Examining Canadian Equine Industry Participants' Perceptions of Horses and Their Welfare.
Authors: DuBois Cordelie, Nakonechny Lindsay, Derisoud Emilie, Merkies Katrina
Journal: Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
Summary
# Editorial Summary DuBois and colleagues surveyed 901 Canadian equine professionals across diverse sectors to establish baseline attitudes towards horse welfare, emotional capacity, and industry practices. Using online questionnaires supplemented by scenario-based questions and Chi-squared analysis, the researchers identified a significant disconnect between participants' belief that horses experience pain, fear, and emotional states and their actual responses to practical welfare scenarios—a gap the authors suggest may reflect cognitive bias. Whilst there was strong consensus that welfare issues exist within the industry, with lack of knowledge and financial constraints cited as primary barriers, respondents showed considerably less agreement on which horses faced the greatest risk or how best to implement solutions. These findings underscore a critical opportunity for targeted education and behaviour-change initiatives; knowing what professionals *think* horses feel is less valuable than understanding why this doesn't translate into consistent welfare-conscious decisions across different contexts. For those developing industry guidance, training programmes or welfare standards, this research highlights that knowledge gaps and competing financial pressures—rather than outright indifference—may be driving welfare compromises.
Read the full abstract on PubMed
Practical Takeaways
- •Educational programs addressing equine welfare should focus on bridging the gap between what people believe about horse emotions and how they actually manage welfare—knowledge alone may be insufficient without addressing economic and practical barriers
- •Industry initiatives targeting welfare improvement should prioritize addressing financial constraints and providing practical, accessible solutions rather than only increasing emotional awareness
- •Targeted welfare interventions should address the specific horse populations perceived as highest-risk by industry participants to gain buy-in and support for change
Key Findings
- •901 Canadian equine industry participants strongly believed horses could feel positive and negative emotions, particularly pain and fear
- •Beliefs about equine emotional capacity were rarely reflected in participants' answers regarding actual welfare practices, indicating significant cognitive bias
- •Lack of knowledge and financial difficulties were identified as the biggest threats to equine welfare across the industry
- •Widespread agreement existed that welfare issues are present in the equine industry, but opinions were divided on solutions and which horses were most at risk