Equine-Assisted Services

A Special Note from Our Executive Director There are so many great moments in our 35 year history where Agape stepped out in faith and God was faithful in leading the organization into a new exciting season. Every one of our defining moments has required sacrifice and has been driven by a desire to be good stewards of the mission of this organization and its founder, while serving people with unconditional love. I’m so thankful those steps of faith were taken and you know what, we can’t stop now. There is more to do, more people to serve and lives

Bo and Buzz are two horses that seem like they’ve been around Agape for a lifetime. They are deeply loved, steady, reliable, and have brought joy to so many in their time with Agape. But both horses are aging and showing us signs that they are ready for a happy retirement. Bo is 25 this year, and Buzz is somewhere around 30. Such kind horses that have served us with such strength and grace as Bo and Buzz deserve a relaxing retirement and a big send-off from all of us. One of the greatest joys we get from working with

On January 28, 2021, we announced the difficult decision that we would cease operation at our South site on the Indiana University Bradford Woods campus, and we shared this with you – our participant families, our volunteers, our vendors, and our stakeholders. We know that this has been a devastating loss to the entire community who were affected by this decision, and we want to hold space for that grief.  To be completely transparent, the pandemic has significantly impacted every aspect of how our organization functions. This has included staffing, programming, horses, and finances. As a result, the Agape Team

Our dear friends, we must share with you some heartbreaking news. On Dec. 2 in the evening, one of our beloved horses passed away suddenly. Carson, a horse that joined our program at the beginning of this year and quickly won over all who worked with him, was humanely euthanized by the veterinary team at Janssen’s when it was determined that no treatments would save him.

Rosie has been woven into the fabric of Agape almost since the beginning. That is why, in this time of great difficulty already, it brings us immense sorrow to share with you that Rosie has been laid to rest. Late in March, Rosie developed a severe case of laminitis in all four hooves. Despite icing her feet three times a day, keeping her in a deeply bedded stall, and giving her anti-inflammatory medications twice a day, there was no improvement in Rosie’s condition. For this reason, we made the difficult decision to humanely euthanize her.

Dear Agape family, I come to you in great sorrow to share that Littlefoot passed away Tuesday evening around 5:00pm. This was completely unexpected and, needless to say, devastating.

You might want to get your tissues ready for this one. You see, sometimes life can be pretty challenging for some of our riders. Home, or school, or both may be more stressful than safe. Life may be pretty uncertain from one day to the next. The challenges and the hurts of daily life show up at the barn and often presents itself in fear and timidity. But then they find a safe place in a horse… and that’s when they find their courage.

You know the term ‘Fun-Sized?’ That’s our little Welsh pony, River! At 12.2 hands tall, he is our smallest riding horse, but there is a whole lot of personality in that tiny palomino body. Just ask anyone that partners with him during group lessons at Agape South. Our lead group programming instructor, Linda Hazzard, loves including River in lessons. She says, “You know how much I love that little pony! He is a great teacher, and when you do it right, he joins right up and is your best bud.”

Our horses change lives every day. Sometimes, the changes are big–like Moe and Francisco–but sometimes they are smaller, more subtle. No matter how big or small though, our horses are helping people live happier, fuller lives. One such story is how Patch is helping Joseph Swim.

[vc_row type=”in_container” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/1″][vc_row_inner bottom_padding=”30″][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10169″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10168″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10167″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1576705625047{margin-bottom: 35px !important;}”] Picture this: the song You’ve Got A Friend in Me is playing. A girl and a horse, the very best of friends, spending time together every week for six years. The horse and the girl grow and learn together; they have fun and adventures like trail rides, riding games, and obstacle courses. The girl always brightens up when she arrives at the barn, and

[vc_row type=”in_container” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/1″][vc_row_inner bottom_padding=”30″][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10144″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10143″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10142″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1576080833631{margin-bottom: 35px !important;}”] Calm, collected, reliable, and trustworthy no matter what the present circumstance brings. These are the words we hear over and over again when describing Moe. Why does a calm and reliable horse matter for a rider? Francisco’s story illustrates what can happen when we face our challenges with a guide like Moe. [/vc_column_text][divider line_type=”Small Line” custom_height=”35″][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1576164414123{margin-top: 35px !important;margin-bottom: 40px !important;}”]Francisco is 14 years

[vc_row type=”in_container” scene_position=”center” text_color=”dark” text_align=”left” overlay_strength=”0.3″][vc_column column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ background_hover_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/1″][vc_row_inner bottom_padding=”40″][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10108″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10109″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner column_padding=”no-extra-padding” column_padding_position=”all” background_color_opacity=”1″ width=”1/3″][image_with_animation image_url=”10110″ alignment=”center” animation=”None”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_column_text css=”.vc_custom_1575325603214{margin-bottom: 40px !important;}”]Ginger is not like any other horse at Agape. She’s a draft cross–tall, with an enormous head and a presence that stops you in your tracks. But she’s also a mule – her “other half” is a donkey, lending her extra long ears and an extra-loving, people-pleasing nature. She is simply larger than life. But it’s not just her size that makes her larger than