Horses Healing Humans – A Reflection of Hope
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108 – October, 2017
by Megan Arszman
For many of us, the horse is the one constant in our busy and hectic lives. The horse carries our dreams on his back, absorbs our sorrows in his mane, and keeps our secrets hidden in his heart.
Jannee Pugliani is a firm believer in the saying attributed to Winston Churchill that every horse lover can recite by heart: “There is something about the outside of a horse that is good for the inside of a man.” It’s the reason she believes in the power of equine psychotherapy. A horse trusts his owner without question; but, for some humans, trust is something that’s hard to give because of the rigors of war.
Looking for Direction
Pugliani’s work is about love. She has worked with and loved horses for most of her life, becoming involved on the AQHA and NSBA show circuits. The Select Amateur currently has a horse, named Red Label, in training with Highpoint Performance Horses, with hopes of returning to the show ring in 2018.
Inspired by her love of horses, and a gentle push from her then-fiancé when the downturn in the economy left her without many mortgage clients, Pugliani decided, that at 46 years old, it was time to finish her college degree. She studied human services and psychology and learned about a mode of therapy called equine-assisted psychotherapy and the Equine Growth and Learning Association, or EAGALA. She completed two internships utilizing the EAGALA model, first working with those suffering from eating disorders and then with a domestic violence shelter. Upon graduation in 2011, the Pugliani family moved to a home in Naperville, a suburb just outside of Chicago. “It’s not a big farm, but we do have an indoor arena, so I started getting everything in place for offering my services out of our own barn,” Pugliani says.
The horses of Acri Verde Farm show a reflection of veterans’ pain and struggles, helping them on the road to recovery and reintegration into society.
The farm was dubbed Acri Verde Farm, which is Italian for “Green Acres,” a play on her relationship with her husband, Dominic. “It’s an inside joke, because my husband is Italian. When we got together, although he has always loved horses, I was more of a country girl and he was a city boy raised in Chicago,” Pugliani laughs. “I’m Eddie Arnold, and he’s Eva Gabor.”
Click here to read the complete article108 – October, 2017
