Horse owners can improve animal welfare without risking livelihoods

New research led by academics from the University of Bristol's School of Veterinary Sciences have found it is possible for horse owners to make changes that improve the welfare of their animals without threatening their own livelihoods. Working equids commonly suffer from lameness, often affecting all four limbs at the same time. The two-year project, led by Dr Becky Whay and funded by global equine welfare charity the Brooke , worked with horse owners in Jaipur, India, to try to reduce levels of lameness in their horses. The project used participatory methods, which were designed to empower horse owning communities and individuals to find ways of tackling the causes of lameness in their own animals. The study recruited 439 owners of 862 horses, either as part of an intervention group or a control group. The results of the project were evaluated in terms of reductions in lameness severity and limb abnormalities in the intervention group compared to the control group. The research team were able to assess these issues on three occasions throughout the two-year study in 149 horses.