Horseback @ the Ranch

Wag-ville is India’s first therapeutic riding center with certified instructors.

Equine-Assisted Therapy (EAT) or Therapeutic Riding includes equine activities and/or an equine environment in order to promote physical, occupational, and emotional growth in persons suffering from ADHD, Anxiety, Autism, Cerebral Palsy, Dementia, Depression, Developmental Delay, Genetic Syndromes (such as Down Syndrome), traumatic brain injuries, behavioral issues, abuse issues, and many other mental health problems.

It is extremely important to note that the objective of EAT is not to teach an individual horseback riding skills but to address several physiological and psychological aspects in combination with other forms of therapy such as physiotherapy, occupational therapy and psychological therapy.

Therapeutic riding activities are developed on a case to case basis, with a specific goal plan and activities are reviewed from time-to-time.

Psychological benefits – EAT can help the individual build confidence, self- efficiency, communication, trust, perspective, social skills, impulse control, and learn boundaries. Since horses have similar behaviors with humans, such as social and responsive behaviors, it is easy for the patients to create a connection with the horse.

Physiological benefits – Also, the gait of a horse is known to be similar to the gait of a human, enabling riders develop muscle tone and enhanced upper body balance, enabling Proprioception – the neurological ability of the body to sense movement and position.

Equine-Assisted Therapies have been recognized in the medical and mental health field by most major countries.

Some examples of EAT activities include:

• Tacking and grooming of a horse to develop sequencing, cognition and memory skills
• Walking a horse which helps develop a relationship with the animal
• Games and activities on horseback such as pegging cones on poles, throwing balls, balancing exercises, muscle coordination exercises,
  and also provides for great vestibular action, especially for autistic individuals

The ability to control a horse as well as one’s own body inspires self-confidence, responsibility and teamwork.
Horseback riding helps develop posture, strength and flexibility while also teaching the rider important teamwork and cooperation skills, while developing all-round confidence. Best of all, it is a thoroughly enjoyable experience, which creates a special relationship between rider and horse and promotes personal challenges.

Riders not only learn to ride the horse but also learn how to tack a horse, basic grooming skills, maintaining tack and equipment, feeding horses etc. helping riders bond with horses while also creating a greater sense of responsibility.

Dog training and Behavior modification

Making an impulsive decision to get a new pup into your life might sound amazing, but did you realize that many dogs are soon put up for adoption as owners may not have made an informed decision about selecting the right pet for themselves,
and very quickly find themselves overwhelmed with caring for an animal which exhibits behavior that they were not prepared for.
We help new dog parents make a choice of suitable breeds that go with their lifestyle, and also conduct scientifically
proven temperament assessments for puppies in advance of buying or adopting a new pet

When bringing a new puppy into your life, one often faces multiple challenges like:
The pup is peeing everywhere – how to potty train the pup?
What should we do if the pup has separation anxiety?
How often should the pup be fed?
How much exercise does the dog need?
The pup is biting / mouthing constantly – how does one manage that?

Wag-ville’s ‘New Puppy Onboarding Consults’ help you answer all these questions and much more, and help you and your
family transition into your puppy-parenthood with ease, comfort and joy!

Basic Obedience Training focuses on helping a family and a dog understand each other and live together comfortably.
Our unique Basic Obedience program, trains not only the dog, but also the owners, thereby helping them not only work
with each other but understand each other better and build a lasting bond.

The methods are entirely based on positive techniques, and heavily involve the owners in the reinforcement process.

Basic obedience includes teaching the dog to come when called, walk on a loose leash, basic house manners like not jumping on
guests and furniture, not running out of the door, listening to important commands like sit, down, stay etc., effective socialization and much more

Our canine behaviorists (or canine psychologists) can help you deal with various peculiar issues you might face with your dog such as:

My dog does not like men
My dog never stops barking at strangers
I cannot leave the house for even a minute – my dog with howl the place down!
My dog snaps at all strangers
My dog has bitten X number of people and we are being asked to give him up..
And many more…

Book a session today if you face any behavioral issue with your dog, and our behaviorists will guide you through a corrective course of action.

A great way to get a dog to behave better, calm down, and stay fit is to begin agility lessons. Agility lessons include weaving through poles, moving through tunnels, walking on ramps, negotiating steps and much more.

Agility sessions can be done for dogs that are over a year old and in good health as confirmed by a vet.

Do you have a certified pure breed dog, that you would like to show in dog shows?

Showing a dog involves:
Gaiting (walking a dog on a lead)
Stacking
Physical examination of the dog
And much more – all to be performed in front of a likely audience of a few thousand people, in a new place, with several other dogs around.
Show dog training requires not only a high amount of discipline but also a great amount of conditioning and socialization in order to ensure your dog can perform as required in front of a large noisy crowd in a highly excitable atmosphere.
Our show dog training packages help bring out the star in your show dog.

The job of a therapy dog is to be caring, affectionate and bring joy to people, while interacting with people to help them with specific activities from a therapeutic goal perspective. Our certified trainers conduct temperament testing prior to selection of future therapy animals, and offer specialized training for therapy animals who can be used in homes, schools, hospitals and even corporate settings.

We not only condition and train the animals, but also the owners and handlers in order to equip them with the knowledge needed in order to bring out the best in the dog.

The job of an Assistance Dog (or Guide Dog) is to help individuals who might be:

• Visually impaired – helping them to walk safely, climb stairs, walk outside and cross the roads safely, fetch objects
• Hearing impaired – helping with alerts for the important voices, sounds or audio signals
• Mobility impaired – helping pull, push or carry certain things or even maintain the body balance when they have got an impaired physical function like impaired walk or motor functions
• Other special needs / disabilities

Assistance Dogs are trained to help such individuals with their specific needs.

The process for training Assistance Dogs involves –

• 1. Understanding the requirements of the individuals in detail
• 2. Conducting physical and temperament tests prior to selection of future Assistance Dogs
• 3. Developing a training and conditioning plan based on the requirements
• 4. Training and conditioning the dog (along with the future owner)
• 5. Testing the dog for readiness
• 6. Completing a handover of the trained animal to the new owner
• 7. Monitoring the dog-owner team for a period of time, and completing any training course correction