What One Law would you like to make to improve horse welfare!

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canteron

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One, only one!

Mine would be that you have to look after a horse (to a good standard) throughout February before you were allowed to own a horse. Anyone who has the enthusiasm and grit to do that is allowed to buy a horse!
 
Ah but February is easier than December for me as you can see the days starting to get longer and things starting to sprout!

Mine would be a centralised database so that all owners can be held responsible/prosecuted/helped when things go awry.
 
Mine would be that "new owners" with their first experience of horse owning, need to take some instructions from competente horse owners so they know how to look after a horse correctly.
 
Stop irresponsible breeding +reduce the surplus numbers of poorly bred horses. Those who breed just because having a foal is cute and arent thinking of long term consequences.
 
I agree with above licence breeding so the volume of horses goes down and their price goes up.

It is madness that you can pick up something to ride for £500 which is only the price of 10 lessons! And the unknowledgeable think £20 a week DIY is pretty much all the running costs.
It's not their fault lessons are too expensive and horse have no value. If their value went up a lot (because there were less of them) then people would bother to look after than and if they couldn't they could sell them on.
20 years ago most people had lessons because they couldn't afford a horse, now people buy because it's cheaper than lessons - fundamentally wrong.
 
all colts over 6 months old to be either gelded or licenced at £1,000 per year annual fee. Failure to comply = 5 years in jail. no exceptions.
 
All tethering and fly grazing is made illegal, and horses have to be freezemarked as belonging to commoners BEFORE they're turned out onto common land. I live near Swansea, this is a massive, massive problem. Badly bred coloured cobs are abandoned on the Gower marshes to drown (because, to be brutally honest, that is what happens) after getting stuck in the mud or cut off by the incoming tide.

I hate to say it, there is a part of society that buy/sell/breed the awful coloureds and they don't care to be educated. A law wouldn't stop them, as they are above the law.
 
Re classify horses as livestock so they are covered by those regulations. Owners would need a Defra holding number to keep them in the same way that goats do.
 
Have some sort of regulation and regular monitoring - with teeth - for the back street 'charities' that collect horses and don't have enough land, stabling or money for hay/feed/husbandry.
 
I would make it law that to own a horse (any horse of any type at any level) you have to take some kind of ownership course and a test. A bit like learning to drive followed by a driving test. If you fail, no horse. If you pass, you're on a probationary year and subject to monthly checks by a suitably qualified person to make sure the horse is ok.
 
hi Arizahn, Millikins,Polos mum agree whole hearted with all but will and some of the worst abuse ive seen is by a Harley street surgeon so don't think making it all very much expensive would solve the issue there does how ever seem to be many more people owning horses who really should nt
 
As has been said controlled breeding, stewards at competitions to uphold rules and standard of behaviour by riders. Seen horrific scenes of abuse ridden and in hand at most affiliated and unaffiliated dressage, sj,, xc showing etc. And if a competitor is ruled to be abusing said horse then the horses/ponies passport or w.h.y. is stamped. Two strikes and your out!
 
Madam Min said:
Stop irresponsible breeding +reduce the surplus numbers of poorly bred horses. Those who breed just because having a foal is cute and are'nt thinking of long term consequences.
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Agree totally -too much breeding - horses and dogs too. Also - how about minimum value when auctioned - could stop the "isn't it cute" buyers hopefully.
 
Greylegs said:
I would make it law that to own a horse (any horse of any type at any level) you have to take some kind of ownership course and a test. A bit like learning to drive followed by a driving test. If you fail, no horse. If you pass, you're on a probationary year and subject to monthly checks by a suitably qualified person to make sure the horse is ok.
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I was only saying something very similar to this to a friend at the yard this morning. There is absolutely no monitoring of the competence of people to actually look after a horse. Owning land or having money doesn't automatically make someone a good owner.
 
That the charities can take any horse they see fit and do with it what they need, treat or pts with out going through lengthy bits of paper.

I also think fa more horses need to be pts in the charities care, they are over run so in a horridly nice way we need a cull. Far worse can and does happen to horses than be pts
 
The cost of having a horse/pony pts should be made more affordable, as should gelding a colt - the cost of having a small pony gelded far exceeds it's sale value, hence so many colts and consequently so many badly bred foals.
 
So we are willing to pay for a horse tax then? Germany is trying to introduce one at the moment. If all these things are to be introuduced, and I certainly agree with some, then that would introuduce more rules, regulations and enforcement, so someone would have to pay and that would probably be current horse owners.
 
Make regular checks and scan chips. Anything without a chip should be immediately removed-takes care of fly grazing, loose horses and would hopefully stop the constant stream of dead colts left to rot on the roadside.
 
Deltaflyer said:
I was only saying something very similar to this to a friend at the yard this morning. There is absolutely no monitoring of the competence of people to actually look after a horse. Owning land or having money doesn't automatically make someone a good owner.
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Why should these rules only apply to horses, should they not apply to those who keep dogs, cats, etc etc.

Personally I think the idea of having a "test" to enable a person to keep a horse isn't feasible.

On a side note - the idea of tests etc, this has the potential make the horsey world seem elitist and snobby imho.

I do think that the laws we have should be easier to enforce with less red tape. I agree with the person who said mandatory gelding unless willing to register the stallion, and for the stallion to be of sufficient quality.

The person who said that gelding and pts should be cheaper, all very well and good - but if people can't afford these, they should not have the animals in the first place as I don't see these as optional extras, but things that need to be considered upon purchase. Vets need to make a living, and shouldn't be expected to forgoe doing so because people don't take into account the costs of ownership.
 
Personally I would think it hilarious to take a test to own an animal when you don't to have a baby!

I think the gelding idea is a good one IMO, apart from the welfare issues it makes good breeders jobs that bit harder because of all the dross out there up for a few hundred quid that has 'sooooo much potential'
 
Orangehorse said:
So we are willing to pay for a horse tax then? Germany is trying to introduce one at the moment. If all these things are to be introuduced, and I certainly agree with some, then that would introuduce more rules, regulations and enforcement, so someone would have to pay and that would probably be current horse owners.
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First coherent argument I have ever heard in favour of a horse tax - maybe if the tax was ring fenced (which it never would be) for horse welfare/regulation I wouldn't resent it.
 
Learner drivers should be taught how to approach and overtake horses safely.

Come to think of it, make that all animals, as the doggy walkers in my village risk their lives with the lunatics that bomb past them in vehicles, driving too close, too fast and often with a mobile phone stuck to their ear.
 
Reclassify all Public Footpaths (walkers) as Public Bridleways (walkers, cyclists, riders) so that cyclists and walkers can get off the hazardous roads and enjoy the joined-up network which walkers enjoy.
 
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