Crosslink Development International

Close Call During Horse Therapy Turns Into an Empowering Situation

Every day, children with a wide range of disabilities come to hippotherapy sessions to improve their mobility, strengthen their muscles and gain more social experiences. Some children require constant physical support while riding, while others have the strength and balance needed to ride independently.
Just like one young girl who has been attending hippotherapy twice a week for several years. Through her dedication and hard work, she has developed enough strength and coordination to ride a horse on her own. During her sessions, the staff members primarily supervise from the side of the arena, ensuring her safety while encouraging her progress.
One day an unexpected incident occurred. As the girl guided her horse through an obstacle course, her foot became entangled in a rope attached to one of the poles. When the horse took its next step forward, the rope pulled her leg back, causing her to lose her balance and begin slipping from the saddle.
What could have become a serious accident instead became a remarkable demonstration of training, teamwork, and resilience. The horse immediately sensed the shift in weight and stopped moving. As she slipped, the girl instinctively held on to the saddle with both her hands and legs, preventing herself from falling to the ground. And within seconds, four staff members rushed to her side. Calmly and efficiently, they stabilized her, freed her foot from the rope, and helped her back into a secure riding position. Throughout the entire incident, the staff continued to reassure and encourage her, praising her for staying calm and handling the situation so well.
Most importantly, no one was injured. There was no panic, no tears, and no loss of confidence. Instead, the experience became an empowering moment for the girl. Having successfully managed a difficult situation, she felt proud of herself and was able to continue her session as if nothing had happened. Of course the rope hazard was immediately removed to ensure future safety.
Watching this unfold was a powerful reminder that hippotherapy is about much more than physical rehabilitation. The skills these children develop extend far beyond the riding arena. Through regular sessions, they build strength, coordination, confidence, problem-solving abilities, and emotional resilience. Equally important is the supportive environment created by the horses and the dedicated staff who provide encouragement, patience, and care every step of the way. These experiences help children discover strengths they may not realize they possess, while giving parents the opportunity to see their children overcome challenges, gain independence, and thrive in ways that are often not visible in everyday life.

Seven kids hover over computer monitors, most of them sharing a screen, as they carefully follow directions from their teacher. They are taking a computer class provided by CDI at an orphanage near Bishkek. We have written previously about the education efforts that CDI is involved in for children with special needs. Unfortunately, due to financial support being lower than expected this year, we have been unable to retain the majority of our teachers.
Azamat is the one exception at this orphanage. He grew up in this very orphanage, went to college, and now works for CDI teaching kids living in similar situations to his own childhood. His classes keep getting bigger. He used to only have one computer, but now, due to a partner in the US who was able to locate used computers, he now has six! They are all in use. Kids call out to him for assistance throughout the class, and he patiently helps work through the problems step by step.
If you are interested in supporting Azamat’s work, and helping us pay the salaries for other teachers, please go to the donate tab on CDI website.

Elina is a cheerful four-year-old girl. Her smile is big, though the rest of her body can hardly move. She has not always been disabled though. When she was only a month old she slipped from her father’s arms and suffered a brain injury which led to the physical disability. It’s difficult to imagine the pain and self-accusation her parents have gone through since that day.

In order to seek better help for their daughter, the family decided to move from their rural home to Kyrgyzstan’s capital city, Bishkek. Elina’s father works hard at a bazaar (outdoor market) to provide for his family and to pay for medicine and treatment for his Elina. Maybe he hopes to see his daughter healed so he can be free from the heavy load of guilt.

Elina’s parents recently heard about CDI’s Tassir Project, which equips children with disabilities with adaptive equipment. They got in touch with the project, and when staff assessed Elina, It was quickly clear that a chair would be a huge help. She is currently not able to sit independently and spends most of her time lying on the floor. She has very poor control of her hands and has difficulty using them for anything. Any development in her hands was challenging, as she couldn’t even see them as they lay on the floor at her sides. Her mother also shared how difficult even the simple task of feeding her was, when she was unable to sit up to swallow.

With the support of some project money and the parent’s personal contributions, the family was able to buy a therapy chair. After about one month, the project’s social worker visited Elina again. She was already enjoying her new chair and even after this very short time, it was recognizable that her body posture had improved. Her mother is so thankful that she can feed her daughter much more easily now. Elina has also started to play with toys using her hands. She pushes her ball off the table and is pleased when her mother reacts. This allows her to interact socially and further motivates her to use her arms and hands.

The simple addition of a therapy chair gave practical solutions and hope for the future.

When Nicola joined the Youth Project in Jalalabad, she didn’t think she would get much out of it. She was a very well educated young woman, and had gone to school to be a lawyer. When CDI leaders would pose questions to the group, she always had a quick answer. She was widely read and could answer philosophical questions as well. But she came to realize there was something she could not work through on her own. While the Youth Project often does lighthearted group activities, they also focus on discussions around topics like healing broken relationships. Conversations can range from romantic relationships, to families, and even to relationships between people groups. As Nicola learned to trust the CDI group leaders, she began to share some of her past family hurts. The weight of what she had gone through had continued to affect her all her life. By opening up with the CDI staff who she knew she could rely on, she was able to work through emotional wounds received from her mother. Letting go of the pain she had been holding onto has made Nicola a different person, free to be herself and not always strive for perfection. She is currently traveling outside of Kyrgyzstan, but keeps in touch with the group. Trust filled relationships can be the crucible for addressing and working through the relationships that have caused us pain.

Last October, fifteen midwives and nurses from small villages in Kyrgyzstan’s southern mountains gathered for a seminar hosted by CDI. The seminar’s goal was to educate healthcare workers in order to reduce mother-baby fatalities and to improve overall outcomes of childbirth. After the seminar, CDI staff stayed connected with the women through online “Coaching Circles.” They helped guide them through situations and answered questions as they came up. The CDI team also walked alongside the nurses and midwives as they became the educators themselves and taught pregnant women in their villages. Much of the training they had previously been using dated back to Soviet Union education. Even though they had been using old methods and information for years, the healthcare workers showed a willingness to learn and implement new techniques in their practice. One Midwife was fifty eight years old, but still showed eagerness to learn and improve in her work.
The CDI Team returned in February to check in on the nurses and midwives and give an additional day and a half of training. They covered topics surrounding labor and pre-labor preparation. The fifteen women also shared what they had learned and experienced over the past few months. One midwife related how she had gone back to her village and taught four pregnant women the different techniques and information she had learned from the October training. After the women gave birth, they came to the midwife and expressed their gratitude. They stated they noticed the difference from this birthing experience compared to their previous births. They reported their births were much more peaceful and less problematic. The CDI team recognized the importance of initial training, and of following up and supporting people through the learning process.

CDI has a small team working on community development in the midst of a Roma (Gypsy) community in southern Kyrgyzstan. Using woodwork and carpentry, they are teaching young boys a trade. Often the Roma people in this area have limited education and begging is a major source of income. Getting established in this tight knit community has proved challenging. Many landowners are wary of renting a workshop to outsiders. The team have been kicked out of the three different locations within the community. In April of 2023 their last landlord told them they would need to leave. He actually liked renting to the team, but he was leaving to work in Russia and was worried for their security if he was not physically present.
So the team once again did not have a workshop to work in. However they still had several young apprentices from the community that they were teaching and had built up relationships with. One of these boy’s fathers reached out to the CDI team, asking if they would help build a chicken/rabbit coop. Since they didn’t have a workshop, a team member offered to build it right in the father’s yard! He and two apprentices dismantled the old coop and built a new larger one. The boys were excited to build something new and practical.
As the father watched the building process, he noted how well the CDI staff member worked with the boys and gave them the chance to learn.
He knew that the team did not currently have a workshop, and after talking to his brother, they offered the team two small rooms in their own courtyard to use as a workshop.
The CDI team realized that as they spent time with their community and showed them who they were day after day, trust began to build up. As trust is established, community works to overcome obstacles.

Early on, it was apparent that Mukaram had significant learning difficulties. Her pace of learning was much slower than most kids. The only solution her family saw was to send her to a boarding school far away where she would receive professional care. However, at the age of 14, she still didn’t know all the letters, and she was refusing to return to the boarding school. She talked about being beaten and being homesick there. A solution was found when Mukaram was able to attend individual lessons in her village with a CDI employee. She was taught by someone who understood learning disabilities and had lots of patience. After a relatively short time she learned to read and write! Steps are now being taken to ensure that she can start school in her neighborhood and be socially reintegrated.