From the perspective of evidenced-based practice, the question that naturally arises is whether there are data to support that hippotherapy is effective in causing any positive, measurable change in some aspect of functioning. Despite numerous publications and testimonials describing the therapy, few scientific test results are available. Benda, McGibbon, & Grant (2003) randomly assigned children with spastic cerebral palsy to either hippotherapy or to a no-treatment condition in which children sat on a stationary barrel. The hippotherapy group reportedly showed significantly greater improvement in muscle activity than the no-treatment control group