A comprehensive menu of worldwide welfare issues is listed below. Each issue is linked to associated information, including relevant charities, action groups, petitions, blogs, videos, media coverage and details of any action that Concordia has taken or is taking.
Our Welfare Team is constantly working to keep the information on these pages up to date. To do this, we will need your help, so if you would like to add or edit data, please Contact Welfare.
Our concerns are for all equines, this includes horses, ponies, mules, donkeys, asses and zebras, and we have adopted the ‘Five Freedoms’ principles that were developed for farm animals, believing that any infringement of these principles may be regarded as a welfare issue:
- 1. Freedom from hunger and thirst
- 2. Freedom from discomfort
- 3. Freedom from pain, injury or disease
- 4. Freedom to express normal behaviour (includes the need to live in a suitable environment, freedom to roam and the company of other equines)
- 5. Freedom from fear and distress
Welfare issues range from common, sub-optimal practices that happen all across the equine sector to issues that are outright abuse. Of course, they are incomparable, but to give horses a good life, we need to keep up with scientific research and adjust our own management criteria accordingly.
| ISSUE | Brief Details | Geographical Area | Freedom Infringement |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bit Abuse | Training, competition, harness racing, leisure & recreation | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Blood Farms | Unregulated premises in the serum & PMSG industries | Argentina & Uruguay | *2 *3 *5 |
| Branding | Hot branding | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Bullfights | Bullring & training. Risk of serious injury | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Confinement | Stable sizes & time spent stabled. Common management practice | Worldwide | *4 *5 |
| Doping | Competitions, including endurance races | Worldwide | *2 *4 |
| Feral Horses and Burros | Round-ups, holding facilities under BLM management | USA | *1 *2 *3 *4 *5 |
| Hobbling | Common management practice | Worldwide | *2 *3 *4 *5 |
| Hoof Stacking & Soaring | Tennessee Walking Horses | USA | *2 *3 *5 |
| Individual Turnout | Common management practice | Worldwide | *4 |
| Noseband Tightness | Training, competition, Harness Racing, leisure & recreation | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Over Breeding | Multiplication without regard for demand which puts horses at risk in all areas of welfare concern | Worldwide | *1 *2 *3 *4 *5 |
| Over-rugging | Common management practice | Worldwide | *2 |
| Over-worked, over-burdened & under-nourished | Working horses including tourist industries | Worldwide | *2 |
| Parasites | Common sub-optimal practice | Worldwide | *2 *3 |
| Rapping | Show jumping training | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Restrictive Tack | Training, competition, Harness Racing. Leisure & recreation. Includes draw-reins, overcheck & tongue ties. | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Rollkur | Training & dressage | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Slaughter | Round-ups, live transport, slaughter-houses & methods, also related to over-breeding | Worldwide | *1 *2 *3 *4 *5 |
| Social Isolation | Common management practice | Worldwide | *4 *5 |
| Spur Abuse | Training & competition | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Tail Nicking & Docking | Showing & Working draft’s | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Tethering | Common management practice | Worldwide | *1 *2 *3 *4 *5 |
| Unsafe Paddocks | Fencing, poisonous plants etc. | Worldwide | *3 |
| Urine Farming | PMU Mares | Canada | *2 *3 *4 *5 |
| Weight over-weight | Common management practice | Worldwide | *3 |
| Weight under-weight | Working-horses. Neglect. Poverty. | Worldwide | *1 *3 |
| Weaning too young | Common management practice | Worldwide | *5 |
| Whipping | Common management practice | Worldwide | *2 *3 *5 |
| Unwanted Horses and Abandonment | Includes enforcement of laws | Worldwide | *1 *2 *3 *4 *5 |
| Working Immature Horses | Training, racing, competitions, futurities, leisure & recreation | USA Europe Australia | *2 *3 |