Therapeutic riding was first introduced to Canada in 1968 by Dr. Bauer and Mr. Renaud. In 1969, CARD - the first therapeutic riding centre in Canada, was incorporated. CARD relocated to G. Ross Lord Park in 1979 with the enthusiastic support of Mel Lastman, then Mayor of North York.
Therapeutic Riding - A Brief History
- 460-377 BC – Hippocrates includes riding in a chapter on "natural exercise"
- 1569 – Huronymus Merkurialis of Italy writes "The Art of Gymnastics," discussing riding and its effects on the restoration and maintenance of health.
- 1901 – Dame Agnes Hunt founds the first orthopedic hospital in Oswestry, England. She finds great value in using horses and riding with patients.
- 1918 – Miss Olive Sands, a physiotherapist, takes her horses to a hospital outside Oxford, providing riding programs for soldiers disabled during World War 1.
- 1950-1960 – Therapeutic riding in the UK progresses from polio patients to amputees and people with other disabilities.
- 1952 – Dame Liz Hartel, who was paralyzed by polio and confined to a wheelchair when not on a horse, inspires therapeutic riding pioneers by winning a Silver metal for dressage at the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games.
- Early 1950s – Mrs. Elsebet Bodthker, a Norwegian physiotherapist and accomplished horsewoman, meets Mme. Hartel. Noting the physical progress, Mrs. Bodthker begins teaching polio patients to ride, using basic equestrian exercises and other techniques developed by clinic physiotherapists. Ulla Harpoth, a physiotherapist in Copenhagen, begins recommending riding to her patients. After only a few months, children and adolescents disabled by poliomyelitis see numerous benefits.
- 1960 – Olympic-style games for athletes with disabilities were held in Rome, with 400 athletes. Riding as a form of therapy for children and adults with disabilities gains popularity in the United States.
- 1964 – The UK formed its first “Advisory Council” for riding for the disabled.
- 1968 – Dr. Bauer and Mr. Renaud bring therapeutic riding to Canada.
- 1969 – CARD is incorporated as the first registered therapeutic riding centre in Canada.
- 1970 – NAHRA (North American Handicapped Riding Association), the governing body for therapeutic riding in the United States and Canada, is formed.
- 1980 – The Federation Riding for the Disabled International (FRDI) is founded to create links between therapeutic riding and driving centres, and to assist in developing programs worldwide.
- 1980 – CanTRA, the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association, is formed. It now has over 100 centres and is growing in membership and scope.
- 1996 – Equestrian sports become an official Paralympic sport at the Games in Sydney. It is the largest event in Paralympic history with 122 countries participating!
