Living the 'Best Life' or 'One Size Fits All'-Stakeholder Perceptions of Racehorse Welfare.
Authors: Butler Deborah, Valenchon Mathilde, Annan Rachel, Whay Helen R, Mullan Siobhan
Journal: Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
Summary
# Editorial Summary Perceptions of racehorse welfare across the British racing industry reveal a fundamental tension between individualised care and standardised management: focus groups with 42 stakeholders (trainers, stable staff and veterinarians) across ten UK locations identified eight themes centring on two core concepts—equine health and the horse-human relationship—that distinguish horses living their 'best life' from those meeting only minimum welfare standards. Participants consistently emphasised that optimal welfare depends on treating horses as individuals with specific needs rather than applying uniform protocols, whilst acknowledging that health management remains both the primary welfare challenge and an area most amenable to innovation, particularly through advances in veterinary treatment and preventative care. These findings, grounded in the practical expertise of experienced industry professionals and synthesised through thematic analysis, are now informing development of the first formal British racehorse welfare assessment protocol—suggesting that future welfare frameworks should balance standardised baseline requirements with flexibility for individualised management approaches. For equine professionals across farriery, veterinary practice, physiotherapy and nutrition, this signals a shift towards evidence-based, person-centred (and horse-centred) welfare strategies that recognise variation in individual needs rather than prescriptive one-size-fits-all recommendations.
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Practical Takeaways
- •Horses performing at their best require individualized care plans rather than standardized protocols—assess and tailor management to each horse's specific needs and temperament
- •Prioritize the human-horse relationship as fundamental to welfare outcomes; training and communication among team members directly impacts horse wellbeing
- •Stay current with innovative veterinary treatments and health management practices, as these emerged as key areas where industry stakeholders see welfare improvements possible
Key Findings
- •Eight themes emerged describing racehorse 'best life' versus minimum welfare standards, with individual treatment versus 'one size fits all' approach as a key distinction
- •Horse-human relationship and factors maintaining health were identified as two core strands running through all welfare perception themes
- •Health was perceived as both the main challenge to racehorse welfare and an area amenable to innovative practices including improved veterinary treatments
- •Stakeholder perceptions from 42 racing industry professionals across trainers, stable staff, and veterinarians informed development of the first British racehorse welfare assessment protocol