Dover, New Hampshire - Chris Makhoul was terrified when he first came to Winning Ways Stable in June and saw Cowboy, a miniature 42-year-old Shetland pony.

Makhoul and Cowboy
©John Huff/Staff photographer
Chris Makhoul gets close to Cowboy at Winning Ways Stable Inc. in Dover recently. Makhoul works with and rides several of the horses there as part of a therapeutic program to help people with developmental disabilities.

The 22-year-old Fremont man, who suffers from Asperger's syndrome, a form of autism, couldn't even bring himself to pat Cowboy. But Ginny Ann, his life coach, knew Makhoul would benefit from contact with animals.

As a volunteer who worked for the University of New Hampshire's therapeutic riding program since 2001, which has a stable in Durham, Ann said she's seen many people who suffer from developmental disabilities improve from riding horses.

"I'm just a huge, huge believer in animal-assisted therapy," Ann said.

So is Jill Murphy. She owns the Winning Ways Stable and has provided horses to help people who suffer from physical disabilities such as cerebral palsy for 12 years. When Ann contacted her in June and asked if Makhoul could go to the horse farm once weekly and learn how to ride a horse, Murphy said she was delighted.

Makhoul hugs horse
©John Huff/Staff photographer
Chris Makhoul hugs Lizzie after a ride at Winning Ways Stable, Inc. in Dover recently.

"I want to share. It's not about the money. It's about somebody who needs this," Murphy said.

She said she believes in the benefits of therapeutic horse riding therapy, in which people who suffer from development disabilities such as autism, Down syndrome and other neurological conditions are able to process thoughts and focus better after riding.

Murphy said the motion and rhythm riders experience have a calming effect that helps them overcome some symptoms of autism, such as sensory overload.

Nationwide, the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta, Ga., say autism cases have skyrocketed from 1 in 10,000 people in 1993 to 1 in 150 today. The federal National Institutes of Health and several leading medical universities continue to research the causes and possible treatments.

States like New Hampshire are also in the process of trying to make their system of social services agencies and health-care providers work better together so they can more efficiently help parents.

But the neurological condition's cause remains a mystery.

Some parents have explored alternative treatments, such as gluten- and casein-free diets and chelation therapy to help their children.

Ann swears by therapeutic horseback riding based on her experiences of working with developmentally disabled people at UNH. She said she wishes more children and adults diagnosed with autism and other pervasive developmental disorders could access it.

Murphy said her stable is not a therapeutic riding center. She said she derives income for the horse farm from riding lessons, an after school program they run for Tri-Christian Academy in Somersworth, boarding and training for instructors.

But she enjoys making her farm and horses available to families and people with developmental disabilities who need a place to go to access therapeutic riding therapy, she said.

Makhoul is another example of someone who has benefited from the time he has spent at the horse farm taking care of the animals and riding them, Murphy added.

After just a few weeks, Makhoul became more comfortable around Cowboy. He also learned how to clean out stalls and brush and groom other horses. The first time he rode Lizzie, another horse at the stable, Murphy and Ann, who works for the Manchester-based group LifeShare, cried tears of joy.

Makhoul rides Jill
©John Huff/Staff photographer
Chris Makhoul rides Lizzie at Winning Ways Stable Inc. in Dover recently.

Recently Makhoul, who lives at home with his parents and works part-time at a store stocking shelves, rode Lizzie effortlessly with the help of Ann and Murphy in the stable's outdoor ring.

"It's fun," Makhoul said. "I enjoy it every time I come here."

He called Lizzie his "beauty."

He said he enjoys riding Lizzie because "it relaxes me."

He said he felt "very good" when Catherine Graciano, LifeShare's associate director adult services in Dover, saw him ride.

LifeShare works with families and individuals who suffer from developmental disabilities in New Hampshire and Maine, helping those individuals learn life skills.

Graciano said the Dover office employs 26 people who work with 37 clients.

Makhoul said he wants people to know he feels very optimistic about his life and future and would love to work with horses full time, as well as have a family of his own someday.

"I would like to get married and have a couple of kids," he said.

Ann said working with horses and riding them has made Makhoul feel more confident, and take that feeling with him when he works.

"He is so proud of himself that he can tell his friends and family that he rides a horse," Ann said.

She said she worked with one girl who would not talk outside her home. When she brought the girl to the UNH stable, she asked her to tell the horse, "Walk on, Katie."

One day, the girl spoke those words in a soft whisper. When Ann asked her to say it louder, the girl clearly spoke, "Walk on, Katie,' and that was her breakthrough, and that just doesn't happen at a therapy session in an office," Ann said.