Welfare – My Equine Virtual Farm

09: Colic Prevention

Action Point: Identify any colic risk factors of current management practices.

Rationale: While colic isn’t entirely preventable, minimizing a horse’s risk of experiencing colic will have benefits for overall health and welfare. A great tool to assess current risks is the Equine Guelph Colic Risk Rater Healthcare Tool.

In just a few minutes, the quiz will assess a number of key factors in colic prevention, including turnout, activity level, feed, water, dental care, and parasite management, and provide helpful tips to improve areas of concern.

A Guiding Statement for Equine Welfare

Guiding Statement: Endeavor to always do what is in the best interest of the horse & encourage others to do the same.

Goals: Understand and incorporate the Five Freedoms of Animal Welfare, learning theory and the principles of equitation science into all levels of horse training and management.

Develop a deeper understanding of equine behaviour, perception and learning processes to apply species-appropriate methods to the management and training of horses, thereby improving other aspects of horse health and welfare.

Foster the development of comprehensive riding and horsemanship programs that incorporate knowledge of horse behaviour, herd dynamics, and common welfare issues.

01: Health Resources

Action Point: Create a binder containing the series of Equine Guelph Information Sheets, including the Horse Health Check info sheet. Purchase a Horse Health Check poster to display in a prominent place for quick reference.

Rationale: In striving to do what is always in the best interest of the horses, it is helpful to have accurate and current information available on a range of topics related to equine health, welfare, and management.

Having the Horse Health Check poster placed in the tack room or feed room will remind everyone a) to perform a health check on every animal regularly, and b) of the steps involved to accurately monitor and detect any changes in health.