Location: Apple Hill, Ontario, Canada
Brave-Hearts Riding Club is a nonprofit registered Canadian charity in Apple Hill, Ontario, in the Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry (S.D. & G.) region of eastern Ontario.
Established in 1995, it holds the distinction of being the only fully certified equestrian centre in the S.D. & G. region under the Canadian Therapeutic Riding Association (CanTRA).
The organization runs two named programs — Pony Pages and Stable Mates — both built around horse-centered learning for children facing social, emotional, and learning challenges, with a distinctly calm, non-competitive approach to equine-assisted growth.
About This Program
Brave-Hearts describes itself as a horse-centered learning program rather than a conventional therapeutic riding program, and that framing reflects something real about how it operates. The focus is less on mounted riding as a clinical intervention and more on the relationship between a child and a horse as a vehicle for learning, regulation, and personal development. Horses are treated as teachers, and children are guided by Certified Therapeutic Instructors through activities carefully designed to support their individual goals.
The underlying philosophy is that horses offer something uniquely accessible to children who struggle in other settings. Horses respond to behavior rather than diagnoses, to calmness and clear direction rather than social conventions. They offer children an honest mirror — and because they are large, impressive animals, earning their cooperation becomes genuinely empowering. That dynamic creates natural opportunities to build self-awareness, self-regulation, confidence, respect, and boundary-setting in ways that carry over into daily life.
Brave-Hearts runs two structured programs in six-week blocks, offered in both spring and fall sessions. Pony Pages is a literacy and numeracy program for children ages 7 to 12, framed around the theme of medieval pages who cared for knights’ horses. While learning about horses, children work on reading and math in a hands-on environment that removes the anxiety of a traditional classroom. Stable Mates is a private 1:1 personal development program for ages 6 and up, focused on communication, healthy boundaries, leadership, self-awareness, and self-regulation through daily horse care and quiet reflective time at the farm. Both programs are by appointment only and run on a small-group or one-on-one format.
The center has maintained a 100% safety record across more than 25 years of programming, and scholarships of $500 are available to help children access services when other funding is unavailable.
Services Offered
- Pony Pages: horse-centered literacy and numeracy program (ages 7 to 12, small groups)
- Stable Mates: private 1:1 personal development and self-regulation program (ages 6 and up)
- Horse care and horsemanship activities (grooming, body language, daily care)
- Scholarship support for families with financial need
Who They Serve
Brave-Hearts Riding Club may be a good fit for:
- Children ages 6 to 12 facing social, emotional, or learning challenges
- Individuals with ADHD
- Individuals with learning disorders
- Individuals with obsessive compulsive disorder
- Individuals with autism spectrum disorder
- Individuals with anxiety or attachment disorders
- Children who struggle with reading, writing, or math
- Children who need support with self-regulation, boundary-setting, or social skills
- Youth at risk
- Beginner riders and children with no prior horse experience
Facility and Setting
Brave-Hearts Riding Club operates from a private farm in Apple Hill, Ontario, in the rural S.D. & G. region east of Ottawa. The farm is a quiet, non-competitive setting intentionally chosen to support the calm, reflective tone of the programs. All visits are strictly by appointment only. The address listed with CanTRA is in the Apple Hill area of S.D. & G.
- Apple Hill, Ontario location (Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry region, eastern Ontario)
- By appointment only
- CanTRA certified — only certified equestrian centre in S.D. & G.
- Registered Canadian charity
- Scholarship program available
What Makes Them Unique
Brave-Hearts occupies a meaningful gap in its region. As the only CanTRA-certified program in Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, it serves a rural community where alternative therapy options are genuinely limited. The program’s focus on literacy through horses — Pony Pages — is a relatively uncommon application, and its framing within an engaging medieval theme makes academic work feel like play rather than remediation.
The Stable Mates program’s emphasis on reflective time with horses, rather than active riding instruction, also sets it apart. Much of the therapeutic value at Brave-Hearts comes from the quiet, unhurried experience of being present with a large animal — grooming, observing, and responding — rather than from mounted work alone.
For children whose nervous systems are dysregulated or who have struggled in high-stimulation environments, that quality of calm presence is precisely what makes the farm therapeutic.