Equine Welfare Assessment: Exploration of British Stakeholder Attitudes Using Focus-Group Discussions.

This research study examined the attitudes of different groups involved in the British equine industry towards horse welfare assessment. The findings indicated that these stakeholders predominantly view welfare assessment as a tool for identifying and rectifying immediate welfare issues, that they believe horse welfare changes over time, and that the assessor’s attributes heavily influence the credibility and impact of the welfare assessment.

Methodology and Participants

• The study involved focus-group discussions with six different groups active in the horse industry, namely leisure horse owners (4 participants), grooms (5 participants), veterinary surgeons (3 participants), welfare scientists (4 participants), charity workers (5 participants), and professional riders (4 participants)
• This approach allowed the researchers to gather a variety of perspectives on the practice and significance of welfare assessment in the equine industry.

Major Themes

• The first theme emerging from the discussions was that participants generally saw welfare assessments as a means to identify and immediately tackle poor welfare conditions.
• The second key observation was that participants believed horse welfare to be a state that can change over time, implying that welfare assessments should not be a one-time event but rather a regular and ongoing process.
• The third significant point raised was the importance of assessor attributes in conducting welfare assessments. According to the participants, these attributes could significantly influence the credibility of the assessment and its effectiveness in promoting improved horse welfare.

Implications for the Equine Industry

• Understanding these viewpoints can help the equine industry appreciate the potential value of regular welfare assessments.
• More importantly, these insights can guide the development of welfare assessment approaches that can gain industry-wide acceptance and have a greater, positive impact on improving horse welfare.