Army’s top horses help heal America’s wounded Vets

Army’s top horses help heal America’s wounded Vets (US)
2009 October 20

by tuesdayshorse

Injured Soldiers Attend Weekly Riding Sessions
For more than 60 years, members of the Army’s Caisson Platoon and their horses have escorted America’s fallen to their final resting places in Arlington National Cemetery…with honor and pride.

The Caisson Platoon is part of the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, the nation’s oldest active infantry regiment and the Army’s “premiere ceremonial unit.”

And now, this “old guard” is taking on a new role by helping to heal America’s wounded veterans with the help of the horses.

Injured soldiers are transported from Walter Reed Army Medical Center each Thursday morning to the platoon’s base in Fort Myer, Va., for weekly horse riding sessions.

Some soldiers are just learning to walk again; others are on prosthetics.

For them, the riding has proven to be therapeutic and shown dramatic results , according to the program’s directors.

“The horses have done magic for them,” Mary Jo Beckman, co-founder of Caisson Platoon Equine Assisted Programs, told ABC News’ Bob Woodruff. “They tell me they look forward to Thursday morning… this is what makes life bearable for them,” Beckman said.
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Injured Soldiers Attend Weekly Riding Sessions