Barn Buddies

Our barn buddies program is designed for individuals age 3-12 who have a disability or disorder diagnosis. This program provides tailored recreational sessions to it’s participants year round in 5 week sessions.

Winter Lessons Start:

February 12

Spring Lessons Start:

April 8

Fall Lessons Start:

August 19

More than just a riding lesson.

Your Barn Buddy Program Includes:

  • No one knows your child better than you.! Justin’s Place does an application, parent chat and physician’s statement prior to your first free session. The information parents/guardians provide us in the phone parent chat helps us understand your child’s needs.

  • No child is alike. With your input, we will set goals each season for your child. We choose their horse, equipment, and activities based on their specific sensory and learning needs. No two sessions are alike and at Justin’s Place, the kids run the show! Upon arrival, each child helps choose their activities for the day.

  • We never obligate families to commit to lessons. The first session is a free opportunity for your child to experience a miniature horse and explore our farm. This fun, interactive session will serve as an introduction for you and your child.

  • Individual sessions are 45 minutes. Group sessions (of 2 kids) are 60 minutes. Each child has at least a horse leader, riding instructor and/or a volunteer sidewalker.

  • While our sessions are designed to progress each child toward the goal of riding and learning riding skills, we offer a variety of farm and equine learning activities. For example, your child’s session may include time in a sensory bin, feeding chickens, petting the goats, riding lesson or all of the above! We aim to keep things tailored to your child’s interests.

  • As a parent/guardian, you will always know how your child spent their time at Justin’s Place. We pre-plan each week so that your child has a sense of control and predictability. After each session, you will receive an email with a report on how the session went.

FAQs

  • There is no “typical session”. We value flexibility and tailor each session to your child’s needs and interests. If your child is having difficulty regulating themselves one week, we may spend the whole session singing the same song while riding our horse at a walk up and down the fence. The following week may look completely different and include a learning game with a miniature horse, grooming their horse, an art activity and learning how to steer their horse while riding. In general, we spend the first 15-30 minutes doing your child’s pre-selected activities and the last half of the session in a riding lesson.

  • There is an inherent risk in working with horses that cannot be avoided. When assessing the appropriateness of these activities for an individual we always weigh the risks with the benefits. While understanding we cannot remove all risk, we certainly place the highest value on safety. We follow PATH Intl ‘s guidelines for safety. We would love to further discuss all the measures we take to keep safety our priority.

  • Our Barn Buddy fee is $45 per lesson. Scholarships may be available to cover partial cost of fees. We understand finances can be a challenge and want to do our best to provide an experience well worth your investment and assure it fits within your budget. Sessions are charged one season at a time with no obligation to cotinue.

  • We know it can be hard to detach from your child, especially in a new setting. We encourage parents to use their child’s session time for “me time” for themselves. There are many quiet places on our property where you are welcome to find respite. If you’d like a picture of your child or to engage with their horse, let us know ahead of time and we’ll be sure to leave some time at the end of sessions for you to see what they’ve learned or accomplished!