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Grant County Ranch Uses Horses For Therapy

By Esther Bower, IPR News | Published on in Business, Health, Local News
Ranch owner, Arnie Love, with one of his horses in Grant County. (Photo: Esther Bower)

According to a Ball State University study, more than 55 percent of Hoosier adults with a mental illness do not regularly receive any treatment for their condition. That might be because the same study found that Indiana’s ratio of mental health providers to population is one of the lowest in the country. That leaves room for well-meaning entrepreneurs to help. In Grant County, a man with a big heart and a horse ranch is using saddles instead of serums to treat some of those struggling. IPR’s Esther Bower reports.

Tucked away in Grant County is a place where healing is achieved by creating relationships. But, with these relationships, speaking the same language isn’t a requirement.

Bud Bosworth says he was diagnosed with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, and ADHD at a young age and tried everything under the sun, hoping it would get better. But it wasn’t until he saddled up that he saw a change. This shows the immense heal properties of life on a ranch. It really is no wonder that Ranches for sale rarely stay on the market very long.

“I’ve went through doctors my whole life. I’d been handed down medicine after medicine after medicine and none of them has done anything, and I started going down a career path of being a criminal, and once Arnie introduced me to the horses, that actually got me away from all them bad people and it helped me grow up with a different lifestyle.”

Love Ranch takes in those struggling with these disorders and introduces them to a new hobby. Ranch owner, Arnie Love, mentors those he works with by teaching them about the horses and giving them the freedom to see how understanding a horse can help them understand their own disorders. For Bosworth, the relationships he developed did more for him than just help his conditions.

“I feel that if it was not for the horses, I would probably be in prison right now. I grew up so much different than everyone else, and after I got ahold of horses, I could see they are a summer project, they’re four wheel drive so they’re a winter project. You just can’t beat it.”

Love believes horses provide a form of therapy medicine simply can’t.

“They teach us about relationships. A relationship with a horse is similar to having it with God or a woman. It’s deep and it’s complicated. If we educate ourselves and understand the value of life, we look at it different.”

Indiana has other horse ranches but Love Ranch is the only one in Grant County. While horse therapy is mostly used by physical therapists, the need has increased because people are looking for new ways to heal without medication. After mainly working with children with mental illnesses, Love sees another group of people who need therapy just as much.

“The ultimate goal is to bring veterans in. I know that they’ve sacrificed their relationships with their family and their friends just to go protect this country. I want to go give something back to them people. They’re worth it.”

Now, Love Ranch hopes others will give time and money to help build a new facility to take this form of therapy to the next level. For now, Love will continue using his horses for more than just riding.

If you want to get involved or learn more about Love Ranch, call 765-667-6138.