"The loves of my life with me from 15 to over twenty years. We lived, breathed and helped each other as family and I learned more about life from the therapy horses Kootenay (Cutie), Lacey, Oliver, Star, Coco, Tanq and our sweet pot-bellied rescue pigs, Hamlet and later, Wilbur. We will be together again. My heart aches for you daily, I am sorry that I failed you my brave, beautiful, sensitive, proud, compassionate and stoic babies. "
Felicia
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As a longstanding contributor to social justice and animal welfare causes, Felicia has had a profound impact on the treatment of less fortunate animals and people. Her natural horsemanship methods are internationally recognized by her peers and by experts."
Dr. Kedrick James
University Of British Columbia
Felicia's love of horses is clear and she is a great role model to learn from.
Adam Tatelman
Staff Writer, Douglas College
Thank you, Felicia, for understanding the need to help us explore the ability of the horse to communicate with us on a deep level by freely providing a 'narrative video' on your website. I often tell anyone who is interested about the seemingly magical between horse and human, but the 'right' words are elusive. The story you tell has helped me find those words!
Best, Cynthia Orman
Hello, My name is Sarah and I work in the Surrey School District in the Safe Schools Dept. with youth at risk. I work closely with several young people who struggle with behaviour challenges, difficult home situations, and trouble making positive connections, and we feel very strongly about the connections that can be made with these youth and animals - horses in particular.
An Equine Assisted Natural Healing (EANH)® certified workshop facilitator possesses an indepth understanding of the nature of a horse. For that reason, EANH provides two methods to obtain facilitator certification:
The Experienced Horse Person (with at least a consecutive ten year equine-related background) EANH Certification Method is designed specifically for individuals with an extensive horse background consisting of actively working with horses and owning horses.
The Novice to Horses (with a clinician background) EANH Facilitator Certification Method for clinicians interested in practising equine healing as an option for their patients.
Most EANH facilitators come from horse backgrounds with years grounded in horsemanship and an understanding of the true nature of the horse. The EANH facilitator is an experienced interpreter and facilitator in the session or workshop atmosphere. Facilitators also understand the horse herd mentality and have the ability to establish a deep foundation of insight and communication with the horse prior to, and during, the workshop.
EANH certified facilitators have natural horsemanship (the nature and communication with the horse both as receiver and giver) as their educational foundation. In other words, facilitators are, or become, first and foremost horse people that understand the language and nature of the horse. EANH facilitators are also experts at facilitating (and not orchestrating) possible session or workshop scenarios.
A Session In Narrative video describes an actual EANH session facilitated by EANH's Founder.
More information on the EANH facilitators certifications is available by contacting us.
Please see below for a collection of media/articles on the therapy(s).
PTSD and Horses
How horses are being used to help veterans deal with PTSD
Horses Helped This Vet With PTSD After No One Else Could
Re-connecting with horses therapy
Horse Therapy Helped Jaycee Dugard Reconnect With Family After 18 Year Abduction
The EANH privacy policy respects that session or workshop individuals right to confidentiality is honored. For this reason, EANH does not publish photographs, videos or reproduce the sessions or workshops with participants.
EANH narrates sessions or workshops to provide the public with information about EANH such as the video below.
Depending on the EANH program, sessions are held one-on-one with a EANH facilitator or in small workshops.
The EANH privacy policy respects that session or workshop individuals right to confidentiality is honored. For this reason, EANH does not publish photographs, videos or reproduce the sessions or workshops with participants.
Recording, photographing or videotaping sessions or workshops is not permitted.
Equine Assisted Natural Healing (EANH) Founder:
Felicia Allen grew up with horses in a European classical riding education mileau. When her family immigrated to Canada, one of their first endeavours was to build a horse stable and amenities on an acreage in North Vancouver in 1975, which became the well-established and wellknown Epona Stable and Farms.
Felicia recognized the horse's evolutionary superiority early in her equestrian career and how horses were able to heal and work with others. She formed the Equine Assisted Natural Healing (EANH) method nearly decades ago at a time when horses were not recognized for their therapeutic qualities. Rescuing and helping animals also evolved as an important milestone.
The two most innovative and the first of their kind in Canada and internationally was Equine Assisted Natural Healing (EANH), a non-riding program that recognizes the healing qualities of horses in their relations with human beings in a therapeutic setting. EANH expanded into the then little known benefits of horses with children and adults with autism and healing individuals on their journey of recovery from alcohol and drugs.
The horses are naturals at what they do. With very little human intervention, the horses psyche and intuition picks up information silently and quietly from the participant. The horse is so skilled at being aware of our presence and ultra sensitive in interpreting our inner landscape that the horse can adjust and comprehend in a way human beings have not developed the evolutionary abilities to do. The principle of Equine Intuitive Healing is based on understanding and recognizing the extraordinary sensory development in horses during their 45 to 55 million years of existence on earth. Human beings in comparison have a six million year evolutionary history on the earth. Incredibly, horses have survived the many millions of years of evolution and environmental challenges as prey animals!
View a EANH (a session in narrative) video
Felicia's background also includes 'hands-on' therapy with youth at risk in an addiction treatment center; therapy with elders in extended care hospitalized settings; employment with Veterans Affairs Canada assisting veterans; however, her true vocation has always been with horses: She has nearly fifty years of combined teaching, educating and rehabilitating horses and other animals, natural horsemanship workshops, experience in healing and horses sessions and workshops (EANH). Wellknown for her rescue of former racing horses, Felicia formed the Standardbred Horse Fan Club (the first club of its kind) to unite people who adopted the harness racing horses after their racing careers, to advocate for the end of horse slaughter, and to bring a large pool of volunteers together to network in the efforts to provide the former race horses with forever homes. One of the special aims of the horse club was to hold fun family fundraising events where children could name the rescued horses and learn about farm animals.
In the EANH therapy it soon became evident that individuals coping with addiction could relate to the former race horses with tenderness and appreciation. As someone who has also experienced homelessness, Felicia lived with individuals coping with addictions to alcohol and drugs. The insight into 'the life' of individuals struggling with addiction as part of the homeless community brings an understanding of the challenges and obstacles the individuals face.
Horse therapy is a branch of Animal Therapy which has slowly gained popularity as a viable alternative treatment in addition to supervised medical treatment.
Almost all of the horses are rescued from slaughter and live as permanent residents on the Epona Farm Rescue along with other animals.
A specialist in working with, and understanding, the nature and language of horses, as well as a university educated and a two-time college graduate, Felicia has brought her intimate understanding of the horse's nature and healing qualities to EANH participants for nearly five decades. Felicia is wellknown as an animal activist, lives a non-dairy and non-meat lifestyle and her Epona animal rescue farm.
One of the wonderful quality of horses is that they have an effect on us! We marvel their beauty, intelligence and looks and something draws us to them. Horses are social, sensitive and receptive with highly specialized and finely attuned senses. What better therapy animal than the horse who truly does understand and is genuine, honest to a fault and a superb listener.
Fun and Educational public, horse owners and instructor workshops!
Horseback riding programs for beginners and experienced.
Shed a few pounds with horses as your personal trainers (non-riding program).
Offtrack race horses given a second chance.