Horse welfare continues to be in the forefront among governing bodies, whether they are of the equestrian or national variety.
The U.S. Equestrian Federation this month held a “collaborative summit” with reps of its affiliates to examine a number of issues affecting horse sports, including those touching on social license to operate.
USEF Chief of Sport David O’Connor presented a draft of the “USEF Horse Welfare Stoplight Guidelines,” listing the differences among horse friendly, non-horse friendly and unethical treatment of a horse. In line with that, training techniques and practices to guide officials and participants about acceptable versus unacceptable behavior were offered. An educational campaign centered around horse welfare will be launched this summer.
As USEF noted, “Self-regulation is preferable to being regulated by outside entities.”
A case in point: An arduous new requirement that managers of all equestrian competitions in the U.S. would have to register with and report to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, but which has been at least delayed and will not go into effect during 2025 show season.
The requirement was part of a proposed amendment to the Horse Protection Act, which originally was designed to stop the practice of soring in Tennessee Walking Horses and breeds that were similarly abused. USDA and its Horse Protection team will continue to work on what’s next,including additional postponement, and will continue to seek stakeholder input.
Elsewhere, however, the extent of governmental involvement already is an issue in Europe. Horse & Hound cited a discussion on equine sport-horse welfare during a May meeting of the Intergroup on the Welfare and Conservation of Animals in the European Parliament.
Danish European Parliament member Niels Fuglsang, who chaired the session, has been pushing for tougher EU oversight of horse welfare, seeking to have a directive now limited to farm animals to expand for inclusion of sport horses and allow sanctions for mistreatment.
Fuglsang has advocated for banning double bridles across the EU (would North America be next?) and expressed frustration with slow progress after meeting with FEI president Ingmar de Vos last year
Dr. Mette Uldahl, vice president of the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe, maintained, “We urgently need to educate modern equestrians in equine behavioral science. But education is not alone sufficient, we need to have firm governance and regulation.”
So you can see the direction in which this is headed.
Uldahl stated, “Welfare must be evaluated through objective indicators, such as body language, tail movements, ear position, eye and facial expressions and behaviors like open mouths. Horses showing signs of pain, fear or discomfort must not be rewarded.”
She added, “Harmful or coercive equipment that reasonably risks causing pain, injury, suffering, or fear must be banned, and tools that fix horses into rigid positions or mask body language must not be used.
“Independent advisory boards must be empowered to question practices, raise concerns and ensure transparency. With these principles embedded, it is entirely possible to align horse sport with modern standards of welfare and public expectations.”
She added, “It’s not about revolution, it’s about evolution – but we need a mandate to make that happen. A clear step would be requiring independent advisory boards to oversee all types of horse sport.”
De Vos pointed out the FEI’s commitment to welfare, citing reforms such as removal of time limits on horse abuse cases and the implementation of recommendations from the independent Equine Ethics and Wellbeing Commission.
For his part, FEI veterinary director Dr. Göran Åkerström discussed the 37-point Equine Welfare Action Plan, which includes the newly introduced noseband measuring device and the launch of the Equine Welfare Advisory Group for external oversight.