Can a Stabled Horse Ever Truly be Happy?

On Wednesday 9th March the next World Horse Welfare Wednesday Welfare Webinar will look at the effect on our horses of the different ways we keep them and how this can impact their welfare. Keeping horses stabled for part or all of their time is a traditional way of managing them and can be seen as convenient and a way of controlling the horses exercise and diet.

The webinar, live from 7pm on the Wednesday evening, will welcome international coach and animal behaviour scientist Dr Andrew McLean to chat to us about how the environment we keep our horses in can impact their behaviour. Andrew will explain why a horse may respond in certain ways to being stabled and, most importantly, discuss changes we can make to the way we keep and care for our horses, to ensure it is as beneficial for their physical and mental health as possible.

The panel discussion will be followed by a Q & A session in which you will have the chance to ‘ask the experts’ any questions you may have, and Andrew will be joined by equine veterinarian Brad Hill, from Nottingham Vet School, and Eileen Gillen, Centre Manager at World Horse Welfare’s Belwade Farm Rescue and Rehoming Centre.

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By registering for the webinar through Zoom, you will be able to take part in the various polls, ask questions during the Q&A and enjoy an interactive experience. If you are keen to be part of the conversation, then please join HERE.

The webinars are free to attend and if you are unable to attend via Zoom they can also be viewed as a Facebook Live session. Don’t worry if you have missed any of the previous webinars – which have tackled subjects as fascinating and diverse as keeping horses fit, weight management, euthanasia, biosecurity, horse mental wellbeing and travelling – they are all available to watch on the World Horse Welfare YouTube channel.

Meet the presenters

Andrew McLean is a prolific author of books and journal papers on the science and ethics of horse training leading which led to his awards for the Eureka Prize for Science and the Flambio award from the Italian Equestrian Federation. In Equestrian Sport, he has represented Australia in Eventing, ridden to Grand Prix level in Showjumping and Dressage and in 2018 Andrew won the UIPM National Championships in Tetrathlon (+35 years section). In the 1970’s and 80’s he won numerous bareback races in Australia and New Zealand. He is currently a member of the Racing Victoria Welfare Advisory Board and a Director of Pony Club Australia.

Brad Hill is an equine vet who has spent most of his career in first opinion practice before joining the equine teaching team at Nottingham Vet School. He has worked in both ambulatory and referral hospitals with a particular interest in equine stud medicine. During his time in practice, he realised the importance of understanding equine behaviour coupled with horse handling and restraint. In addition, he has mentored many new graduates and this interest in preparing the next generation of vet students for modern day equine practice is a passion of his. He is keen to explore the balance between how practitioners can get their often-challenging work done safely with equine welfare.

Eileen Gillen came to world Horse Welfare 30 years ago from background of training and instructing horses and their riders from the basics to competition level, with a particular affinity with bringing on the young competition horse – although she also had to train stunt riders to fall off horses safely!