Bit by Bit Medical Therapeutic Riding Center is a nonprofit equine-assisted therapy and riding program located in Davie, Florida, in Broward County. Founded in 2002 by Susan March, RPT, and a group of committed parents, Bit by Bit describes itself as the only medical therapeutic riding center in Florida.
The program holds both PATH International accreditation and American Hippotherapy Association Registered Facility status, and logs more than 500 therapy sessions per month across its services.
About This Program
Bit by Bit was built around a clinical model that treats the horse as an active participant in licensed therapy rather than simply a backdrop for recreational riding. The program’s hippotherapy sessions are conducted by physical, occupational, and speech-language therapists who use the movement of the horse as a purposeful treatment strategy, targeting sensory, neuromotor, and cognitive systems to achieve functional outcomes for each client. Because hippotherapy is delivered by licensed therapists within their individual scope of practice, it represents a medically oriented approach that differs substantially from adaptive or recreational riding programs.
For riders whose physical impairments are severe, Bit by Bit offers tandem hippotherapy — a technique in which the therapist sits behind the rider on the horse — allowing for a much higher level of physical support and therapeutic input than standard side-walking can provide. The organization notes that only a handful of centers in the country can perform this technique, and its availability here reflects the depth of clinical training among the staff.
Alongside the medical therapy offerings, Bit by Bit provides adaptive riding lessons taught by PATH-certified therapeutic riding instructors. These lessons focus on horsemanship skills, balance, coordination, direction-following, multi-step tasks, and socialization, with horse leaders and sidewalkers available to support riders at every level. The program serves ages 18 months through adult.
Bit by Bit also runs a Horses for Heroes program, providing therapeutic riding free of charge to veterans with disabilities. The organization frames this as a core part of its community mission alongside its work with children and at-risk youth.
Sessions take place primarily in an outdoor setting on a three-acre property, with an indoor option available when weather prevents outdoor work. The facility is open Monday through Friday, 8am to 5pm, and Saturday and Sunday, 9am to 1pm.
Services Offered
- Hippotherapy (physical, occupational, and speech-language therapy using equine movement)
- Tandem hippotherapy (therapist and rider mounted together)
- Adaptive therapeutic riding lessons
- Horses for Heroes program (free for veterans with disabilities)
- Grooming and equine care activities
- Volunteer program
Who They Serve
Bit by Bit Medical Therapeutic Riding Center may be a good fit for:
- Children ages 18 months through adults
- Individuals with autism spectrum disorder (including Asperger’s and PDD)
- Individuals with cerebral palsy
- Individuals with Down syndrome
- Individuals with developmental delays or cognitive delays
- Individuals with traumatic brain injury
- Individuals with spinal cord injury or amputations
- Individuals with neurological conditions or ataxia
- Individuals with balance and coordination disorders
- Individuals with PTSD
- Individuals with psychosocial disorders
- Individuals with speech and language delays (including apraxia, stuttering, articulation)
- Individuals with sensory integration disorders
- Individuals with gross and fine motor skill delays
- Individuals with gait disturbances
- Stroke survivors
- Individuals with Prader-Willi or Fragile X syndrome
- Individuals with feeding and eating disorders
- Veterans with disabilities
- At-risk youth
Facility and Setting
Bit by Bit operates on a three-acre property at 3141 SW 118th Terrace in Davie, Florida, a suburban community in Broward County between Fort Lauderdale and Miami. The outdoor therapy environment is a deliberate part of the program’s philosophy, with nature and open air considered part of the therapeutic experience. An indoor space provides continuity when weather interferes.
- Davie, Florida location (Broward County)
- 3141 SW 118th Terrace, Davie, FL 33330
- 3-acre outdoor therapy facility with indoor option
- PATH International accredited center
- American Hippotherapy Association Registered Facility
- Open Monday through Sunday
- 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization
What Makes Them Unique
Bit by Bit occupies a genuinely rare position in Florida’s equine-assisted services landscape. As what it describes as the state’s only medical therapeutic riding center, the program has built a clinical identity centered on licensed therapy delivered through equine movement rather than therapeutic riding as a standalone activity. The presence of OTs, PTs, and SLPs on staff — all specializing in hippotherapy — gives the program a level of clinical depth that most riding-focused centers cannot offer.
The availability of tandem hippotherapy is particularly significant. For children and adults with the most severe physical impairments, this technique opens up participation that would otherwise be impossible, and its rarity nationally makes Bit by Bit one of very few options for families seeking this level of support. Combined with the Horses for Heroes program and a track record stretching back more than two decades in south Florida, Bit by Bit has built a strong reputation as a clinically serious and genuinely inclusive program.