Veteran with PTSD wins battle to keep bonuses, heals with horse therapy

REDLANDS, Calif. (KABC) -- Master Sgt. Richard Mosley, who struggles with PTSD, is working with a horse at a place in Redlands known as Equus Medendi - translated from Latin as horse therapy.

He has to get the horse to trust him - and for that to happen, he can't be showing signs of trauma.

"When I had anxiety or depression, my attitude and my behavior reflected in the horse, and I could see it."

ABC7 first brought you Mosley's story in 2013, when he and other veterans were involved in a massive legal battle with the government.

After receiving $22,000 in enlistment bonuses starting in 2001, and serving a grueling tour of duty in Iraq, Mosley - and thousands of other soldiers - were sent letters demanding they prove they earned their bonus. If they couldn't, they'd have to pay the money back.

After the story aired, attorney Doug Tennant called Eyewitness News for help being put in touch with Mosley.

"It really struck a chord that there was an injustice that was occurring to one of our service members, one of our returning veterans, and there was something maybe I could do about it," Tennant said.

Finally after almost three years, Mosley got a letter in the mail telling him that he finally won his fight.

"It lifted so much weight off my shoulder," he said.

In addition, he's making progress with the horse therapy.

"He's become an expert at managing that high anxiety, because he was not able to do this at the beginning," said Angie Sheer with Equus Medendi. "The horse would go round and round and run away. "

Mosley said going through the horse therapy is making a big difference in his able to recover from PTSD.

"I took a chance on coming here, and that was probably a turning point for me that took me from being suicidal to seeing a future."