The horse as a calmer: Many view horses as a link with nature and beauty. A good therapy horse is not overly friendly, intruding, or rambunctious. When situations are tense, the horse may help to diffuse them. Often a person will stroke or speak to a horse when they are agitated.

The horse as a friend: The horse-human relationship is unique because a horse is complimentary, not reciprocal. Humans often expect repayment in the form of love or affection. The love of an animal for a person is sincere and unconditional, without hidden agendas or ulterior motives.

The horse as a listener: Many at-risk youth have learned that it is dangerous to talk to other people, especially those that are part of ‘the system’. Communication may involve risks of criticism, rejection, evaluation, punishment, inattention, judgment, and unsolicited advice. The horse listens attentively and gives empathetic non-verbal immediate feedback.

The horse as unconditionally accepting: The horse accepts unconditionally, and has an enormous capacity to forgive. The horse accepts people regardless of their appearance, physical defects, or psychological scars. People can relax knowing the horse will not pass judgment. The horse may offer an acceptance that some youth may have never experienced with another human being.

The horse as a therapist: The horse offers the opportunity for a new experience in which to experiment with new behaviors. This often provides a break in old poor coping mechanisms when other interventions have failed.

The horse as an empowerer: The youth learns how to control a 1,000 pound animal cooperatively without violence. Yet, this is also symbolic to being able to gain control over situations in life that seem much too large for them.

The horse as a catalyst for teaching and learning: The horse will provide operant conditioning by responding positively to positive behaviors and will display avoidance to negative behaviors, such as yelling and being rough.

The horse as a teacher of responsibility: If the youth is given some responsibility to care for the horse, they will learn how to care for another living creature and can then transfer those skills to people.

The horse as a chance to fail: Often horses do not respond to what a person has asked them to do. The youth may have to repeat themselves, or change their methods to get the response they want from the horse, learning how to be patient and successful through failure.

The horse as a communicator: A horse will communicate clearly and assertively what it feels and wants. If it wants a bucket of grain that is sitting next to it, there is not mistaking it. They will also give a clear indication of how the youth is communicating with them. If a person is very passive and unclear when communicating with a horse, the horse will ignore them. Likewise, if a person is aggressive with a horse, it will attempt to flee. Individuals must learn to communicate consistently with assertiveness in order for the horse to respond with the desired behavior.