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The Unbridled Hour

In a fast-paced world that prizes doing, The Unbridled Hour offers a gentle return to being.

Step quietly into a different kind of presence.

This one-hour experience invites you into the paddock—not just to see the horses, but to be with them. At liberty and unhurried, these herd moments unfold organically: grooming a curious mare, sharing quiet breath with a gelding at the gate, noticing how the herd moves, listens, and responds to your presence.

No prior horse experience is necessary. Whether you’re managing anxiety, seeking reconnection, or simply curious about what it’s like to stand shoulder to shoulder with a 1,000-pound being who reads your body language better than you do—this space is for you.

What to Expect

You’ll be guided by a trained facilitator through:

  • A grounded arrival: slowing your breath and tuning in
  • Observing herd dynamics and equine body language
  • Practicing mindful presence and emotional regulation
  • Optional hands-on time with grooming, haltering, and leading

This isn’t a riding experience—it’s a relational one. A chance to begin building trust with horses and with yourself.

Why Horses?

Horses are masters of nonverbal communication.

As prey animals, their survival depends on attunement—reading energy, intention, and emotion with uncanny precision.

Science is beginning to catch up with what horse people have known for centuries: being near a horse can shift something deep inside us.

Their hearts are powerful—not just metaphorically. Research shows that the electromagnetic field of a horse’s heart is larger and more coherent than a human’s. When we’re near them, our own heart rhythms can begin to synchronize. Our bodies settle. Our minds quiet. We feel… more like ourselves.

This resonance—known as heart coherence—isn’t just poetry. It’s physiology.

A Starting Place

The Unbridled Hour is the gentlest of invitations: come as you are, and let the horses meet you there.

It’s also a foundational experience for our other programs, offering a safe, meaningful way to begin your relationship with the herd—and with your own internal awareness.

This hour may plant seeds that take root long after you’ve left the paddock.

“Polly showed me how to be present to connect with these amazing creatures...I was moved to tears and at a deeper level than I knew I had.”

Edward A. Clower, MA, LPC
Therapist

What People Say

My name is Michele R Johnson. I am an Army Vet and retired Law Enforcement.

When I was young my family would go horseback riding, that was my exposure to horses.

50 years later I began a healing journey that included Equine Therapy; however, I was not comfortable around the horses, they seemed big and scary and I didn’t trust them to behave.

I had attended many different places that used equine therapy but the one that totally changed my view of horses was when...

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Michele J.
Army Veteran, Program Participant

My name is Michele R Johnson. I am an Army Vet and retired Law Enforcement.

When I was young my family would go horseback riding, that was my exposure to horses.

50 years later I began a healing journey that included Equine Therapy; however, I was not comfortable around the horses, they seemed big and scary and I didn’t trust them to behave.

I had attended many different places that used equine therapy but the one that totally changed my view of horses was when I worked with Ms Polly and her horses, which I did twice.

Ms Polly has a way of calming you and presenting the horses to you in a way that was very comforting and not challenging to me.

In the beginning I didn’t even want to touch a horse let alone brush one and riding wasn’t ever a thought.

Ms Polly taught me to just breathe and relax around horses as they can feel your energy, that single lesson made it so much easier to engage with the horses.

I can say that today I will love on a horse, brush a horse and RIDE a horse, thank you Ms Polly for helping me overcome, I appreciate you and the horses.

Michele J.
Army Veteran, Program Participant
It had been over 35 years since I’d been around a horse, and even back then, I’d never felt at ease due to their size. I sought out Polly for research for my new novel, expecting little more than horse exposure and a few insights. What I didn’t expect was how profoundly it would impact me, thanks to her guidance. In just 45 minutes, Polly helped me connect with the horse by letting go of expectations and focusing on building trust. Through her calm direction, I realized that emotional safety...
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Melissa Trombetta
Author, Program Participant
It had been over 35 years since I’d been around a horse, and even back then, I’d never felt at ease due to their size. I sought out Polly for research for my new novel, expecting little more than horse exposure and a few insights. What I didn’t expect was how profoundly it would impact me, thanks to her guidance. In just 45 minutes, Polly helped me connect with the horse by letting go of expectations and focusing on building trust. Through her calm direction, I realized that emotional safety and true connection—whether with a horse or a person—can’t be forced; they have to be earned through mutual trust and emotional availability. This experience so clearly taught me that vulnerability and trust grow naturally when both sides are ready. It’s a lesson I carry with me every day, and I owe much of that insight to Polly’s support.
Melissa Trombetta
Author, Program Participant
Polly showed me how to be present to connect with these amazing creatures who have SO much to give. It is a tangible and intense feeling to be connected with a horse in this way, and I was moved to tears and at a deeper level than I knew I had. As a therapist, I would recommend this experience to anyone who is exploring their own healing journey.
Edward A. Clower, MA, LPC
Polly showed me how to be present to connect with these amazing creatures who have SO much to give. It is a tangible and intense feeling to be connected with a horse in this way, and I was moved to tears and at a deeper level than I knew I had. As a therapist, I would recommend this experience to anyone who is exploring their own healing journey.
Edward A. Clower, MA, LPC
Never thought vulnerability with a large animal could be so transformative. Gentleness, curiosity, and seeking inner quiet together. A singular experience I would recommend to anyone!
Ben Niese
Program Participant
Never thought vulnerability with a large animal could be so transformative. Gentleness, curiosity, and seeking inner quiet together. A singular experience I would recommend to anyone!
Ben Niese
Program Participant

Let’s Talk.

Whether you come once or return regularly, The Unbridled Hour offers a space for slowing down, waking up, and stepping into authentic connection—with the horses, and within yourself.

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About Me

Volunteer Training

WildHeart Journeys

The Unbridled Hour

Contact