[Evaluation of the quality of husbandry of Franches-Montagnes horses in their breeding farms].

The research paper conducts an evaluation of the husbandry practices for Franches-Montagnes horses in Switzerland, focusing on aspects such as housing, social contact, lighting, bedding, time spent at pasture, and usage of horses.

Research Methodology

• The research was carried out by the Swiss Franches-Montagnes (FM) breeding federation in 2002.
• Data for the evaluation was collected through questionnaires, which were sent to 3500 members of the federation.
• The results collated include responses from 968 breeding enterprises, housing a total of 3965 FM horses.

Housing of Horses

• The study presents a breakdown of the horses by their type – 46.1% breeding mares, 26.5% young stock, 1.3% stallions, and 26.0% non-breeding stock.
• Regarding the horses’ housing, 57.6% were housed in individual boxes with or without permanent outdoor access. Another 25.4% were housed in groups with the same outdoor access conditions, and the rest (17.0%) were kept in standing stalls.

Social and Environmental Conditions

• The research also examined the horses’ social and environmental conditions. It found that 95.0% of the FM horses had at least visual contact with other equines, and 99.2% had sufficient light in their stables.
• In terms of bedding, 88.1% of the horses were housed on long stalk straw, while only 4.3% were bedded on non-straw materials.

Outdoor and Usage Time

• The study also evaluated how much time each horse spends at pasture – it ranged from 96.5 +/- 51.6 hours in summer to 27.2 +/- 26.7 hours in winter.
• Usage of the FM horses was also examined. On average, a horse is used for 8.3 +/- 6.5 hours per week.
• For horses with a paddock at their disposal, the time spent there averaged at 39.8 +/- 45.9 hours per week.