Pecan Creek Ranch

Pecan Creek Ranch We help people thrive through Equine Assisted Psychotherapy, Professional Training & Horsemanship at our beautiful multi-acre ranch in Salado, Texas.

We have over 40 years combined therapy experience and 15 years TF-EAP experience.

06/05/2026

Connection/Funny Friday

Cats like children sometimes struggle when they are asked to do something they do not want to do. Milo loves to nap in the office because he is near us and it is cool and comfy. When it comes time for us to close up for the night, he must leave the office. Most days he hears us packing up and leaves on his own, but on this day he was lounging and did not want to move.

Reccia connected with him, and asked him to leave. He connected with her, but ignored her request. She increased the pressure in a loving connected way until he was able to start thinking about leaving the office. Then, she released some of the pressure. She held the pressure steady as he stretched and contemplated his next move. When he rolled over onto his back struggling to get up, I laughed out loud. Eventually he agreed to leave the office. Hope you enjoy the video! I am so glad Reccia thought he was so cute that she decided to record, othewise we wouldn’t have this gem.

🐱

Regulation Thursday Our nervous systems are constantly gathering information from our bodies and our environment. One of...
06/04/2026

Regulation Thursday

Our nervous systems are constantly gathering information from our bodies and our environment. One of the signals they pay attention to is speed. How quickly we move can influence whether the nervous system interprets a situation as requiring mobilization, caution, or rest.

Fast movement is often associated with action. Running, rushing, multitasking, and constantly moving from one task to another can increase physiological arousal. Heart rate rises, breathing often becomes more shallow, and the nervous system shifts resources toward performance and responding to demands.

This isn’t inherently bad. We need the ability to mobilize energy to meet challenges, solve problems, and pursue goals. However, when a fast pace becomes our default state, the nervous system may spend more time in a state of activation and less time in restoration.

Slower, intentional movement often provides the nervous system with different information. Walking at a comfortable pace, moving mindfully, or engaging in gentle activities can create opportunities for deeper breathing, greater awareness of the environment, and increased sensory integration.

For many people, slowing down can support regulation because it allows the brain and body to process information more fully rather than constantly preparing for the next demand.

Interestingly, regulation is not simply about moving slowly. A pace that is too slow for our current state can sometimes feel uncomfortable or even agitating. Likewise, a pace that is too fast can overwhelm our capacity to process what is happening around us.

Equine Assisted Psychotherapy WednesdayThe client walks out of the barn and into the pasture with the team. As they walk...
06/03/2026

Equine Assisted Psychotherapy Wednesday

The client walks out of the barn and into the pasture with the team. As they walk, they catch up on how the client has been doing. The client stops walking and scans the pasture. They spot their horse nearly thirty acres away. The client calls out. The gelding lifts his head and turns toward the sound, watching. Suddenly he breaks into a trot, then a gallop, racing toward the client, covering the distance quickly. But as the gelding passes through the gate into the larger pasture where the client is standing, the client’s body tightens. The gelding slows, nostrils flaring and ears forward. The client exclaims that they are excited to see him, but their body tells another story, leaning backward, away from the horse’s approach. The gelding slows again and then stops a few acres away, head raised, quietly studying the client.

Client: “Why did he stop?”

Team member shrugs. “I don’t know.”

The horse stands still, head raised, ears forward, nostrils flaring.

Team member: “Did anything change inside you as he was coming toward you?”

Client: “He was racing!”

Team member: “Yes, he was. What was that like for you?”

Client: “I really want to see him. It was also a little scary.”

Team member: “I can imagine. It sounds like there may besome conflict inside you. You want him to come, and maybe you also want him to come more slowly.”

The client smiles. “Slower would be nice.”

The gelding takes a tentative step toward the client. The client laughs, body more relaxed now. The gelding moves forward again. The client’s energy rises, and the gelding quickens his pace. The client steps back. Once again, the gelding stops and waits.

Client: “I know what he’s doing.”

Team member: “Yeah? What’s he doing?”

Client: “He’s listening to me!”

Something to consider Tuesday When you are evaluating safety do you ever consider how safe it is to make mistakes? What ...
06/03/2026

Something to consider Tuesday

When you are evaluating safety do you ever consider how safe it is to make mistakes? What might change if you added this to your assessment of safety?

Educational Monday We can only give what we have been given.I learned this lesson the hard way as a young clinician prov...
06/01/2026

Educational Monday

We can only give what we have been given.

I learned this lesson the hard way as a young clinician providing in-home services to new mothers living with significant mental health challenges. At first, I believed that their mental illnesses were the primary obstacle they faced as parents. Over time, I realized there was often something deeper beneath the surface.

Many of these mothers had never experienced true attunement. They had never been deeply seen, understood, comforted, and cared for by another person. The care they received growing up was often provided from a place of obligation, duty, or survival rather than genuine connection. As a result, many had never learned what attunement felt like.

Because of this, they often struggled to attune to their own babies. They could not hear the subtle differences in their babies' cries. They assumed every cry meant hunger and were confused when feeding did not soothe their child. They did not realize that some cries were not about food at all—they were about connection, comfort, or a need to feel safe.

When a baby pushed the bottle away, many parents became overwhelmed with frustration and confusion. Sometimes feeding turned into a power struggle. I remember feeling puzzled by this disconnect. How could they not hear the differences in the cries? How could they miss what seemed so obvious to me?

Then a colleague shared a simple insight that changed the way I viewed these families: “You cannot give what you have not been given." If no one had ever attuned to them, how could they know how to attune to their babies?

That realization transformed my work. My role was not to correct, or simply instruct. My role was to offer what many of them had never received. To listen deeply. To see them. To respond with patience, care, and compassion. To create a relationship where they could experience attunement for themselves. Only then could they begin to offer those same gifts to their children.

Sometimes the most powerful way to help someone change is not to teach them what to do. It is to give them the experience of what they have never had.

Uplift Sunday Most of us dislike change. Change is uncomfortable because it asks us to leave behind what is familiar and...
05/31/2026

Uplift Sunday
Most of us dislike change. Change is uncomfortable because it asks us to leave behind what is familiar and to venture into the unknown. It is unsettling to not know what is going to happen, to have all possiblilities open.

When I really reflect on this, it makes me chuckle because if I am really honest I have no idea what is going to happen in the next moment. But my brain tells me it’s prediction with such confidence that I believe the next moment is certain. I try to pause in those moments and realize that the next moment is an unknown, just like the unknown that comes with big changes. Practicing moving into the unknown in this way helps me relax into big changes. Knowing I have faced the unknown thousands, maybe even millions of times makes it easier for me.

But the unknown isn’t the only reason change is hard. Change can be hard because we are leaving something beloved to experience a new adventure. This is what I felt when I left North Carolina to move back home to Texas. In this there is grief and hope bound together. The funny thing about change is it is hard even when we know a change is needed.

Yet, change is also where opportunity lives. Every new chapter of our lives brings the possibility of growth, learning, connection, and discovery. A new job may open doors you never expected. A new relationship may bring joy and perspective. A new challenge may reveal strengths you never knew you possessed.

The opportunities created by change are not always obvious at first. Sometimes they arrive disguised as setbacks, detours, or unexpected turns. But when we approach change with curiosity rather than fear, we create space for new possibilities to emerge.

05/30/2026

Anything goes Saturday

Today we are vaccinating the herd at Liberty. Unfortunately I could not film it since I am by myself, but I did capture some of the immediate reactions after.

05/29/2026

Funny/Connection Friday- Dancing goat ears! We couldn’t keep a straight face watching Poppy’s ears wiggle and pop as she munched grass with the herd!

Regulation Thursday Water has a powerful regulatory effect on our nervous systems. That is why many of us feel calmer si...
05/29/2026

Regulation Thursday
Water has a powerful regulatory effect on our nervous systems. That is why many of us feel calmer sitting beside a river, listening to rain fall, or watching waves roll onto the shore.

The rhythmic, patterned movement and sound of water can help shift our bodies out of stress and into a state of greater calm and connection. The steady repetition of waves, flowing streams, or rainfall provides sensory input that signals safety to the brain and body. Our breathing slows, our muscles relax and our thoughts often feel less chaotic.

Research shows that natural environments, especially those involving water, can reduce stress hormones, lower heart rate, and improve emotional wellbeing. Even brief moments spent listening to or observing water can help regulate an overwhelmed nervous system.

So take a moment, sit beside moving water, listen to it and watch it move.
☀️

Equine Assisted Psychotherapy WednesdayHow a program decides to work with their horses in session impacts the session in...
05/29/2026

Equine Assisted Psychotherapy Wednesday

How a program decides to work with their horses in session impacts the session in many subtle ways. Though there is no one right way to facilitate, there are ways that may be more effective for reaching the client’s treatment goals, and supporting the horse’s growth and wellbeing.

Below is a few examples of this and why we choose to work with our horses at liberty.

Liberty is a horsemanship term that describes working with a horse without constraints so he is free to move. So, if you observed one of our sessions you would see us working either in a round pen or in the pasture where the horse(s) is free to move in any way he wishes. We may have the horse the client is working with alone or with another horse or the whole herd.

For us this provides the most benefit to the client and the horse because both are free to make their own choices. It also provides the most opportunities for conversation between the client and horse in which patterns can arise.

For us there is a direct inverted relationship between the amount of control we exert and the potential benefits of the interaction.

For instance, if we chose to tie a horse so the client could engage in grooming, we have exerted high control in the situation. The benefit of the interaction is diminished due to the restriction of the horse’s choices and ability to express himself freely. Tying also impacts the client because they often are not attuned enough to notice the micro expressions of the horse in these situations which can set them up for failure. It is easier for a client to see and understand a horse who moves away from them when they do not like something, rather than a communication using muscles, such as tight muscles around the eye. Tying can also cause a horse to disconnect from themselves and the client because they lack agency in the moment. Clients often do not recognize this coping strategy so when they feel the absence of the horse they attribute blame to themselves, as if the lack of presence is a failure on their part.

If our goal is to help the client have healthier relationships, we have diminished our ability to achieve this goal. Healthy relationships require both parties to show up fully, to attune to each other, to express their wants and needs in appropriate ways and be able to control themselves and not the other. When the horse is tied he is unable to freely make choices, and express himself fully. A tied horse also gives the client a false sense of what a healthy relationship is and prevents them from learning how to communicate when there is disagreement and working through issues together.

Address

3164 FM2843
Salado, TX
76571

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 8pm
Wednesday 8am - 8pm
Thursday 8am - 8pm
Friday 8am - 5pm
Saturday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

+15125480551

Website

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