Manes for Movement was founded in 2018 in Rolling Hills Estates, CA by Dr. Erin O’Mahony, PT, DPT. Erin received her Bachelor’s Degree in Exercise Science from Willamette University in Salem OR, and Doctorate in Physical Therapy from Northwestern University’s Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago IL.

After receiving her Doctorate degree, Erin moved back to the west coast and began her professional life in the South Bay community of Los Angeles County, treating pediatric patients in the outpatient, school based, early intervention, and hippotherapy settings. Having been a horsewoman her entire life, Erin was particularly drawn to hippotherapy- the use of the horse’s movement to help children and adults with neuromuscular dysfunction improve their functional skills.

After 2 years of practicing in the South Bay community it quickly became apparent to Erin that this highly researched and supported intervention was not easily accessible to the families in need in her community, with the closest therapy facilities offering physical therapy using hippotherapy being 50+ miles away. It was then that Erin discovered the city of Rolling Hills Estates, a community committed to preserving the rural environment and equine lifestyle, and she knew it would be the perfect place to bring Hippotherapy to the South Bay community!