Healing Through Horses
Willow Creek Ranch Inc. is a 501(c) 3 non-profit therapeutic riding center for children and adults with special needs located in Mukwonago, Wisconsin.
We are dedicated to providing a therapeutic riding program to children and adults with a variety of disabilities and conditions such as Attention Deficit Disorder, Autism, Traumatic Brain Injuries, Cerebral Palsy, Muscular Dystrophy, Learning Disabilities, and Down Syndrome.
How you can help
Our program would not be possible without the help from our therapy horses, volunteers and donors. Please consider making a donation to Willow Creek Ranch, to help fund the Indoor Riding Arena project, Sponsor a Therapy Horse or Donkey, provide a Scholarship for riding lessons, or donate your time and talents! click the button below to donate securely online.
GREAT STORIES from WCR
Community State Bank recently ran a great story on their website about WCR, accompanied by a wonderful video. Watch the video below or read the full story here.
#Gift2Giving – Willow Creek Ranch from Community State Bank on Vimeo.
WCR is IN THE NEWS!
TMJ-4 in Milwaukee tells about one woman’s experience with Willow Creek Ranch.
Our Success
During therapeutic riding, a special needs individual’s body moves in a way very similar to human walking. The horse moves up and down; side to side; and back and forth in synchronized, repetitive patterns, much the same as the human gait. This movement improves the rider’s balance, body symmetry, muscle tone, and head and neck control.
The success of the riders has been unbelievable. Two of our autistics non-verbal children spoke their first words after a month of therapeutic riding. The children were able to ask the horse to “walk” and praise the horse by saying “good boy Slapshot”.
We are a member of PATH Intl. PATH Intl. was founded in 1969 as the North American Riding for the Handicapped Association (NARHA) to promote safe and effective therapeutic horseback riding throughout the United States and Canada. Today, PATH Intl. has nearly 800 member centers and over 6,300 individual members in countries all over the world, who help and support more than 42,000 men, women and children with special needs each year through a variety of equine-assisted activity and therapy programs.
Willow Creek Ranch is a member of PATH Intl., and has been in operation since September, 2007.