now based near Frankfurt, Germany. Unlike most guests on this show, Laila isn't a practitioner — she's a service user. After her son...

✨ "It's not that I gave up. I switched." – Carolina Lockwood  Carolina Lockwood joins Rupert Isaacson from Bariloche, in the Patagonia region of Argentina, where she has spent more than 30 years building equine-assisted work from the ground up — first blending art therapy with horses, then training directly with Rupert in Texas, then running an intensive Horse Boy–style program, then coaching, an...

✨ "It's not about the job or the wages. You have to love it with absolute passion." – Helen Picha Helen Picha manages Liskennett Farm, a groundbreaking equine-assisted therapy center for children and adults with autism and intellectual disabilities in Granagh, County Limerick, Ireland, on the border of Limerick and Cork. She took over as manager two years ago after eleven years working alongside...

✨ "I think the worst thing that people can do is say no." – Nicola Hepburn Equine Learning is a therapeutic and alternative education provision based at Wootton Park in Warwickshire, UK, founded by Nicola Hepburn in 2008 as one of the UK's earliest equine-facilitated learning organizations. Today it helps neurodivergent young people and adults with learning difficulties build academic, vocational...

Sanaa Pharayra runs the Romeo Roadshow, a Southern California-based program that brings miniature horses named Romeo and Ziggy directly into memory care facilities, senior day programs, and hospital rooms for people living with Alzheimer's and dementia. What began as a rescue project for a single abandoned, feral miniature horse has grown into a program now drawing research interest from the Unive...

✨ "I believe that in our ancestry we were equestrians, and that's why it's connected so hard with my family." – Louis Hook For 35 years, the Compton Cowboys mission has run a self-development program in Compton, California, that leverages horses to help kids grow into upstanding young men and women — serving roughly 30 kids a year. Founding member Louis Hook and HeartMath practitioner Kansas Carr...

Russell Craig is a celebrated visual artist now based between Philadelphia, New York, and Wellington, Florida, who grew up in the foster care system from age five and spent a total of twelve years in the Pennsylvania prison system before building an art career that has taken him from a mural on the African American Museum in Philadelphia to the White House, the Democratic National Convention, and...

✨ "They come in with a cane and feeling disabled, and then they say, 'Here, take the cane, honey. I'm gonna walk this horse.' We've seen this so many times we can't even number it." – Nancy Schier Anzelmo Description Paula Hertel and Nancy Schier Anzelmo are the co-founders of Connected Horse, a California-based program that brings equine-assisted experiences to older adults living with dementia...

✨ "What is HeartMath doing? They're measuring your care." – Kansas Carradine Description Kansas Carradine is a HeartMath-certified trainer, acrobatic stunt rider, and equine guided educator based in the Sierra Nevada mountains of California. She spent years performing with the international touring show Cavalia — working alongside 70+ head of horses, many of them stallions — before dedicating her...

Kim Barthel is an occupational therapist, international educator, and author based in British Columbia, Canada, trained in sensory integration, neurodevelopmental therapy, and holotropic breathwork. Leana Tank is an occupational therapist and consultant working with complex populations including individuals in the criminal justice system, combining equine-assisted practice with deep expertise in m...

✨ "The horses don't see the stories. They see who you are right now — and what you brought with you." – Jane Strong Jane Strong is the founder and executive director of The Equus Effect, a nonprofit based in Connecticut, USA, that uses equine-assisted experiences to help veterans and first responders rebuild healthy relationships — with themselves, each other, and their communities. What sets Jan...

✨ "The healing process is there in service of your life, not the other way around. Do the healing in order to live." – Kira Julius  Kira Julius is a German-Danish horse trainer and equine assisted practitioner whose career has taken her from working young horses in Tanzania at 16, to eight years alongside Australian warmblood specialist Will Rogers — first in the Netherlands, then Germany — to th...

Petra Vlasblom is a Dutch horse behavior specialist based in the Netherlands, founder of 2Moons, and one of Europe's most sought-after trainers for problem horses — particularly in the high-stakes world of elite sport horses. She came to the profession not through a traditional equestrian route, but as a former graphic designer from the city who fell in love with an "unrideable" horse that nobody...

In this episode of Equine Assisted World, Rupert Isaacson speaks with Lucy Dillon, who runs the equine unit at ChildVision in Drumcondra — right in the center of Dublin, Ireland. ChildVision (formerly St. Joseph’s School for the Blind) provides services for children and young people with visual impairments and complex needs. Unlike most equine‑assisted programs located in rural areas, Lucy’s progr...

In this deeply personal and wide‑ranging episode of Equine Assisted World, Rupert Isaacson speaks with longtime colleague and friend Karla Brahms of Wellenreiter in the Odenwald, Germany — a region steeped in myth, forest, and living horse culture. What begins as a conversation about equine‑assisted practice unfolds into an intimate exploration of grief, love, resilience, and the sacred role horse...

In this grounded and deeply moving episode of Equine Assisted World , Rupert Isaacson speaks with Christine Doran, founder of Triple H Ranch in the Chicago area — a rare ecosystem that combines a full‑scale horse rescue with equine‑assisted work for humans. Christine shares how her path into this work began as a teenager through a moment of spiritual clarity, and how that calling evolved into more...

What if the core of equine‑assisted work isn’t a method, a certification, or a discipline — but the shared act of creating a new story together? In this wide‑ranging and deeply human conversation, Rupert Isaacson speaks with Betsy Kahl — senior PATH instructor, social worker, horsewoman, and long‑time collaborator in the Horse Boy and Takhin Equine Integration work. Drawing on decades of experienc...

In this powerful and far‑reaching episode of Equine Assisted World , Rupert Isaacson speaks with Brandy Tomhave, Executive Director of the Native American Humane Society and an enrolled member of the Choctaw Nation. This conversation goes far beyond animal welfare. Together, Rupert and Brandy explore how animals—especially dogs and horses—serve as bridges between cultures, as carriers of medicine,...

In this episode of Equine Assisted World, Rupert Isaacson speaks with Katja Mehlhorn — psychologist, academic, and founder of Horse Kids Groningen in the Netherlands. Katja bridges two worlds that rarely meet: university‑level research and deeply embodied, nature‑based equine‑assisted practice. From her early work in PATH programs in the United States to building a highly individualized, child‑led...

In this episode of Equine Assisted World, Rupert Isaacson speaks with Suzie Latchford, founder of Heal With Horses in Ontario, Canada — a long‑running equine‑assisted program working with autistic children, families, and communities in a demanding four‑season climate. Suzie shares how Heal With Horses grew organically over more than fifteen years, often without a clear roadmap, and what that growt...

In this episode, Rupert Isaacson speaks with Celisse Barrett — a practitioner whose work blends equine‑assisted therapy, movement‑based regulation, and full‑scale equestrian spectacle. From trick riding, vaulting, and Roman riding to using these same performance skills day‑to‑day with clients, Celisse shows how horses become partners in confidence‑building, trauma recovery, coordination, and empow...

✨ “Fun is the foundation of transformation. Once people laugh, anything becomes possible.” – Troy Shaw ✨ “Clichés are cliches because they’re true – when you make horses healthier and happier, you make humans healthier and happier, too.” – Rupert Isaacson What happens when a corporate manager swaps the boardroom for the barn? In this heartwarming episode, Rupert Isaacson speaks with Troy Shaw, c...