About us
Who are we?
Wild at Heart is an initiative to provide a comprehensive training options for therapists who are looking to expand in to or further their skills in the field of Equine Assisted Therapy. You do not need to be planning to, or actively practicing equine therapy to attend the workshop. You can attend out of interest for professional development (need to be fairly comfortable with horses to get the most out of it).
We have actively advocated for the inclusion of brumbies in to the animal assisted therapy space, as these horses were previously considered to be inappropriate by the standards of the ATL Code of Conduct. In response to our extensive submission and re-education of the people involved, this has now been changed to allow brumbies to be a part of equine therapy, if the handlers are appropriately experienced in working with them.
Due to personal experience of working with unhandled brumbies and seeing the amazing work they have done with our own psychology clients, we are extremely passionate about sharing what we have learned about starting these brumbies with the intention of producing a happy and confident horse that genuinely enjoys the company of humans. Brumbies are typically exceptionally smart, have fantastic emotional intelligence and social skills. They are curious and playful, making them the perfect co-therapist for clinicians in the equine-assisted therapy space.
We offer a range of training options, and even from time to time the opportunity to adopt one of the brumbies we have started specifically for the purposes of success in the therapy space.
About Us
Samantha King B.Psych.Sc.(hons)
Psychologist & Animal Assister Therapist (canine & equine)
Therapy Dogs Australia - founder & owner
Psychology & Animal Assisted Wellbeing - owner & clinic director
The Brumby Project - Assistant Brumby Trainer
Accredited Horse Handling Instructor (IHC).
Sam is a Psychologist and has been working alongside her horses in therapy for seven years (and dogs for 14 years), primarily with young people on the Autism spectrum. Sam's passion for horses has grown over recent years when she learned about the plight of brumbies (wild-living horses) in Australia. Attending several training camps and with now four diverse brumbies in her personal herd (of 7 horses), Sam is passionate about sharing her experiences of giving these horses a second chance at life. Brumbies can make fantastic animal assisted therapy horses, with the right training and understanding about transitioning from wild-living to domestication.
Sam has identified a gap in the trainings available for experienced professionals working in the animal assisted therapy space under evidence-based therapeutic frameworks. Her passion is to assist health professionals to integrate their horses in to goal-directed Cognitive-Behavioural Therapy interventions, compliant with AHPRA and Medicare standards.
Learn more
Therapy Dogs Australia
Psychology & Animal Assisted Wellbeing
Therapy Dogs Australia
Our parent company.
Therapy Dogs Australia train canine & handler animal assisted therapy teams for professional and visitation services.
The Brumby Project
Psychology & Animal Assisted Wellbeing
Therapy Dogs Australia
Want to experience the magic of training your own brumby from completely unhandled? We highly recommend TBP camps for your journey. This is where we started!
Psychology & Animal Assisted Wellbeing
Psychology & Animal Assisted Wellbeing
Psychology & Animal Assisted Wellbeing
Our sister company. Psychology & Animal Assisted Wellbeing is a multi-disciplinary allied health clinic where all clinicians are accompanied by therapy animals, providing animal assisted therapy.