Cultivate has a place for everyone.

At Cultivate Care Farms, Farm-Based Therapy is used as a model for engaging clients in a partnership with their clinicians. Therapy sessions involve activities that promote health and wellness for the client, the animals, and the farm. In Farm-Based Therapy, the client is in an authentic position to solve problems, demonstrate empathy, and develop strengths. Through physical work and connection with the animals, clients gain insight into their own abilities for positive change within themselves and in relationships with others.

Farm-Based Therapy is hands-on for all clients—no experience necessary! Clients are making, building, fixing, and caring for over 60 livestock animals at our farm. Unlike Animal-Assisted Therapy, Farm-Based Therapy is focused on maintaining a sustainable environment through the use of the land and animals.

This can include: growing and harvesting grain to feed the animals; shearing and knitting the fleece of an alpaca to make a stocking cap; or growing herbs and milking the goats in order to make lavender soap.

Farm-Based Therapy provides a structured, developmentally responsive setting that supports regulation, relational growth, and engagement through experiential and nature-based interventions.

Farm-Based Therapy supports children, adolescents, and young adults presenting with:

• Anxiety disorders (including social anxiety)

• Depressive disorders

• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

• Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Complex Trauma

• Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) profiles

• Neurodivergent cognitive presentations and learning profiles

This modality is particularly effective for clients who:

• Require movement-based or experiential interventions

• Are developing impulse control, emotional regulation, and attachment security

• Experience difficulties with peer, family, or sibling relationships

• Present with low self-esteem or limited treatment response in traditional settings

• Have lacked consistent access to psychologically safe, affirming therapeutic environments
  

Clinicians provide affirming, inclusive care for LGBTQIA+, gender-expansive, trans, and queer clients, and incorporate family-based interventions when clinically appropriate. Treatment approaches frequently integrate art, nature-based experiences, movement, and creative modalities to support emotional regulation, relational connection, and developmental growth. Our clinicians provide evidence-informed care for children, adolescents, and young adults (approximately ages 5–23) presenting with:

• Anxiety disorders (including social anxiety)

• Depressive disorders

• Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD)

• Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD)

• Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder (OCD)

• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and Complex Trauma

• Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) profiles

• Neurodivergent cognitive presentations and learning profiles

Our team has particular expertise in working with:

• Youth who are anxious, therapy-hesitant, or disengaged in traditional settings

• Clients navigating developmental or life transitions

• Individuals experiencing low self-esteem or seeking confidence-building support

• Children and adolescents often described as “challenging” in other environments