Health is one of the components used in horse welfare studies to assess horse well-being. Health encompasses several factors, including avoiding injuries, illnesses, and pain. Pain can result from injury or illness, but it can also be caused by the equipment that is being used on the horse. Pain is one of the most significant negative experiences that impair welfare. More information about injuries, illnesses, and pain can be found here.
Pain Due to Equipment and Practices
Abnormal behavior during saddling, bridling, and harnessing is generally associated with pain. Typical pain behaviors in these situations include chewing on the bit, pinning the ears back, swishing the tail, or attempting to bite the handler. Tack-related stress behaviors, such as shaking the head or sticking out the tongue may also occur. Restless movement during tightening of the girth is also typical stress behavior. This kind of behavior indicates that the horse has learned to associate tacking up with something negative, usually causing it pain. These are not normal behavioral patterns but indicators of compromised welfare.
Saddle
For ridden horses, the saddle is one of the most common causes of back pain. The saddle should fit the horse’s back and remain almost motionless in all gaits. Its weight should be evenly distributed over the horse’s back so that there is no pressure on the spinal area. Additionally, the saddle should also fit the rider to maintain balance and alignment when sitting on the horse’s back.
Oral Injuries
Most horses exhibit behaviors related to discomfort when a bit is placed in their mouths. The use of bits may indeed pose a greater welfare challenge than previously thought. It is also noteworthy that most pain-related behaviors associated with bit use likely go unnoticed by riders or handlers.
In studies conducted by Kati Tuomola, in over half of the trotting and cross-country horses examined were found to have oral injuries caused by bits. The prevalence of oral injuries depended on the type of bit used. The most injuries occurred in trotting horses using straight bar bits. Also, the tightness of the noseband affects the formation of oral injuries. Horses ridden with a tight noseband (less than 2 cm from the nasal bone) were up to three times more likely to have oral injuries than horses ridden with a looser (over 3 cm from the nasal bone) noseband.
Measuring Pain Caused by Equipment Use
When improperly used, almost all equipment can cause pain to horses. When assessing equine welfare, it is useful to determine what equipment and in what situations it is used. Generally, a horse’s pain expressions provide more information about its current state than its behavior, because behavior can be influenced by training. It should be remembered that even though a horse does certain things, it may still find them unpleasant or painful. Riders, handlers, and grooms can influence the pain experienced by horses through their choices and management practices. Part of their expertise includes recognizing behaviors in horses that cause pain or are disliked and avoiding them to improve horse welfare.
References
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