Disabled riders' trail ends

Intellectually disabled horse-rider Donna McDonald, with horse Bailey, has been told by Riding for the Disabled that she can no longer ride. Picture / Martin Sykes

Up to 20 years of horse-riding has ended for a group of intellectually disabled people because the volunteers who looked after them have decided the riders are getting too old and too "fat".

The North Shore branch of Riding for the Disabled has told the Milford-based New Dawn Partnership that its five intellectually disabled riders, who have been riding horses at Stillwater every Wednesday, can't come any more.

"We have a waiting list of young handicapped children who could well benefit far more than your adult riders have done over many years," the group has been told.

Parents and caregivers are angry that the decision has deprived their family members, such as 51-year-old Donna McDonald, of an activity they loved.

"I've heard for 10 years about how she rides Toby, and if Toby is not available, all hell breaks loose," says Miss McDonald's caregiver, Kathy Gibbs. "That's the highlight of her week."

Lesley Drake, whose daughter Caroline, 28, started going to Riding for the Disabled as a young girl more than 20 years ago, said Caroline really enjoyed the riding.

"There's not a lot that she can do," Mrs Drake said. "She can't swim, she can't talk, she's not walking as well as she used to since she broke her leg at Wairau Valley Special School and can't walk on her own any more.

"I feel sad about the whole thing. To me, they want the younger, prettier children and not the people that really need it."

Caroline fell off a horse a few months ago, and the next week Mrs Drake was told that her daughter might be too fat for it.

"They said to me, 'Could you weigh Caroline? I think she's too heavy'," she said.

"The cut-off is 45 kilos. Caroline is just under 45 kilos. That was just an excuse; 45 kilos is not a lot for an adult."

On average, New Zealand women weigh 69 kilos and men weigh 80 kilos.

Mrs Drake said she would have been happy to walk alongside Caroline's horse herself, if asked.

Ms Gibbs, who has bought a pony to fill the gap for Miss McDonald, said Riding for the Disabled should not discriminate against older people.

"Where does it say it has to be young disabled?" she asked.

But Riding for the Disabled chief executive Guy Ockenden said his association depended on volunteers and could not afford to simply give "pony rides" to people who got no therapeutic benefit from them.

"Our emphasis in the last few years has gone into riding that is associated with therapeutic improvement of the people living with disabilities," he said.

"The movement of the horse mimics the action of walking. Your legs move in the same way as they would if you were walking. It increases your lower back strength.

"It's also mental therapy - being involved with horses is a very rewarding experience, building confidence. A lot of cognitive work goes on. This is where it helps younger riders - identification of colours, hand-eye coordination and so on."

New Dawn manager Ana Cowie said she accepted Riding for the Disabled's decision because some of her clients were getting too heavy to lift on to the horses.

"The Riding for the Disabled people are not young," she said. "They are doing things out of the kindness of their hearts, and they are giving it all free of charge. They are doing the best they can."

Instead of going riding, the group now goes to Kumeu on Wednesdays for a "Move and Groove" movement-to-music exercise and a picnic.