Mini Therapy Horses is a non-profit and all volunteer organization, providing equine assisted interactions with miniature therapy horses to individuals and groups who are in need of comfort, relief and positive connections during and after their struggles and traumatic events. Through various partnerships with law enforcement agencies as well as children’s and veteran’s organizations, they have helped the lives of many people and provided them with hope.
“Mini Therapy Horses is truly a life-changing organization providing a one-of-a-kind service to more than 45,000 people every year,” said Victoria Nodiff-Netanel, founder of Mini Therapy Horses. “After having just one meeting with a miniature therapy horse, individuals have been known to speak for the first time in years, smile and tell their stories of deepest pain and tragedy.”
Netanel and her minis and volunteers have been offering their unique and healing services to the community for 8 years. The organization’s four-core therapy programs include Ronald McDonald Houses, the Greater Los Angeles Veterans Hospital, the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and the Los Angeles Mayor’s Crisis Response Team as certified first responders.
The Mini Therapy Horses visit many other people in need and crisis outside of the core programming, such as patients in ICU, at-risk youth, people with disabilities, rape victims, and children at orphanages. Additional partnerships include the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles (CHLA), Camp Gung-Ho (Children’s Burn Foundation), Stewart House, UCLA Rape Center, A Place Called Home in South Central, Los Angeles, Newton Community Police Station in South Central, Camp Erin (Our House Grief Support Center) and Maryvale Orphanage, along with school presentations, library programs and national events.
The meticulous method of training, safety and risk-management standards of these tiny horses far exceeds those of traditional animal assisted therapy organizations. The Mini Therapy Horses consists of trained dedicated human volunteers and seven, small but mighty horses, affectionately known as Black Pearl, Willow Blue, Liberty Belle, American Valor, Blue Moon, Sweet Louise, and Bluebell.
Mini Therapy Horses is an all-volunteer 501(C)(3) non-profit all volunteer charity, providing equine assisted interactions with miniature therapy horses to individuals and groups living in the United States who are in need of comfort, relief and positive connections to help them during and after struggles and traumatic events. Through various partnerships with law enforcement agencies as well as children’s and veteran’s organizations, the Mini Therapy Horses visit more than 45,000 children and adults in need and crisis each year. Mini Therapy Horses rely solely on donations. To donate or volunteer visit minitherapyhorses.com
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Mini Therapy Horse Valor comforts girl at Ronald McDonald House in the Los Angeles area. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Mini Therapy Horses
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PHOTO #1: Mini Therapy Horses Founder Victoria Nordiff-Netanel and her mini Belle visit with kids at the Ronal McDonald House in the Los Angeles area. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Mini Therapy Horses
PHOTO #2: Mini Therapy Horses Founder Victoria Nordiff-Netanel and Vice President/Co-director Steve Sullivan with minis Pearl and Blue Moon. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Mini Therapy Horses
PHOTO #4: Mini Therapy Horse Blue Moon visits with boy at Ronald McDonald House in Pasadena. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Mini Therapy Horses
