Marie Josee Etienne

Professor Tania Santiago Rodriguez

Recreation Therapy: Facilitation Techniques: Module
13 November 2016
Facilitation Technique Category: Therapeutic Use of Animals
Activity Title: Therapy Dog
Participants: 15
Source:
http://simpleceus.com/lesson/implementating-animal-assisted-therapy-into-a-treatment-plan-4
Equipment: Dogs
Activity Description: Therapeutic use of animals such as Therapy Dog is the use of animals to
improve the lives of people with disabilities through interactions and engagement with animals.
Therapy Dog interventions produce important benefits on patients. Therapeutic use of animals
such as Therapy Dogs increases self-esteem, improves communication: verbal and non-verbal
communication, increases socialization, improves positive emotion, and mood. In addition,
therapy Dog improves strengths, range of motion, balance and coordination, happiness,
concentration, self-esteem, self-discipline, strengths, reduce stress and improves awareness of
leisure involvement. The purpose of this activity is to teach participants the basic skills
therapeutic use of animals: therapy Dogs. The therapist instructs participants to 1) throw a ball to
the dog while playing fetch.

2) The specialist instructs participants to sit or stand to perform the game. 3) The therapist
incorporates range of motion, balance, endurance, and strengths components to the exercise with
clients. 4) Once the dog returns with the ball, the therapist varies how the participant retrieves
the ball from the dog.
Leadership considerations: CTRS can use different play activities with dogs to achieve
patient's goal. various considerations involved in making adaptations. The CTR specialist may
assist participant to ensure full participation in the session and unrestricted access to the animals.
The therapist may advise participants not to do anything that can cause discomfort or cause
injury. Before starting the session, in an outdoor environment, therapist must conduct a warm up
to increase awareness, promote safety, and general rules review with clients. During the session,
the specialist offers adequate explanation between the training sessions. The therapist may work
with a handler to have the dog perform different commands: sit, down, etc.
Adaptations: participants with muscular dystrophy would be benefit from therapy dog.
Muscular dystrophy (MD) is a group of diseases characterized by progressive weakness and
degeneration of skeletal muscles that control movement. Individuals with muscular dystrophy
may reach out to receive the dog paw. Those people may require some adjustment to increase
opportunity for achievement. To permit an effective exercise, CTRS specialists need to use the
right size dog and one that can perform all exercises. Therapy dog improves upper body muscle
strength. This c exercise could be complete three times a week and include activities such as
range of motion to maintain muscle tone and improve endurance, balance, etc.

Adaptations: Participants with Arthritis. Individuals arthritis with require some

modifications to rise opportunity for accomplishment, to encourage them to involve fully in their
session. To permit an effective exercise, CTRS specialists need to verify the size of the dog.
Therapy dog improves upper and lower body muscle strength. This exercise could be complete
three times a week and include activities such as push up and pull improve endurance, balance,
development of confidence in motor skills, exercise of hands and feet to develop fine motor
skills, etc.
http://simpleceus.com/lesson/implementating-animal-assisted-therapy-into-a-treatment-plan-4

Facilitation Technique Category: Therapeutic Horseback Riding

Activity Title: Therapeutic Horseback Riding: mountain the horse, adjust the stirrups, asking
the horse to walk.
Participants: 15
Source: http://www.wkihow.com RaceHorse
Equipment: Poster board, Markers, Rulers, 6 Horses from a dollar store, index card, 2 dice
Activity Description: Therapeutic Horseback Riding such as Horse Racing skills. Horse Racing
reduces anger and frustration, decreases the effect of stress on your mind and body, improves
concentration and mood, boosts confidence to handle problems, promote coordination and
balance, increases self-confidence, self-awareness, increases emotion control. The purpose of

this activity is to teach the basic skills of Therapeutic Horseback Riding. Therapeutic Horseback
Riding promotes relaxation techniques, reduces their anger and frustration.
The therapist teaches to participants to 1) mount the horse. To mount the horse participants
learn to put their foot from the left side into the stirrups and lifting the right foot over. The
specialist instructs participants to 2) adjust the stirrups. The stirrups should be about the length of
our arm. 3) The therapist instructs clients how to ask the horse to walk.
Leadership considerations: CTRS professions as an instructor may choose to utilize
therapeutic horse riding as facilitation technique designed to accomplish goals relevant to RT
services. The RT specialist is better equipped to address similar issues with participants. Before
starting the session, in an outdoor environment, therapist must conduct a warm up with push up,
jumping, jogging, etc. Safety, and general rules review about horses with clients are important.

Adaptations: Participant with mental disorder may require modification that associate
relaxation procedures with the limitations of participants. Mental disorder is characterized by
persistent depressed mood or loss of interests in an activity. To ensure a successful relaxation
involvement, the recreational therapists must provide reinforcement and positive feedback to
participants about mountain the horse, adjusting the stirrups, and asking the horse to walk. The
therapist must make sure that the environment is safe to prevent falling.
Adaptations: Participants with cognitive limitations such as traumatic brain injury would
be benefit from therapeutic horse riding. Individuals with brain injury require some
modifications to increase opportunity for success. The therapist choose mountain the horse,

adjust the stirrups, asking the horse to walk based on the types of conflicts situations that irritate
the participants.
http://www.wkihow.comRideaHorse