Topic:Ethics
The topic of ethics and horses encompasses the study and evaluation of moral principles and standards as they apply to human interactions with horses. This area of research involves examining the welfare, treatment, and management of horses in various contexts, including sport, leisure, work, and scientific research. Ethical considerations may address issues such as humane training methods, living conditions, and the use of horses in competitive events. Researchers in this field analyze the implications of human decisions on equine well-being and explore frameworks for ensuring ethical practices. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that investigate ethical theories, welfare assessments, and policy discussions related to the ethical treatment and management of horses.
Identifying Sources of Potential Bias When Using Online Survey Data to Explore Horse Training, Management, and Behaviour: A Systematic Literature Review. Owner-reported behavioural observations form an essential part of the veterinarians' diagnosis and treatment plan. The way we train and manage horses affects their behaviour and, in turn, their health and welfare. Current horse training and management practices are largely driven by traditional techniques and longstanding methodologies. These approaches generally lack an evidence base for evaluation purposes. The absence of evidence and evaluation contributes to the persistent use of risky practices and this, in turn, increases risk of potential harms for both horse and rider, and fuels questi...
Prevalence and Distribution of Lesions in the Nasal Bones and Mandibles of a Sample of 144 Riding Horses. Restrictive nosebands are used in equestrian sports to hold the bit in place and reduce mouth-opening, a response that can attract penalties in some sports and is thought to reduce the rider's control of the horse. Sustained pressure from such tightly fitted (restrictive) nosebands denies normal behaviour and thus, causes frustration and distress that can jeopardise horse welfare. It also may push the cheek against the molar teeth, compress soft tissues including blood vessels and nerves, and possibly induce chronic changes to underlying bone. This study of mature cavalry horses (n = 144) was ...
Naturalness and the Legitimacy of Thoroughbred Racing: A Photo-Elicitation Study with Industry and Animal Advocacy Informants. The idea of what is natural has particular relevance in the thoroughbred racing and breeding discourse. It guides breeding regulations; influences how the thoroughbreds' behaviour is perceived and has implications for husbandry, handling, training and racing practices. This study investigates how key industry and animal advocacy informants based in the US, Australia and the UK conceptualise naturalness within the context of common racing practices that potentially impact the horses' welfare. The informants were interviewed using semi-structured interviewing and photo-elicitation. Four common i...
Exploring Perceptions of Equine Welfare Scenarios Using a Positive Approach. Horse welfare is a sensitive topic that often results in a variety of strong feelings when discussed in the horse-owning public. This study used a scenario-based questionnaire in a positive psychology approach to assess the public's feelings and discussions about horse welfare. Results indicated themes in important welfare qualities such as turnout, shelter, and ability to express natural behaviors, as well as a positive discussion about welfare. This study provides future implications for further research techniques in this area as well as communicative strategies surrounding equine welfare p...
Welfare of Free-Roaming Horses: 70 Years of Experience with Konik Polski Breeding in Poland. To prevent abuse and to assure the welfare of domestic horses, attempts to assess welfare in a standardized way have been made. Welfare-assessment tools often refer to the physical and social environments of feral domestic horses as examples of welfare-friendly conditions for horses. However, free-roaming horses are often exposed to conditions or states that may be regarded as welfare threats or abuse. The aim of this review was to present cases of welfare compromises as well as natural ways to restore high standards of welfare to Konik polski horses (Koniks) living in semiferal conditions in ...
Citizens’ juries give verdict on whether private practice veterinarians should attend unvaccinated Hendra virus suspect horses. Hendra virus (HeV) is endemic in Australian flying foxes, posing a threat to equine and human health. Equine vaccination remains the most effective risk mitigation strategy. Many horses remain unvaccinated - even in higher-risk regions. Debate surrounding the vaccine's use is characterised by conflicting perspectives, misunderstanding and mistrust. Private veterinary practitioners are critical to early identification of public health risk through recognition, sampling and management of suspect-equine-HeV-cases. However, managing such cases can be burdensome, with some veterinarians opting not ...
Welfare Assessment and Husbandry Practices of Working Horses in Fiji. Fiji; working horse; welfare, intervention; husbandry; healthcare.
On-Farm Welfare Assessment of Horses: The Risks of Putting the Cart before the Horse. Although the question of animal welfare has been an important source of concern in the scientific community for several decades, many aspects are still under debate. On-farm assessments have to be rapid, acceptable to farmers and safe for both the assessors and animals. They are thus very demanding, with multiple decisions to make, such as the choice of appropriate indicators, sampling methods and scoring. Research has moved from resource-based to animal-based criteria, which reflects the subjective welfare state of an animal rather than relying upon external indices. In the present review, we...
Using the Five Domains Model to develop welfare assessment guidelines for Thoroughbred horses in New Zealand. This review outlines the processes followed by New Zealand Thoroughbred Racing (NZTR) when developing its Thoroughbred Welfare Assessment Guidelines. It accepted that guidance on welfare management must be based on up-to-date knowledge of how animal welfare is understood scientifically. NZTR established an expert panel to facilitate this process. First, major changes in animal welfare science thinking over the last 40 years were considered. For example, the separate biological function and affective state orientations were later accepted as dynamically interacting elements within the body oper...
Prediction of the onset of parturition in horses and cattle. Economic losses due to dystocia or neonatal death as well as animal welfare and ethical concerns demand a reliable prediction of parturition with the aim to improve survival of the dam and her offspring. In this review, estimation of gestational age by ultrasound and prediction of parturition based on clinical signs, behaviour changes and changes in body temperature, composition of mammary gland secretions as well as hormonal changes are discussed in comparison between horses and cattle. Based on the physiological changes associated with the end of gestation and onset of labor, several systems...
Histologic Comparison of the Dura Mater among Species. The biocompatibility, biodegradation, feasibility, and efficacy of medical devices like dural sealants and substitutes are often evaluated in various animal models. However, none of these studies explain the rationale for choosing a particular species, and a systematic interspecies comparison of the dura is not available. We hypothesized that histologic characteristics of the dura would differ among species. We systematically investigated basic characteristics of the dura, including thickness, composition, and fibroblast orientation of the dura mater, in 34 samples representing 10 animal speci...
A Ten-Stage Protocol for Assessing the Welfare of Individual Non-Captive Wild Animals: Free-Roaming Horses (Equus Ferus Caballus) as an Example. Knowledge of the welfare status of wild animals is vital for informing debates about the ways in which we interact with wild animals and their habitats. Currently, there is no published information about how to scientifically assess the welfare of free-roaming wild animals during their normal day-to-day lives. Using free-roaming horses as an example, we describe a ten-stage protocol for systematically and scientifically assessing the welfare of individual non-captive wild animals. The protocol starts by emphasising the importance of readers having an understanding of animal welfare in a conser...
Human Relationships with Domestic and Other Animals: One Health, One Welfare, One Biology. Excessive human population growth, uncontrolled use of natural resources, including deforestation, mining, wasteful systems, biodiversity reduction by agriculture, and damaging climate change affect the existence of all animals, including humans. This discussion is now urgent and people are rethinking their links with the animals we use for clothing, food, work, companionship, entertainment, and research. The concepts of one health, one welfare, and one biology are discussed as a background to driving global change. Nothing should be exploited without considering the ethics of the action and t...
Practice of Noseband Use and Intentions Towards Behavioural Change in Dutch Equestrians. Understanding equestrians' noseband tightening practices and intentions is necessary to target welfare improvement strategies. Firstly, we measured tightness in dressage and show jumping horses in The Netherlands, shortly after implementation of the two-finger rule by the Royal Dutch Equestrian Federation. Noseband tightness decreased with age, was less tight in dressage horses than in show jumpers, and was dependent on the interaction between competition level and discipline. Fifty-nine percent of the riders tightened nosebands to such an extent that they adhered to the new regulation. Second...
Horse Welfare During Equine Chorionic Gonadotropin (eCG) Production. Collection of blood from pregnant mares for extraction of equine chorionic gonadotropin (eCG) is a critical but relatively unknown and poorly regulated practice in the countries in which it occurs. Equine chorionic gonadotropin is a hormone that is widely used to enhance reproductive performance and management of dairy and beef cattle, sheep, goats, and pigs kept under intensive housing systems. eCG is extracted from the blood of brood mares between days 40-120 of gestation. Although alternatives have been sought, there is currently no efficacious replacement, natural or synthetic, for eCG. Re...
[Euthanasia in horses – Results of a survey addressing horse owners and veterinarians]. Euthanasia represents a procedure with high responsibility for veterinarians in equine practice. The procedure should avoid pain and suffering for the horse and be carried out with the least possible stress for the patient and its owner. The presented study investigated the emotional impact of a horse's euthanasia procedure on the owner in order to enable development of future recommendations in improving the management of this procedure in horses. Methods: Questionnaires concerning euthanasia of a horse for horse owners and veterinarians, respectively were developed and sent by mail or publis...
Horses for courses: an approach to the qualification of clinical trial sites and investigators in ATMPs. The advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs) landscape is entirely different from classical drug development. Academia has been the major source of ATMP development, and academic hospitals act as trial sites for the clinical testing of ATMPs, including early academic-led trials as well as industry-sponsored trials that pursue the full developmental pathway to market authorization. The recent breakthrough developments in some ATMPs, such as genetically engineered immune cells, have confronted academic hospitals with a substantial amount of public demand, competitive pressure, and costs. At t...
The changing face of veterinary practice. This month, David Steer discusses the impact of practice expansion on long-standing clients.
[Ethics in Swiss equestrian sports: Is animal welfare adequately implemented?]. Animal welfare in equestrian sports is a very current and important topic for animal right groups as well as for the Swiss association for equestrian sports "Schweizerischer Verband für Pferdesport (SVPS)". The penalty commission "Sanktionskomission (SAKO)" of the SVPS reported only few to none cases of infringements of animal welfare provision on horses at a time in the past few years. This fact was criticised several times by different animal right groups in Switzerland. Therefore a survey was sent in 2017 to 544 active officials (horse show judges) of the SVPS. Overall, 146 answered questi...
Approach to Strain Selection and the Propagation of Viral Stocks for Venezuelan Equine Encephalitis Virus Vaccine Efficacy Testing under the Animal Rule. Licensure of a vaccine to protect against aerosolized Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (VEEV) requires use of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Animal Rule to assess vaccine efficacy as human studies are not feasible or ethical. An approach to selecting VEEV challenge strains for use under the Animal Rule was developed, taking into account Department of Defense (DOD) vaccine requirements, FDA Animal Rule guidelines, strain availability, and lessons learned from the generation of filovirus challenge agents within the Filovirus Animal Nonclinical Group (FANG). Initial down-selectio...
Assessment of costs and insurance policies for referral treatment of equine colic. Colic is the most common emergency problem in horses. The aims of this study were to survey costs of different referral treatments and to review insurance policies relevant to horses with colic. Data were collected retrospectively from nine equine hospitals for case costs, categorised into four different outcomes: admitted and euthanased; euthanased during or immediately after surgery; medical treatment and survived more than 24 hours; and surgical treatment and survived more than 24 hours. Data from five UK equine insurance companies were extracted and analysed using a standardised case e...
Ile de Chypre – nobbles, jinks, and the ultrasonic sniper. In this sensational case, it was alleged that after jinking unexpectedly and throwing its rider, racehorse Ile de Chypre, had been nobbled by an ultrasonic emitter concealed within a pair of binoculars. Ile de Chypre was 4-1 favourite at the King George V Handicap at Ascot on June 16, 1988 and a good distance away from the pack, a clear winner albeit for this alleged act of sensational intervention.
Comparing and Contrasting Knowledge on Mules and Hinnies as a Tool to Comprehend Their Behavior and Improve Their Welfare. Mules and hinnies are the hybrids between donkeys (Equus asinus) and horses (Equus caballus). For centuries, mankind has used them for agrarian purposes, the military, or recreation. Contrasting literature with behavioral observations, we seek a better behavioral understanding andthus comprehensive solutions for their welfare enhancement. Over the past 6 years, we have assessed physical and behavioral welfare in over 900 mules by surveying owners from Egypt, Peru, Portugal, Spain, Mexico, and the U.S. These mules participated in shows, brick kiln work, cart-pulling, packing, tourism, and cattl...
Stakeholder Perceptions of the Challenges to Racehorse Welfare. The purpose of this paper is to highlight some of the key challenges to racehorse welfare as perceived by racing industry stakeholders. The paper draws upon statements and transcripts from 10 focus group discussions with 42 participants who were taking part in a larger study investigating stakeholders' perceptions of racehorse welfare, which participants recognised as maintaining the physical and mental well-being of a performance animal. Analysis of the 68 statements participants identified as challenges produced nine themes. Among these, 26% (18 statements) of the challenges were health rela...