OklahomaHorses Magazine March 2021

March/April 2021 • OklahomaHorses 17 “The therapist and myself work together to approach whatever issue the boys are going through. We have a large barn and the boys come down to the barn [where] I’ve got a classroom office set up. They come in, and we sit down and just kind of do a regrouping,” Clark said. Sessions begin with discussion of a word or topic that relates to the game or activity they will complete with the horses. For example, Clark uses an activity called Cactus. “And we will talk about how maybe in our lives, our families or even ourselves are maybe like cactus; we are a little prickly because of our circumstances, but we survived. We are hardy in some pretty harsh conditions we have had to live in,” Clark shared. The group will then move to the arena to play the related game and activities with the horses. Clark says a lot of the boys have little experi- ence with horses and are initially scared. “A lot of these boys are really, really scared. Some of these boys come off the street, and they are street savvy. They are tough, they carry guns, they are in gangs, they attack each other, and they are pretty violent,” Clark described. “And they get around a horse, and they just become little mush balls.” Clark reminds the boys that the horses are just as scared of them and “next thing you know, they are standing on common ground because they realize the horse is kind of a nervous animal anyway. They are not a predator; they are on watch all the time. And the boys, same thing, they are always looking behind their shoulders for police or parents or truant officers. There’s somebody coming at them all the time.” When the group is finished in the arena, they will continue their discussion and oftentimes will carry that back to sessions with their therapists. “This model really captures the attachment issue and is really helping the boys become reattached to people in a very healthy way,” Clark said. “Watching the boys problem-solve and the horses go through these challenges—the boys are just working out things, and the horses end up better as horses. So it’s a mutually beneficial, therapeutic involvement that happens.” Clark says he has created about 100 games and activities for use with the boys and horses. The first 25 are included in the first SPUR Model manual, which he hopes to follow up with additions in the future. “There is an old proverb, if you are a man of faith and good at what you do, you’ll serve kings. I’m thinking, well, I’m out here with horses every day and a bunch of rag-tag boys, I can’t say I’ve ever served a prominent person in my life,” Clark chuckled. “And then it dawned on me, no, these boys are kings! They have the potential of being really great men, and I get to serve kings every day. It woke me up to that, the real specialness of what I do every day—I do serve kings; they are just not quite there yet.” THE HORSES OF TULSA BOYS’ HOME When Tulsa Boys’ Home first started its Equine Program, the first horses they acquired were retired Thoroughbred horses provided to them through the Exceller Fund. “We utilized those because they would pay for their food, their upkeep, their feed bill, their vet care, their farrier, everything,” said Scott Averill, Tulsa Boys’ Home Equine Program manager. “If for some reason the horses didn’t work out, we would trade them back, and they would send us others. We keep, on average, 15 off-the-track Thorough- breds here.” Averill says these horses are used in the therapy program for the boys but that they do not ride them. About a year ago, the group added six mustangs to its program. “We developed a rela- tionship with the Arizona [Department of Corrections], through the Bureau of Land Management. They have a huge facility program with their inmates where they take hundreds of rounded up mustangs, and their inmates put them through a rigorous training program,” Averill said. “We just found, when they are broke and come through that program, we have some hardy horses with low upkeep that have been just amaz- ing partners. These are wild mustangs; there are so many thousands that are rounded up every year that are taken to these facilities around the country,” Averill continued. The similarities in back- ground between the boys and horses provides a starting point for connection. “We like the parallel be- tween these, if you will, throw away horses, and these boys are sometimes considered throw away boys because of the history with their parents. So these boys are really able to connect with these horses on that level. “We have just been amazed; most people, even experi- enced horse people, you say mustangs, and they say, ‘Have you lost your mind?’ Because they are different animals,” Averill continued. “But if they are broken and trained and gentled a certain way, I have found a connection unlike anything you usually see with just normal Quarter Horses.” DONATIONS If you are interested in donating to the Equine Program at the Tulsa Boys’ Home, the group will accept both new and used donations of items ranging from supplies for the horses to appropriate riding gear for the boys. You can view a complete wish list of items at https://tinyurl.com/4he5j7tf. Call or email Scott Averill at (918) 245-0231 or saverill@ tbhinc.org with any questions or to coordinate drop off of donations. Visit tulsaboyshome.org to learn more about its programs and services.