A MAJOR study into public attitudes on equine welfare and drivers of trust in UK horse sport has revealed that the UK public recognise the social importance of horses to life in the UK, but do have concerns about the welfare of horses in sports.

Funded with a grant from the Racing Foundation, the study was initiated by World Horse Welfare, who delivered the project in collaboration with British Equestrian (including the Olympic disciplines of British Dressage, Eventing and Show jumping), the British Horseracing Authority, The British Horse Society, Hurlingham Polo Association, the British Equine Veterinary Association and The Pony Club among other organisations.

The organisations joined to commission the research, in recognition of evolving social values around the involvement of animals in sport and leisure.

The largest survey of its kind in both scope and depth, the study was conducted by Australian engagement science specialists Voconiq, who have conducted similar studies for the extractive and livestock sectors.

The research, which is based on more than 5,000 responses, sought to understand not only what the public think about horse sports, but also why they think as they do.

Results

The results highlighted that the UK public recognise the social importance of horses to life in the UK and this was a key driver of trust; they value procedural fairness, regulation, distributional fairness and transparency on welfare as additional drivers of trust – with many of these underpinned by equine welfare standards, which play a significant role in shaping their confidence in horse sport.

The public have concerns about the welfare of horses in sports, but appreciate that welfare is complex and involves more than just preventing harm to horses, and believe it is important that a horse’s whole life is rich, engaging, and dignified.

Some 78% of the public feel that horses should have the opportunity to enjoy positive experiences and that their mental wellbeing is as important as their physical welfare. 69% believe that horse sports should prioritise making competitions safer for horses, even if this means sacrificing some of the traditional difficulty or challenge of the sport.

In terms of level of concern, the public are most worried about injuries or fatalities that occur during competition or training, the fate of horses that are bred for competitive sports but fail to perform well, and the post-competition fate of sport horses.

Acceptance

Jim Eyre, Chief Executive of British Equestrian, said: “We welcome the findings of this research, which is one of the biggest of its kind in the UK and covers our whole sector, from companion horses to those competing across a range of disciplines. The confirmation that we still have public acceptance, despite the difficulties that equestrianism has faced in recent years, is very positive.

“As an industry, we are united by our passion for the horse and everything we do must have the wellbeing of our equine partners at its heart – something encapsulated in our Charter of the Horse. However, we know there is still more we can do.

“Equestrian sport is an ever-changing landscape and, in proactively commissioning a study that encompasses so many of our equestrian activities, we can use these results to guide future work. We look forward to safeguarding the place of the horse in society, as we demonstrate to the public that they’re right to put their trust in us.”