Therapeutic horseback riding can exert positive effects on social , emotional and physical domains(Freundetal.2011;Alletal.1999).As an example ,positive effects have been demonstrated for the rehabilitation of motor disorders and neurological diseases (e.g.spastic cerebral palsy,multiple sclerosis , spinal cord injury):the rhythmic equine movements imposed on patient’s body is able to improve balance , muscle symmetry , coordination and posture (Bronson et al.2010;Lechner et al.2007;Munoz-Lasa et al.2011;Snider et al. 2007;Tseng et al .2013).More-over,horseback riding , as well as goal -oriented interaction with horses ,have both been reported to result in a temporary improvement in mental well-being , sense of self efficacy and self-esteem, thus positively affecting individuals’ quality of life and global functioning(Bizub et al. 2003;Lechneretal.2007;Schultzetal.2007).This evidence has led to an increasing recognition of the value of EAT in the context of psychiatric rehabilitation,as suggested by a study showing the effectiveness of a therapeutic riding program in alleviating negative symptoms in schizophrenia (Cerinoetal.2011).