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TUFF Therapeutic Riding Foundation uses horses to help at-risk youth

September 18, 2025   ·   0 Comments

By Brian Lockhart

The equines at TUFF Therapeutic Riding Foundation at Jewel View Farm near Loretto are a large and powerful breed of horses.

They are also gentle and appreciate human contact.

The TUFF Therapeutic Riding program was established at Jewel View Farm near Loretto in 2001 by Ellen Downey to provide therapeutic riding for youth at risk in Ontario. This program empowers youth to address their mental health and, with the help and support of a volunteer team and horses, change their lives.

Using a ten-week program model that has been specifically tailored to youth at risk, they attend weekly for approximately three hours. There is also a five-day intensive model program that is designed for youth who have experienced substantial trauma.

Each youth is matched with a horse and a volunteer who partners with them for the duration of the program. Participating youth address specific treatment goals and issues, including trauma, depression, anxiety, and anger. They learn basic horsemanship and riding skills.

The program received $179,000 in Resilient Communities Funding from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, which was used to expand programs and allow for additional groups of at-risk youth to take part in the equine therapy program.

Simcoe-Grey MPP Brian Saunderson stopped by Jewel View Farm on Wednesday, Sept. 8, to learn what had been accomplished with the grant and its impact on the community.

MPP Saunderson was impressed with the work being done at TUFF Therapeutic Riding and congratulated the team on their important contribution to helping youth at risk.

“Congratulations to the team at the Tuff Therapeutic Riding Foundation on the positive impact they are making in the lives of youth,” said MPP Saunderson. “This vital provincial funding has been put to excellent use and has allowed the organization to expand its reach, thus helping more young people build confidence, resilience, and hope for the future. This grant will be used to help you build your resilience and sustainability by hiring dedicated staff to develop new fundraising strategies, opportunities, partnerships, and train staff and volunteers.”

Many of the horses in the program are retired from the RCMP Musical Ride. The RCMP likes retiring their horses to Jewel View Farm because they know the farm provides superior care to its animals.

Because of their training with the RCMP, the horses are friendly and sociable and enjoy meeting the youth who visit the farm.

“I’m a social worker and I work with youth at-risk, and I’m also a life-long rider,” Ms. Downey explained of her background relating to the program. “The program serves youth at-risk with mental health problems. We work with a number of referring agencies throughout Dufferin, Simcoe, and the GTA, as well as some programs from up north.”

She added, “We work with kids in a group setting. There are two formats – a five-day intensive curriculum and a ten-week curriculum. We teach them basic horsemanship and we work on mental health goals and issues. When they first come, they are afraid of horses – most of them have never been around a horse before. By the end of the first session they are already engaged and developing a relationship with their horse. For many of our kids, just having a relationship is new to them – particularly an unconditional relationship.”

“We serve a wide range of kids. This includes kids with addictions, kids who have experienced trauma, sexual abuse, kids who have been human trafficked, and those that just feel marginalized. We empower kids to be in charge of themselves. Each kid is matched with a horse and a volunteer for the duration of their time here,” Ms. Downey concluded. 

The TUFF Therapeutic Riding program is a success in helping at-risk youth gain confidence and be empowered in their own lives. 

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