by Jen Reeder

Durangoan Ron Tyner is living his dream. Born into a family of horsemen, Tyner learned about horses at a ranch owned by his grandfather, James Baird, near Elmore’s Corner.

“For his time, he was an amazing horseman. He was about 50 years ahead with the things he did with horses – he didn’t break them, he trained them,” Tyner said. “I listened to every word he said.”

So when someone asked him as an adult, “If you could do anything in the world, what would you do?” he instantly responded, “I’d work with horses and help people.”

Now he’s doing just that. He and his wife, Katie, assumed the reins of Cadence Therapeutic Riding Center in 2007 and moved it to their 14.2-acre property – the same place where Tyner trained with his granddad. The nonprofit uses “equine-assisted therapy” to help people with disabilities overcome them by riding or interacting with horses. The Tyners also offer “Horses for Heroes” to help veterans and military families cope with stress, as well as programs for people dealing with mental issues and drug and alcohol addiction; at-risk youth; corporate team building; and couples.

“The horse is just an amazing creature – the size, that honesty, the ability to read humans’ emotions … I could talk on and on about things that have happened,” Tyner said.

For example, there’s Justin Schmidt, a Navy veteran who returned from Afghanistan with a traumatic brain injury. Tyner said when Schmidt first arrived at Cadence, he used a wheelchair. He would ride an “old plug horse” because the movement of the horse reminded his brain how to move his legs to walk, according to Tyner. After awhile, Schmidt requested a better horse.

“Now he walks with a cane,” Tyner said. “It’s been miraculous to watch him.”

One of Cadence’s newest participants is Oliver Johnston, an almost 4-year-old boy with a speech disorder that makes talking a challenge. His speech therapist, Ramona May, said his speech improved after his first ride at Cadence because afterward, he told his mother, via sign language, that he wanted to go back to Cadence to see the horses and play a game there. That kind of speech initiation is a big step forward from waiting to respond to other people’s questions.

“I get goosebumps because I know the language promotion is unbelievable,” May said. “I would love to see more kids using this because it’s so valuable, because it’s using different vocabulary words, it uses a different part of the brain to promote language development and to promote more speech, to promote more everything.”

Oliver’s mother Rosemary Johnston said she is glad May suggested trying Cadence, saying the experience was “therapeutic for mom, too.” She recommends Cadence to others, adding, “But don’t take my spot.”

The comment highlights the need for more volunteers at Cadence Therapeutic Riding. Tyner said the organization has 19 horses and 20-25 volunteers, but could accommodate many more riders if there were more volunteers. No experience is necessary, and Cadence provides training.

“If there’s more volunteers, there’s more riders we could help,” he said.

The current volunteers range from a retired cardiologist to tweens like Amada Hotchkiss, 12, who started riding her bike several times a week to volunteer at Cadence after visiting with a Southern Ute Indian Tribe program. She said she likes learning about and caring for the horses; jobs include brushing the horses, preparing them for rides, walking alongside the horses and riders as a “sidewalker” in case any issues arise, and even braiding their tails and manes if there’s time. But her favorite part is working with people with disabilities. She loved watching her older brother Noah, who uses a wheelchair, ride a horse and look happy, and enjoys seeing the reactions of other participants too.

“It’s always fun to see them on the horses smiling and having fun,” she said. “They have a hard life but when they come here they can be happy and express themselves.”

Anna Caplan, 13, who uses leg braces to walk, enjoys being a volunteer because she used to be a participant as a youngster. She remembers she rode Magic, a black Cadence horse who is now 29, her first time and at the end of the hour, didn’t want to get off – her mom had to bribe her with ice cream and the promise that they would return the following week. She loved playing games like “mailbox,” in which a rider walks her horse to a mailbox to retrieve a letter containing a horse treat.

“That way you can give your horse a treat for being such a good horse,” Caplan said, adding, “I love horses – they’re amazing.”

She said Cadence is a great program and that as a former participant, she believes it provides emotional benefits as well as physical ones.
“I know how these kids feel. Half of them, they can’t do what everyone else does, they can’t go somewhere without their parents or they can’t run or do that kind of stuff sometimes,” she said. “But when they’re on a horse, they are in control of the horse basically … when you have the disabilities and you’re on the horse, you’re completely free. If you can’t walk, you can trot, you can run, you can go with the wind in your hair.”

For more information about Cadence Therapeutic Riding Center, visit http://dev.cadenceriding.org/ or call 749-0607.