United Kingdom

Equine welfare in the United Kingdom is regulated by the Animal Welfare Act 2006 (www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/welfare/act/index.htm [1]). The Act came into force in 2007 and simplifies, harmonises and updates the UK’s animal welfare legislation by making two general provisions:
· It is against the law to cause, or allow, animal cruelty to occur
· Owners and keepers of animals have a legal responsibility to ensure an animal’s welfare needs are met: this is both a duty of care and a duty to care

Welfare needs are defined using the principals of the ‘five freedoms’ and owners/keepers of animals must ensure that the animal:
· is kept in a suitable environment (place to live)
· has a suitable diet
· can exhibit normal behaviour patterns
· is housed with, or apart from, other animals (whichever is applicable)
· is protected from pain, injury, suffering and disease

These welfare needs are defined for each species in Codes of Practice (www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/welfare/act/secondary_legis.htm [2]) which are produced by the Government Department Defra. Whilst failure to comply with a Code is not in itself an offence, the Codes provide practical guidance on keeping animals and are used as guidance on expected standards of husbandry and management by the courts. Codes of Practice for horses will be published in Scotland, England and Wales in 2008 ((www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/welfare/act/secondary_legis.htm [3] and www.scottishexecutive.gov.uk/Publications/2007/10/16091227/1 [4]).

The Equine Code of Practice will bring standards of equine husbandry and management in line with those of farm animals. The Animal Welfare Act will require compulsory inspection and licensing of livery yards (including registration of premises and inspection of horses in those premises) and the secondary legislation for this is expected to be introduced in, or shortly after, 2009. BEVA believes this will not only safeguard equine welfare standards in such yards but will have the added value of allowing syndromic surveillance of endemic diseases.

There are several animal welfare charities that actively promote equine welfare in the UK. The AWA allows Government-appointed Animal Health inspectors to issue improvement notices to owners and keepers of horses (and other animals) in order to prevent acts of cruelty occurring and pre-empt prosecution. Welfare charity inspectors also issue Improvement Notices and have found them useful tools in gaining compliance. The RSPCA (www.rspca.org.uk [5]) and Blue Cross (www.bluecross.org.uk [6]) provide equine welfare services as part of their general animal welfare mission. The International League for the Protection of Horses (www.ilph.org [7]), the Horse Trust (www.horsetrust.org.uk [8]) and the Donkey Sanctuary (www.thedonkeysanctuary.org.uk [9]) are dedicated equine welfare organisations pursuing equine welfare in the UK and internationally through education, specific welfare projects and research.