Hippotherapy

The term “hippotherapy” refers to how occupational therapy, physical therapy, and speech-language pathology professionals use evidence-based practice and clinical reasoning in the purposeful manipulation of equine movement as a therapy tool to engage sensory, neuromotor, and cognitive systems to promote functional outcomes (American Hippotherapy Association, 2025).

Hippotherapy is a therapy tool that can be utilized by occupational therapists, physical therapists, and speech-language pathologists working within their scope of practice by the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA), American Physical Therapy Association (APTA), and American Speech-Language Heading Assocation (ASHA).