Pint-sized ponies — as part of a therapy team — are visiting hospitals, schools and care homes, and providing therapeutic cuddles for those in need.
Owner Sarah Woodland, 42, received two mini Shetland ponies in the summer of 2022 from a friend, as SWNS, the British news service, reported. Poppy, 16, and Tinks, 17, stand just 30 inches tall and enjoy being fussed over, the outlet noted.
Woodland started doing private one-on-one enrichment sessions with the pair before deciding to visit a local care home with the animals to encourage residents to connect for a mental health boost.
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The session went so well, Woodland decided to make them both therapy ponies.
Providing comfort and interaction for those who need it, she now takes the animals into special schools, hospitals and care homes.
Woodland runs Dinky Ponies from Oxfordshire.
"It's the touch and the communication. Seeing and interacting with the ponies is a form of communication for people who may have difficulty talking," she told SWNS.
"It's almost like a form of love and it gets people up and moving."
Before this venture, she worked in human resources in London, and spent years raising her two children, ages 15 and 10, with her husband, Nick, 50, a retired military veteran.
As her children grew older, Woodland found herself with more time and a desire to reconnect with her love for horses, SWNS noted.
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She turned to freelance enrichment sessions before stumbling upon the idea of therapeutic pony visits.
Demand for her one-to-one riding lessons dipped during the winter months, so she decided to try a different approach.
Said Woodland, "You'll find people say animals are their best friends and [these animals] have a sense of knowing who needs to be comforted — that's part of the reason I decided to set things up."
When she reached out to the first care home with her idea in the summer of 2022, the response was "overwhelming," she said.
"From day one, it went absolute bonkers," she told SWNS.
"It's totally taken off, and it’s lovely to see the amazing impact the animals have on people. I think it was partially the lingering effects of lockdowns when care homes had limited visitors — so the experience of having the animals in was even more valuable."
While Dinky Ponies still does the occasional party, Woodland said her focus has shifted primarily to therapy sessions.
During a visit, people get to meet and stroke the horses.
It's the "profound, often unspoken connection between the ponies and the people they visit" that fuels her passion to keep doing it, Woodland said.
"Animals have a special way about them. It's lots of different things — it's the empathy and communication," she told SWNS. "I really do believe they have a sixth sense and an ability to know who needs extra attention."
During a recent visit, she said one care home resident was initially very skeptical of the ponies and had a table positioned protectively in front of him in bed.
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Despite his reluctance, he agreed to meet Poppy — and gradually, his barriers dropped.
"It was really lovely to see it from start to finish. That's the effect the animals have on people," she said.
Woodland has expanded and currently has seven ponies — each one with its niche.
Aside from the ponies Poppy and Tinks, she also has Abby, 13, Georgie, 12, Gracie, five, Charm, 12, and Evie, 15.
She admitted, though, that Poppy is "the superstar."
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Woodland said, "She just has a natural way of relaxing people and falling asleep in people's laps!"
She'll choose which pony to take to specific events depending on the needs at each venue.
When visiting a new facility, Woodland typically goes to the venue with one pony to assess the setup.
The ponies usually work one day a week, which ensures they're not overburdened or over-petted.
Now, they're so accustomed to the visits that they are even able to travel up and down in elevators, enabling them to visit children's wards at hospitals, SWNS reported.
"I want to keep doing it for as long as I can as the ponies have such a positive impact on people," Woodland said, according to the outlet.
