Horse‐keeping practices in Australia: findings from a national online survey of horse owners

Thompson, Kirrilly; Clarkson, Larissa; Riley, Christopher B.; Berg, M. van den

doi:10.1111/avj.12639

Cited by 16 publications

(10 citation statements)

References 48 publications

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“…Despite the Horse Federation of South Australia being active nationally, it is unsurprising that the majority of participants were located in South Australia. This is consistent with other national surveys promoted primarily by the Horse Federation of South Australia [ 26 , 27 ]. To validate the findings in this exploratory research, and determine if there are any statewide differences, further research should recruit participants from across Australia.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

“…Where open spaces are shared with other users such as cyclists, motorised trail bikes, walkers and people with dogs, there is still a need to promote mutual understanding, respect and rules of engagement. In a previous survey of horse owners in South Australia, rider access to national parks was raised as a safety control to keep riders away from roads [ 44 ]. However, sharing parks with off-road motorbike users was also noted as risky for horse riders, suggesting the same need for protocols around multiple user interactions on trails and in parks as identified for public roadways.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Inroads into Equestrian Safety: Rider-Reported Factors Contributing to Horse-Related Accidents and Near Misses on Australian Roads

Thompson

Matthews

2015

Animals

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Simple SummaryRiding horses on roads can be dangerous, but little is known about accidents and near misses. To explore road safety issues amongst Australian equestrians, we conducted an online survey. More than half of all riders (52%) reported having experienced at least one accident or near miss in the 12 months prior to the survey, mostly attributed to speed. Whilst our findings confirmed factors identified overseas, we also identified issues around road rules, hand signals and road rage. This paper suggests strategies for improving the safety of horses, riders and other road users.AbstractHorse riding and horse-related interactions are inherently dangerous. When they occur on public roads, the risk profile of equestrian activities is complicated by interactions with other road users. Research has identified speed, proximity, visibility, conspicuity and mutual misunderstanding as factors contributing to accidents and near misses. However, little is known about their significance or incidence in Australia. To explore road safety issues amongst Australian equestrians, we conducted an online survey. More than half of all riders (52%) reported having experienced at least one accident or near miss in the 12 months prior to the survey. Whilst our findings confirm the factors identified overseas, we also identified issues around rider misunderstanding of road rules and driver misunderstanding of rider hand signals. Of particular concern, we also found reports of potentially dangerous rider-directed road rage. We identify several areas for potential safety intervention including (1) identifying equestrians as vulnerable road users and horses as sentient decision-making vehicles; (2) harmonising laws regarding passing horses; (3) mandating personal protective equipment; (4) improving road signage; (5) comprehensive data collection; (6) developing mutual understanding amongst road-users; (7) safer road design and alternative riding spaces; and (8) increasing investment in horse-related safety initiatives.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 92%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inroads into Equestrian Safety: Rider-Reported Factors Contributing to Horse-Related Accidents and Near Misses on Australian Roads

Thompson

Matthews

2015

Animals

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“…These contacts forwarded the survey link to members and industry contacts via email, web and social networking sites such as Facebook pages (Table S1 ). The survey link was further shared by supportive individuals in a social media version of “snowball sampling” ( 27 , 28 ). Proprietors of two businesses and one academic institution disseminated the survey link online to their clients and staff, respectively, via email, web and social media pages.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

A Survey-Based Investigation of Human Factors Associated With Transport Related Injuries in Horses

et al. 2018

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Injuries resulting from road transport are common in horses and are a potential welfare concern, as well as, a source of economic loss. An online cross sectional survey was used to determine the prevalence of road transport related injuries to horses in New Zealand and the association of human factors including demographics, industry background, training and the horse handling experience of the respondents with transport related injury. The survey generated 1133 valid responses that were analyzed using descriptive statistics, univariate and multivariate logistic regression analysis. At least one injured horse was reported by 201/1133 (17.7%) respondents as occurring during the two previous years. Only 191 respondents chose to provide further information on when the injury occurred and most injuries (133/191; 69.6%) occurred in transit. The respondent perceived possible reason for injury was reported by 190, and was most frequently thought to be either horse-associated (87/190; 45.8%) or associated with a driver mistake (18/190; 9.5%). Variables that remained as significantly associated with injury in a multivariate model focusing on human factors were experience in horse handling, the industry sector, and the amateur or professional involvement with the horse industry. The odds of injury associated with professionals may reflect greater exposure due to more frequent transport and larger numbers of horses in their care than amateurs. Findings confirm that human factors are associated with the risk of an injury during transport. Although further studies are required to determine if any of these relationships are causative, education on transport best practices with consideration of these factors may mitigate their influence.

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“…Various studies suggest that 83%-92% of horses are continuously managed at pasture in groups or have pasture access [25,46,50] but 4%-10% of horses may be continuously housed with little or no exercise opportunities [13,25,46]. This figure was higher for entire male horses, where nearly 40% were found to be kept alone in a Nordic study [25].…”

Section: Inappropriate Environments and Social Behaviourmentioning

confidence: 99%

Determining a Welfare Prioritization for Horses Using a Delphi Method

Rioja-Lang

Connor

Bacon

et al. 2020

Animals

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Simple Summary: Horses are used for a wide range of different purposes and may be vulnerable to a large number of different welfare issues, some of which are unique to equines, such as responses to being ridden or trained. Compared to farmed livestock, their welfare has received less attention, but concern for their welfare is increasing. Welfare issues can arise from the environments in which animals are kept, how they are treated by their human caregivers and their health. To determine which of the issues are most important and may need the greatest attention in terms of research effort or owner education, we used a process of eliciting expert opinion. Through a series of surveys and ranking of issues, we determined that, in the opinion of equine experts, the most important issues for horses were poor disease prevention, issues arising when old or sick horses are not promptly euthanized, lack of owner knowledge of welfare needs of horses, fear and stress involved in horse use, inability of owners to recognize pain behaviour, obesity and inadequate feeding practices. Prioritizing different welfare issues can help to focus attention on the most pressing or severe issues causing the greatest amount of suffering.Abstract: Equine welfare issues are receiving increasing attention in the UK, but welfare problems can arise from a wide range of causes. In order to identify the most important welfare concerns for horses, we used a Delphi method with 19 equine welfare experts. An initial list of 84 equine welfare issues was generated using an online discussion board and NVivo thematic analysis. Subsequently, experts ranked these welfare issues for perceived prevalence, severity and duration of suffering associated with each issue on a 6-point Likert scale. All issues with a mean score of 3 or above (n = 37) were included in subsequent rounds. Finally, a subset of experts attended a two-day workshop to determine the final priority list of welfare issues. The welfare issues perceived to be most prevalent were lack of biosecurity, delayed euthanasia, lack of owner knowledge of equine welfare needs, fear and stress from use, and obesity. The issues considered to cause greatest suffering for individual horses were delayed euthanasia, lack of recognition by owners of pain behaviour, large worm burdens, obesity and being fed unsuitable diets for equine feeding behaviour. These outcomes can help to focus research and education interventions on the most pressing welfare issues for horses.

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Horse‐keeping practices in Australia: findings from a national online survey of horse owners

Abstract: The horse-keeping profile in this study should be considered in the public communication of guidelines as well as interactions between veterinarians and clients.

Cited by 16 publications

References 48 publications

Inroads into Equestrian Safety: Rider-Reported Factors Contributing to Horse-Related Accidents and Near Misses on Australian Roads

Inroads into Equestrian Safety: Rider-Reported Factors Contributing to Horse-Related Accidents and Near Misses on Australian Roads

A Survey-Based Investigation of Human Factors Associated With Transport Related Injuries in Horses

Determining a Welfare Prioritization for Horses Using a Delphi Method

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