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Home / Equine Research Bank / Animals (Basel) / Reconciling Horse Welfare, Worker Safety, and Public Expecta...
Animals : an open access journal from MDPI2016; 6(3); 16; doi: 10.3390/ani6030016

Reconciling Horse Welfare, Worker Safety, and Public Expectations: Horse Event Incident Management Systems in Australia.

Abstract: Human-horse interactions have a rich tradition and can be highly rewarding, particularly within sport and recreation pursuits, but they can also be dangerous or even life-threatening. In parallel, sport and recreation pursuits involving animals, including horses, are facing an increased level of public scrutiny in relation to the use of animals for these purposes. However, the challenge lies with event organisers to reconcile the expectations of the public, the need to meet legal requirements to reduce or eliminate risks to paid and volunteer workers, and address horse welfare. In this article we explore incident management at horse events as an example of a situation where volunteers and horses can be placed at risk during a rescue. We introduce large animal rescue skills as a solution to improving worker safety and improving horse welfare outcomes. Whilst there are government and horse industry initiatives to improve safety and address animal welfare, there remains a pressing need to invest in a strong communication plan which will improve the safety of workplaces in which humans and horses interact.
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Publication Date: 2016-02-24 PubMed ID: 26927189PubMed Central: PMC4810044DOI: 10.3390/ani6030016Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

This study explores the need for safer incident management systems at horse events in Australia. The researchers suggest introducing large animal rescue skills as a means to protect event volunteers and enhance horse welfare amidst greater public scrutiny over the use of animals in sport and recreation pursuits.

Problem Context

  • The researchers begin by acknowledging the rich tradition and rewards of human-horse interaction especially in sport and recreational endeavors. However, they point out these interactions can also be dangerous and even life-threatening.
  • Moreover, they highlight public scrutiny of the use of animals, including horses, in sport and recreational activities, adding to the challenges faced by event organizers.

Expectations and Legal Requirements

  • The researchers indicate that event organizers must address a variety of concerns such as public expectations, legal requirements to reduce or eliminate risks to paid and volunteer workers, and horse welfare.
  • These concerns are particularly heightened in incident management situations where rescue efforts might put volunteers and horses at risk.

Proposed Solution

  • The research proposal by the authors advocates for introducing large animal rescue skills as a means to boost worker safety and improve horse welfare during such incidents.
  • They suggest this solution could be a meaningful way to manage the risks while simultaneously safeguarding the welfare of both the workers and horses involved.

Need for Strong Communication Plan

  • The authors note that despite government and horse industry initiatives to improve safety and address animal welfare, a need for a comprehensive communication plan remains crucial.
  • This improved communication plan is projected to enhance the safety of workplaces where humans and horses interact, making it an integral part of event planning and management.

Conclusion

  • The document essentially calls for a reconciliation of the diverse expectations of public, legal requirements for worker safety, and horse welfare during horse events through improved incident management systems.
  • Additional efforts in communication planning are also emphasized to enhance the overall safety during human-horse interactions.

Cite This Article

APA
Fiedler JM, McGreevy PD. (2016). Reconciling Horse Welfare, Worker Safety, and Public Expectations: Horse Event Incident Management Systems in Australia. Animals (Basel), 6(3), 16. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani6030016

Publication

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
ISSN: 2076-2615
NlmUniqueID: 101635614
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 6
Issue: 3
PII: 16

Researcher Affiliations

Fiedler, Julie M
  • Faculty of Law, Education, Business and Arts, Charles Darwin University, Casuarina NT 0810, Australia. julie.fiedler@students.cdu.edu.au.
McGreevy, Paul D
  • Faculty of Veterinary Science, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, University of Sydney, Sydney NSW 2006, Australia. paul.mcgreevy@sydney.edu.au.

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Citations

This article has been cited 2 times.
  1. Marcet-Rius M, Pageat P, Bienboire-Frosini C, Teruel E, Monneret P, Leclercq J, Cozzi A. The provision of toys to pigs can improve the human-animal relationship.. Porcine Health Manag 2020 Nov 10;6(1):29.
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  2. Fenner K, Hyde M, Crean A, McGreevy P. Identifying Sources of Potential Bias When Using Online Survey Data to Explore Horse Training, Management, and Behaviour: A Systematic Literature Review.. Vet Sci 2020 Sep 22;7(3).
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