Horses are angels without wings if God made anything more beautiful, he kept it for himself.

Where in the wide world can man find nobility without pride, Friendship without envy or beauty without vanity?

Here where grace is laced with  muscle, and strength by gentleness confined.

He serves without servility: he has fought without enmity. There is nothing so powerful, nothing less violent;

There is nothing so quick nothing more patient.

The past has been borne on his back. All our history is his industry:  We are his heirs, he our inheritance. 

Ladies & Gentlemen The Horse.


To understand the soul of a horse is the closest we humans can come to knowing perfection

A good rider can hear his horse speak to him, a great rider can hear his horse whisper, but a bad rider won't hear his horse even if it screams at him.


If you have a lovely quote or poem  you would like to share please send it to us hoovesandpawsusersgroup@yahoo.co.uk   






One of the children who survived the Beslan seige, part of the group who visited the center
Our love to them always
Awards presentation at the opening of the indoor arena
A window of opportunity through Horses and Animals

Hooves and Paws Users Group    Scottish Charity SC041059     hoovesandpawsusersgroup@yahoo.co.uk

Mission StatementTo promote & enhance wider access to Therapeutic riding

Therapeutic Riding is a term used for an activity involving working with the horse to improve physical mobility, emotional stability, cognitive responses, mental stimulation & the wellbeing of the participant.

HPUG Respite Cabin for disadvantaged, vulnerable children & young adults & is available to any one with an Additional Support Need to use independently of the center or as a base from which to enjoy the facilities & therapeutic riding & activities
The Cabin will provide accommodation for individuals and their support parent/worker

The charity operates by fund raising through application, collections & rental from the holiday respite cabin set in the grounds of the Equestrian Center

88888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888888

H-Pug service are funding & match funding, people who wish to access Therapeutic Riding, which is taught by qualified riding instructors using experience, patience and empathy to tailor each session to the group or individual both for riding & attainable qualifications, to provide the support needed to have continuity of an experience that is benefits to their particular needs.

Hooves and Paws User Group (H-PUG) is a charity that works with horses and animals to provide an encouraging therapeutic learning environment for children, young people and adults who have additional support needs (ASN).

(ASN)
Covers a wide verity of issues, vulnerable people who have been affected by
Physical abuse
Sexual abuse
Parents with chronic mental health issues
Parents with chronic substance misuse (Alcohol & Heroin)
Emotional abuse
Physical neglect
Bereavement & loss
Eating disorders
ADHD. Learning difficulties, Aspergers
Physical & mental disorders
Cerebral Palsy, Spina bifida, Deletion in Chromosome,
Autism, Partially Sighted, & so much more

There is no program set in stone, it is about the relationship that builds between the instructress & the student whether it is riding or Stable management to gain attainable qualifications.
Building trust may take time, being aware of progress in physical ability, balance & communication, constant reinforcement of their achievement to build on confidence.Horses can't talk,  but they can speak if you listen.

Each student is different, even if in a group with the same ASN they as individuals will respond in their own way. This is rarely about becoming a good rider it is about how the riding can help with core stability & balance, how the movement of the horse bring calm to the rider & strengthens their body & limbs, but possible one of the most important elements is the pleasure & joy it gives to the rider. 



HPUG Holiday Respite Cabin for disadvantaged, vulnerable children & young adults is now available for bookings The Short Break Respite Cabin will providing accommodation for individuals and their support parent/worker allowing them to access if they so wish a wider range of different experiences over two or more days.  This will allow the relationship with the person and the horse to develop and progress without interruption, especially in the early stages, reinforcing the benefit of the therapy session.        
If you would like to view the cabin or for further information please contact us on 07748706572.


HPUG respite cabin was supplied by Ayrshire Log Cabins
Grants from Awards for all,



How can we help you?
If you would like to access this facility to support a person or a group please contact us.
An application for funding should give details of the individual or group & how you feel this experience would help them. hoovesandpawsusersgroup@yahoo.co.uk or phone us on 0748706572

The benefit of working with animals, especially horses is well-documented.    Our vision is to encourage and support individuals by building confidence, trust and physical ability.  Horses give us the wings we lack.

All funding and financial donations made to H-PUG will be used to support & access Therapeutic Riding.

EDUCATION THROUGH HORSES  With the kind permission of the Fortune Centre www.fortune.org
For horse motivated people the horse is at the heart of the exchange of teaching and learning.  It is used as an alternative seat of learning and understanding.  Many naturally occurring routines and activities in a horse environment act as the basis of new understanding.  If horses interest and motivate an individual, then learning about them provides a learning purpose.  Many of the skills learned are proven to the learner through the two intrinsic values of the horse - the existence of visual feedback and the opportunity to feel.  This begins to build self-confidence and the learner becomes more able to learn much needed life skills through the medium of the horse.  For many people, if traditional methods of teaching and learning have failed to make sufficient impact, and if the individual is motivated by horses, to use the horse as a learning-teaching-medium, is logical and effective. In a riding school - or arena - a series of letters are used as markers.  These can become a first step of letter recognition and understanding towards building sounds and words.  Manipulating a horse from one letter to the other makes it easier to take up a pencil in the follow-up Wordpower session.  Riding shapes in an arena of specific measurement begins to open the door to an increasing understanding of numbers, shape and space.  Those who have felt defensive over being asked 3 + 3 feel comfortable with telling their teacher that 3 horses in that field and 3 horses in that field means they have 6 horses and thus their confidence increases. Feeding horses can become a matter of understanding weights and measurements, fractions and quantities - all concepts we assume that others understand but may in the ordinary way find too hard to grasp. Seeing leads to understanding.  As people develop their ability, so they can begin to respond to that ability by taking responsibility.  If looking after oneself has lost a point - or perhaps it's a skill that's never been developed - learning to care for a horse first can provide an incentive that becomes a personal achievement.  Learning to wash a horse's mane has encouraged many young people to become independent in their own hair washing.  And grooming horses leads to a new foothold for discussing personal care.                         
"Anyone who has concerned himself seriously with the horse and its behavioral patterns will be aware that many aspects of the animal's nature make it suitable for use in therapy."  (Therapeutic Riding, Medicine, Education, Sports by Wolfgang Heipertz).
Many people with special needs become isolated from their peer group.  This leads to difficulties and the build up of habits which exacerbate the original problem.  Some young people reflect the traumas and failures of the past.  Coming together with a group of people who share your interest, with the opportunity to work together in a team for a common purpose forms the basis of learning self-awareness.  People motivated by horses benefit positively from building upon the stimulation they derive from the sight, smell, sound and touch of a horse.  It's easier to see, understand, hear and feel things, from the horse than from other people.  The demands and reactions of the horses used to provide riding therapy make sense and are straightforward.  The consequences of an action or behavior are honestly reflected by the horse.  Horses do not respond to mixed messages, communication has to be clear and considered.  To be successful with the horse one has to be committed and prepared to complete a task.  He is often the one from whom an individual accepts a message, being delivered without bias.  Mounted sessions in the context of riding therapy enable people to experience situations that it is not possible to experience without the medium of the horse.  The horse has been described as the finest "mood-altering drug".
THE PHYSICAL BENEFITS
The effect of a moving horse on a rider's body provides unparalleled opportunity to improve a range of physical aspects.  Physiotherapists utilise the horse as a unique moving treatment base.  This is often called hippotherapy.  The horse moves naturally in walk and stimulates and synthesises a movement like the human walk.  Activities such as remedial vaulting develop a person's balance, co-ordination, rhythm, spatial concept, agility and confidence to name but a few of the benefits.  Contact with the warmth of the horse enables relaxation for those that find it difficult.
IMPROVED HEALTH AND MOBILITY
Caring for and riding horses involves consistent exercise and working in a healthy environment.  Improved physical fitness leads to clearer thinking and positive self-image.

H-PUG, like all charities is looking for your support.   You can support us in a number of different ways:-

-Making a Financial Donation
-Funding specific projects – e.g. Respite Unit, accessible toilets and washing facilities
-Funding – Therapeutic lessons, stable management, attainable qualifications
-Donating equipment
-Giving your time by volunteering
-Fundraising for us
-Taking part in events
-Campaigning for us
-Fundraising at work
-Donating in memory
-Leaving a legacy
Please help us make a difference to someone’s life. 
Any support that you can provide us with will be greatly appreciated. 
You can contact us by e-mail at hoovesandpawsusersgroup@yahoo.co.uk
by telephone on 07748706572

*The Hooves and Paws User Group Charity was registered as a charity in December 2009
to formally build upon the work undertaken by Hooves and Paws Equestrian Learning Centre.  

Hooves and Paws Users Group (HPUG) Charity Registration No. SC0141059 has no association with
Hooves and Paws Equestrian Learning Centre other than that HPUG may utilise the services and facilities of the Centre
to the benefit of individuals referred through the Charity..

Our address is - Hooves and Paws User Group,
East Hazeldean Farm, Stonehouse, Lanarkshire, ML9 3PF.

For Riding school enquiries please contact by e-mail at
hooves-and-paws@hotmail.co.uk or by telephone on 01698 791554 or 07748706572