Comments on: You’ve Got Horse Welfare Covered – How About Opportunities to Thrive?

By: Thomas Bühlmann

Thomas Bühlmann — Fri, 04 Jan 2019 09:30:52 +0000

In reply to Kris Hughes. The philosophic question how much humans are superior to animals should be answered by philosophers. Animals are not our slaves. Nothing speaks against to have a good time with them, as equivalent partners. We have often difficult periods to suffer and no chance of a different option. To have a free will as humans is a mistake. Our situation is not better. And to die one time is the only certainty.

By: Thomas Bühlmann

Thomas Bühlmann — Thu, 03 Jan 2019 14:51:51 +0000

Hi. I try to make an other list of important needs for horses and to arrange after priority.
1. Safety
2. Comfort
3. To play
4. Food
If they feel safety, they spend no time to think about comfort. If they are safety and well, they are not interested to play. And when they play, to give food is like a reward. Most people don’t know this hierarchy. It’s a strong help for horse management. You should not give food as bribery. It isn’t sustainable. So if you try to improve something for your horses, think about these priorities. Nutrition is not the first step.

By: Kris Hughes

Kris Hughes — Sat, 28 Oct 2017 22:56:52 +0000

The opportunity for choice and control also applies to training and “working”. This is the elephant in the room that most of us don’t want to think about. And it goes beyond “kind” methods or only using positive reinforcement. The big, scary question is – do we have a right to approach an animal with our agenda? Do we even have the right to keep them in captivity?

I do not claim to have the answers to those big questions, but I am willing to consider them.

By: Jane @ THB

Jane @ THB — Sun, 20 Sep 2015 21:12:40 +0000

In reply to Kitty.

I think it’s important that we do as the originator of these ideas said – use these as a ‘lens’. There are a million ways we can put solutions into practice. It isn’t about not caring for our horses or turning them out to the wilderness, but thinking everything through in terms of benefits and costs to the horse 🙂 Balance is important!

By: Kitty

Kitty — Sun, 20 Sep 2015 20:39:28 +0000

Although I agree with all of those principles sometimes we do have to rug our horses. That doesn’t mean that we have to over rug, just that some horses are not bred for the climate they live in and a bit of help is appreciated. If I were to take my Highland Pony to a warmer climate, I would have to do a partial clip in winter because every winter he is convinced that it’s going to snow and it never does and on sunny days he hides in the shade. In a warmer climate I would have to be more proactive about his comfort. If I were to ride him in winter, he would also need a partial clip for comfort. My now deceased Thoroughbred required rugging in the same winters that my Highland Pony considers too warm at times. In a warmer climate he could have run around unrugged and unclipped and loved it. So the suitability of your horse to the local environment should be considered too.

By: Jane @ THB

Jane @ THB — Sat, 19 Sep 2015 23:18:57 +0000

In reply to Lola. What I like is that there are so many ways to respond to these needs with different solutions. We may have weakness in one area of provision, but can excel in another, which balances things out. I see many horses that are damaged or bearing old injury, and yet which are contented, because enough of their needs are met in this way. :-)

By: Jane @ THB

Jane @ THB — Sat, 19 Sep 2015 23:16:36 +0000

In reply to Sunshine Coast Agistment. Hi, I just looked at your website. Beautiful! I love your philosophy.

By: Sunshine Coast Agistment

Sunshine Coast Agistment — Sat, 19 Sep 2015 22:57:04 +0000

Our agistment principals are set almost to mirror these suggestions. In our experience over the last 10 years the horses in our care have improved in temperament and health within a short period of arrival.
Thanks for the tip about hoods preventing expression.

By: Lola

Lola — Sat, 19 Sep 2015 03:59:33 +0000

I think I’m going to make a note of these 5 opportunities to thrive – they nicely encapsulate what is missing from so many horses’ lives.
The opportunity for choice and control resonates with me in particular. I see so many horses that spend days and months and years stuck in the one, boring, grass paddock. I feel sorry for them because I think they must be so bloody BORED.
I always feel bad when I don’t have time to get my horses out and about to experience the world. I like to mix up their living situation by putting them in different paddocks so they can explore new territory. I also like to have them close to the action so they can watch people’s coming and goings. I’m sure that they enjoy trail rides because they get to get around in nature, and who doesn’t love that? They’re with their friends, eat different vegetation than what they have at home, meet other horses, move over different terrain… So long as they feel safe and are physically capable, it’s got to be as fun for them as it is for me, right?