Concordia Equestrian Magazine

ISSUE NO.4 - JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

CONCORDIA OVER 40 PAGES OF GREAT READING FOR HORSE LOVERS!

INTERNATIONAL EQUESTRIAN MAGAZINE

FEATURING SPOTLIGHT ON LIFESTYLE & NUTRITION With Equitopia, Dr Karin Leibbrandt DVM & Sue Palmer Together with Gabriele Meyer's 7 page guide to feeding THE SCIENCE IN SUPPORT OF COMPASSION Susan Gordon interviews Dr Allen Schoen DVM INTRODUCING - the Accredited Practitioner Register™ for Equine Facilitated Interactions TOUCHING THE WILD HEART OF HORSES With Bonny Mealand Kate Fletcher looks at POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT FOR HUMANS

MEET THE PRESENTERS

October 21-23, 2022

WWW.CONCORDIAEQUESTRIANS.ORG

OUR PRINCIPLES Our Vision Our vision is of a world where all horses are cared for and trained with kindness and understanding.

Our Shared Values Our shared values are compassion, harmony, empathy, patience, partnership, and honesty.

Our Compassion Our compassion is for all equines, and also for our fellow human beings, offering a supportive community, where open-mindedness allows us to learn from each other. We adopt the 'Five Freedoms' principles that were developed for farm animals and which are: freedom from hunger and thirst; freedom from discomfort; freedom from pain, injury or disease; freedom to express normal behaviour; and freedom from fear and distress.

Our Commitment Our commitment is to promote successful humanhorse relationships in which equine welfare is paramount.

Through sharing education and knowledge that are based on science, research, evidence-based practice and compassion, we create thoughtful practices in care, management and training.

Our Beliefs Fundamental to our beliefs is the fact that horses are sentient beings, capable of being aware of sensations and emotions, of feeling pain, of suffering and of experiencing a state of well being. With this in mind, we acknowledge that the management, handling, training and riding of horses must be in such a way that fear and distress are removed, or at least reduced to an absolute minimum.

We believe in listening to the horses, supporting the learning style that allows for the horse's individuality, and giving them the time to develop both mentally and physically.

We believe that horses should have freedom of movement and expression, this applies to all the ways we manage, live, work and connect with horses, and eliminates the use of restrictive equipment and force.

Our Desires Our desire is to be a force for good, and a voice for horses all over the world.

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CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022 Table of Contents

02

OUR PRINCIPLES Concordia

04

PRODUCTION TEAM Concordia

05

ALL WELCOME Milly Shand

06

WHY GOOD NUTRITION CONTRIBUTES TO CORRECT COLLECTION - Dr Karin Leibbrandt

09

THE SCIENCE IN SUPPORT OF COMPASSION Susan Gordon interviews Dr Allen Schoen DVM

13

WILD HORSE UPDATE Craig Downer

14

THE STRUCTURE OF THE HOOF - PART TWO Lindsey Field

18

EQUITOPIA ON THE MICROBIOME

20

DOES YOUR HORSE LEAD A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE Sue Palmer

23

TOUCHING THE WILD HEART OF HORSES Bonny Mealand

26

THE ATHENA HERD FOUNDATION

29

EFI ACCREDITED PRACTITIONER REGISTER™

31

FEEDING HORSES - A PRACTICAL APPROACH Gabriele Meyer

39

SPORT HORSE WELFARE Dr Jo Hockenhull

42

BEST HORSE PRACTICES SUMMIT

44

POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT FOR HUMANS Kate Fletcher

PRODUCTION TEAM & REGULAR CONTRIBUTORS

FROM IRELAND Michael Duffy -Concordia's IT Manager.

FROM CALIFORNIA Gabriele Meyer - Magazine Manager, Content Editor, researcher and writer.

FROM HOLLAND Dr Karin Leibbrandt - vet, horse trainer and author of 'Compassionate Training for Today's Sport Horse'.

FROM CANADA Susan Gordon - horse trainer and the co-author of 'The Compassionate Equestrian'.

FROM ENGLAND Kate Fletcher MSc - PhD Researcher in equine welfare at the Royal Veterinary College and an independent animal welfare consultant.

FROM SCOTLAND Bonny Mealand - Equine Podiatrist who specialises in working with wild and feral equines. The face behind 'Touching Wild'.

FROM NEW ZEALAND Lindsey Field MSc - clinical researcher and the face behind 'The Study of the Equine Hoof'.

FROM ENGLAND Sue Palmer MSc - Chartered Physiotherapist and author.

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FROM ENGLAND Milly Shand - Concordia Director, writer and Creative Editor.

FROM ENGLAND Nicky Langley - Concordia Director.

FROM ENGLAND Dr Jo Hockenhull - animal welfare researcher at the University of Bristol Vet School.

FROM ENGLAND Silke Ceruti - Managing Director of the online competition portal, Equimind.

ALL WELCOME! Hello & Welcome to Concordia Magazine

EDITOR'S NOTES

Hello, like-minded friends, I hope that this latest issue of fabulous articles for horse-lovers finds you healthy and happy.

Do you remember - I am going back about 10 years - the excitement when two world-famous trainers got together, I won’t name names, but one was German and the other was French. They spoke out against awful training practices that were allowed by the FEI but our hopes were dashed when they very publicly fell out over their own training philosophies - even though they plainly shared the same ethos. Argh, the frustration, what an influence they could have had on training without force had they spoken with one voice.

Their public spat is one of the things that influenced me to create Concordia as a platform for like-minded equestrians. I recognised that we would never all agree - we are horse people and agreeing on everything is impossible - but we can share an ethos.

I got together with a fabulous group of equine professionals and after many months we agreed on a set of principles (see page 2) and those principles became our line in the sand.

We have been repeatedly told that compassion and science can’t sit together and that we could never bring people with different training philosophies together. Happily, both these things have proved not to be true, but we sure as heck have had our critics!

Surprisingly, our most vehement detractors have been the followers of pure positive reinforcement, so it was interesting for me to read Kate Fletcher’s article ‘Positive Reinforcement for Humans’. As Kate says…

“Being criticised is akin, for a human, to being punished, and punishing a human will not result in behavioural change.”

That is a thought-provoking statement if ever there was one, and Kate puts it so well when she says that every small, incremental step towards positive change should be embraced and encouraged because what really matters is that we are all trying.

As Dr Allen Schoen, in his interview with Susan Gordon, says ‘…internationally, we find the adaptation of kinder, more ethical training methods…’ and he is, of course, right. We have a long way to go, but equestrians are asking questions about ethics and training, and equine industries are recognising the power of social licence and know that their sports will not survive unless they pay more attention to the well-being of the horse.

Lots of good stuff is happening right now and the more we can pull together the quicker positive change will happen.

Many thanks go to all our team, past and present, and our great writers. You may have noticed that we have a new face on the production team.

German-born Gabriele Meyer joins us from California in the US. Gabriele is a superb manager, researcher and writer and I am thrilled that she has agreed to join us as Manager and Concordia Magazine’s Content Editor - and we have certainly had a lot of superb content for her to edit for this issue! I love working with Gabriele and we are looking forward to a positive future for Concordia Magazine.

I hope that you enjoy reading the really fabulous articles that we have in issue four. You can help us to reach more people by sharing the link with your friends and on social media.

Many thanks and all the best, Milly Shand Creative Editor ~ Concordia Magazine

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At first glance, nutrition and collection do not seem to have much in common, but the opposite is true!

WHY GOOD NUTRITION CONTRIBUTES TO CORRECT COLLECTION! Dr Karin Leibbrandt At first glance, nutrition and collection do not seem to have much in common, but the opposite is true!

If the horse’s intestinal function is disturbed due to incorrect nutrition, he can develop stomach and intestinal complaints. This can cause, among other things, too much gas formation, an irritated intestinal wall, inflammation, insufficient intake of nutrients, and diarrhoea or stomach ulcers.

Because gastrointestinal complaints often lead to abdominal pain, the horse will not like to tighten his abdominal muscles to close his underline which is necessary to take more weight onto the hind legs. Tensing the abdominal muscles increases the pressure on the abdominal organs and, if they are painful already, this will increase the pain.

In addition, a horse must build muscle strength to be able to collect during training. For this, the muscle mass must increase and that is only possible if the horse can properly absorb its nutrients.

What is correct nutrition? In short, correct nutrition consists of unlimited feeding of good quality roughage. In some cases, unlimited feeding needs to be adjusted as certain horse breeds will eat too much in this way. In this case, the food intake can be slowed by slow feeders, for example.

What does a horse get from roughage? The horse itself cannot digest roughage very well. They can extract small amounts of sugar (carbohydrates), protein and fat. As soon as the food enters the cecum and large intestines, it is fermented. This means that the microflora (bacteria) will break down the cellulose and turn it into fatty acids that the horse absorbs.

The gut bacteria ARE THE protein source for the horse. When these bacteria die, their proteins are released and are then available for absorption by the horse.

Muscles need proteins to become stronger. The source for proteins, therefore, comes from the bacteria in the cecum and large intestines. If we have a disturbance in the intestinal flora, the fermentation process is less successful and the horse can absorb fewer proteins and fatty acids.

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WHY GOOD NUTRITION CONTRIBUTES TO CORRECT COLLECTION! - page 2

These days, most horses’ diets still contain a lot of starches and sugar.

Grains (oats, wheat, barley) consist of starches that are being converted into fast carbohydrates (sugars).

And pelleted feeds contain sugar in the form of molasses to make the feed more palatable to the horse.

Because of sugars, the internal environment of the intestine is disturbed. The environment in the gut gets too acidic. This combined with an overload of sugar or starch causes an overgrowth of undesired bacteria and the good bacteria responsible for the fermentation can’t do their job properly.

In addition, horses are physiologically and psychologically geared to unlimited access to food, or at least the possibility to go looking for food if they feel hungry.

If a horse does not get enough roughage, the acidity in the stomach rises, which increases the risk of stomach ulcers.

Psychologically, the horse experiences stress in case he feels hungry and cannot search for food.

Stress causes an increase in the hormone cortisol. Cortisol is a socalled “catabolic” hormone, which

means that cortisol breaks down body tissue to provide immediate energy in a panic situation. In the case of a horse, muscles are broken down to provide a supply of glucose to run away quickly.

That in itself is a good system if it is short-lived. It is a system to survive an immediate attack from a mountain lion. But if a horse has chronic stress because of the lack of roughage without being able to search for it (or has stress from other reasons), this means that he doesn’t build up muscles very well, and sometimes even breaks down his own body tissue, and can’t recover well after a workout or injury.

In stressful situations, the body lowers the activity of all organs that don’t contribute to acute survival. So the intestines receive less blood, the production of acid in the stomach lowers, the production in the pancreas and intestines of digestive enzymes lowers, as well as the production of gastric mucus in the stomach, which protects the stomach wall against the acid in the lumen of the stomach.

Sugar and stress, therefore, have a negative effect on the stomach and intestines, on digestion, but also on muscle development and muscle metabolism.

It is very difficult to deduce what diet exactly constitutes good nutrition for your horse because many studies contradict each other.

But it is clear that sufficient roughage of good quality and the omission of sugar and fast carbohydrates (from grains and pellets, for example) is the base to start from.

Furthermore, each horse is an individual and they have individual needs. Feeding, therefore, remains a matter of searching, experimenting and observing how your horse reacts to it.

Training does not stand on its own!

Training can only be successful and enjoyable for your horse if you take into account a lot of factors – and good nutrition is a very important one.

Karin Leibbrandt

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"I would highly recommend this book for anyone who loves animals--not just horses--and wants to gain an understanding of them on a deeper, more intimate level. The authors offer us numerous, often profound insights, through their own varied experiences and backgrounds, regarding the integration of compassion into all areas of our lives. With deeper reading, one begins to appreciate more fully, how the immutable relationship between human health, animal health, and that of our environment--a world of One Health--is the real basis for improving the life of our entire planet."

Ted Cohn, DVM President, American Veterinary Medical Association

"This is a book for those who seek a mutually satisfying relationship with their horses. The Principles provide a road map...we should read them carefully and often."

Hilary Clayton, BVMS, PhD, Dipl. ACVSMR, MRCVS

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The Compassionate Equestrian Chapter 4 Principle 4 by Susan Gordon

THE SCIENCE IN SUPPORT OF COMPASSION Compassionate Equitation is based on the latest in neuroscience and equitation science and the benefits of a compassionate brain and heart for all interactions I interviewed Dr. Allen Schoen, DVM, co-author of The Compassionate Equestrian, for his comments regarding Principle 4.

Now retired from veterinary practice, Dr. Schoen has moved on to new projects and advanced insights that lend a fresh perspective to our physical and spiritual definitions of science and beyond.

He begins with a reminder of the quote by Tenzin Gyatso, the 14th Dalai Lama, at the front of the book.

“Genuine compassion is based not on our own projections and expectations but rather on the rights of the other: irrespective of whether another person is a close friend or an enemy, as long as that person wishes for peace and happiness and wishes to overcome suffering. On that basis, we develop a genuine concern for his or her problems. This is genuine compassion."

(Photo: Matt Ming, Tibetan girl leading horse, Creative Commons license, https://www.flickr.com/photos/matianming/11622357234) 09 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

THE SCIENCE IN SUPPORT OF COMPASSION - page 2

Dr. Schoen continues: "I would like to explain the meaning of compassion which is often misunderstood. We've seen how the horse world has responded to the book — many people talk about compassion and how they have compassion for their horses. I'm sure that's what they're feeling, but it goes deeper than the word and the science. There are new insights and science from people and organisations such as Karen Armstrong and the Charter for Compassion; endless material continues to arise. If there's good science emerging, that's great, but as I'm still here in 3D, I don't want to rehash material that's out there already. So much was brand new at the book's release, and it's now commonplace in today's horse world.

From the East Coast to the West and internationally, we find the adaptation of kinder, more ethical training methods, but sometimes it's only as long as the horse agrees to what the trainers and owners want. Can you be compassionate toward your horse when it isn't doing what you want?

What are you feeling, and what are your actions regarding the care you are providing to your horse? Does it bring up anger? Frustration? If it brings up compassion, what does that feel like to you? If not compassion, how can you switch and put yourself in your horse's position?

As an exercise, put your hand on your heart and notice what you feel when you say, "compassion." A lot of external circumstances affect our hearts these days. Feel it, and try to determine the message your heart is telling you.

If your horse has pain or suffering, and your work with the horse exacerbates that issue, try placing your hand on your horse's heart and then your own, and see what shows up when you do that exercise. Don't just think about it.

Try this exercise and feel it.

There are many deep levels to compassion, and over time you will learn to experience these additional levels. This is genuine compassion, and we don't just stop at "Level One." Put the phone aside and feel the horse without thinking. Focus on what you're feeling. When you start over

with the horse, what are you feeling?

Can you feel the space, the void? The distance between you and the horse and your thoughts? The internet has monetized nanoseconds worth of attention. What if we kept those nanoseconds to ourselves and felt that space instead of giving it to outside thought?

The concept of the Unified Field of Consciousness has expanded to include the Conscious Animal Lovers Movement (CALM). This new paradigm puts you in touch with the deeper aspects of the book. Please get in touch with me if you’re interested in learning more.

So much is still very cerebral, but we need to move to the heart. The longest journey we'll ever take is from the mind to the heart and back, and I think this is the journey we need to be making now.”

I want to push people beyond their limits. Time is too short now for people to be using the words alone to justify where they stand.

What do these words mean to us now?

How can we bring these terms into 2022 and beyond? Our projections and filters of compassion do not define it. Genuine compassion is for the rights of the other. What are the rights of the horse? Are we compassionate at all times?

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(Photo: Creative Commons License, Pxhere.com)

THE SCIENCE IN SUPPORT OF COMPASSION - page 3

I thought about Dr. Schoen's words and placed them in the context of the world we see around us. He has leapt over the meme that "science" has become and reminded us that our existence is malleable, subject to the focus of our attention.

Most people are familiar with the standard scientific method, which is observing, asking questions, and seeking answers through tests and experiments. In simple terms, it is a series of five basic steps, plus one feedback step: Make an observation.

Ask a question.

Form a hypothesis or testable explanation.

Make a prediction based on the hypothesis.

Test the prediction.

Iterate: use the results to make new hypotheses or predictions.

Photo: Courtesy Pxfuel.com

Pioneers in veterinary science, such as Dr. Schoen, made deep inroads into our understanding of the ways and means to heal animals. In more recent history, we have seen the rise of Equitation Science.*

Photo: Pikist.com

The idea of founding a society devoted to Equitation Science had first been raised during discussions at the Havemeyer Foundation Workshop on Horse Behavior and Welfare in Iceland in 2002. The following year, a satellite meeting on horse welfare was held at the International Society for Applied Ethology Congress in Italy. In 2004, the first workshop, solely devoted to Equitation Science was held at the Veterinary School of the University of Edinburgh. As a direct result of the growing interest in Equitation Science, the 1st symposium was launched at the Australian Equine Behaviour Centre (AEBC) in 2005, where 8 peer-reviewed scientific papers were presented.

Before professional scientists gathered data sets concerning equine behaviour, learning theories and welfare, equestrians learned methods that have stood the test of time for hundreds, if not thousands, of years. Those fortunate enough to find themselves with outstanding mentors recognized that kindnessmotivated training elevates the horse's welfare, ensuring optimal performance and health from foal to show ring to a hopefully happy retirement. Recent science has helped with such understanding and how equestrians can achieve such results, using specialized diagnostic tools and qualified scientists to prove what many old-time horsemen already knew.

ISES has opened the door for many equestrian professionals who have been willing to update their protocols.

Photo: Wikipedia, Étienne-Jules Marey , Cheval blanc monté, 1886, locomotion du cheval.

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THE SCIENCE IN SUPPORT OF COMPASSION - page 4

Shortcuts to training, the widespread use of mood and performance-enhancing drugs, and excessive pressure are detrimental to horses' wellbeing, which science also proves. Many horses have suffered due to harsh or irresponsible training and handling techniques.

With an evidence-based approach to training, we now have the data to either expose the problems or support ancestral knowledge for the good of equestrianism.

I think equitation science can help bridge the gap between understanding what causes horses to react out of pain or anxiety and what we sense in our gut feeling by connecting to the horse on a deeper level. Have you ever put a piece of equipment on a horse, knowing that it will create a desired level of control? Did you feel that maybe the horse is uncomfortable but "behaving" out of fear of reprisal or shut down because of discomfort?

Have you looked into a horse's eyes and thought, "this isn't right"? If you've come to that kind of conclusion, what did you do then? Was it based on scientific knowledge or your trust in your senses? Both?

I love understanding what I feel about a horse. My greatest joy is to take a horse that exhibits tension under saddle and have that horse learn to completely relax, nose stretched to the ground, on the buckle, taking deep breaths, from the moment I climb in the tack. The same horse learns to connect with energy and the most subtle signals from the ground, just as they do in the wild. There is a lightness about this kind of work, and I ask you, does science need to explain what is happening? Or, can we leave all data and devices behind at this point and refocus our attention on something tenable, nonphysical, and beyond? Right here, and in "the now," as Dr. Schoen suggests, "not-thinking."

This "space" between unique connection and communication is where I feel most comfortable when working with horses. Most interesting, there is a science to explain this feeling—quantum physics and the unified field theory. I suggest keeping up with the science that furthers equitation—which focuses on embracing the cognitive abilities of horses, their natural behaviour, and how human riders can use such knowledge to interact with and signal their horses for optimum safety and wellbeing. But, remember to stay in touch with your heart.

References: Melissa Starling, Andrew McLean and Paul McGreevy (2016): The Contribution of Equitation Science to Minimising Horse-Related Risks to Humanshttps://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4810043/ Animals (Basel). 2016 Mar; 6(3): 15. Published online 2016 Feb 23. doi: 10.3390/ani6030015 About ISES: https://equitationscience.com/about/about-ises

Conscious Animal Lovers Movement (CALM): The 7 Pillars www.drschoen.com 12 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

Action Alert: WILD HORSE UPDATE - USA As part of the widespread public outcry, including the Wild Horse Freedom Rallies of April 23 and 24 and June 11 of this year at several state capitals, Americans need to continue to push for the reform of America's wild horse and burro program.

This means the restoration of our precious last remaining wild horse and burro herds and their habitats.

Americans ought to persist because helicopter roundups were scheduled to begin again on July 1st – with 20,000 or so wild horses and burros scheduled for elimination, sending the remnant populations into a decline and demise.

Also, the wildfire season is upon us and the horses and burros are vitally needed to mitigate and prevent catastrophic wildfires, as well as for soil and plant restoration.

The situation is most urgent and it is high time to stop this outrage!

The President, Congressmen and appointed officials of our government, as well as Governors and state and local officials, all need to become aware of and acknowledge the urgent need to restore our nation's beleaguered wild horse and burro populations together with their appropriate – and legal – habitats.

Click here to read my article outlining the basics we need to get across and how to achieve the passage of the long-overdue ROAM-RD Act bill. When passed and signed, this bill will restore the precious wild horse and burro herds and their habitats as truly wild and free, genetically viable and ecologically adapted, selfstabilizing populations.

It is urgent that a congressional oversight hearing be conducted on America’s wild horse and burro program.

Please contact your Representative (https://www.house.gov) and Senators (https://www.senate.gov) to have this conducted in the appropriate public lands committee.

You can also click here (https://www.govtrack.us/) to find all your elected officials.

Finally, please continue to urge President Joseph Biden to take action to stop the present extreme reductions of America's last wild horses and burros to genetically non-viable and reproductively crippled, semi-domesticated herds, because this is entirely contrary to the true spirit and intent of the wonderful, lifeaffirming Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act of 1971. You can contact him either on his official contact site https://www.whitehouse.gov/contact/ or by calling (202) 456-1111, you can also write the Honorable President Joseph Biden and Vice President Camilla Harris at 600 Pennsylvania Ave, NW, Washington, DC 20500.

This is the intelligent and democratic way to help our wild horses!

Remember that every well-intentioned, focused and good-faith effort to better our world will have its special positive effect – it will not be in vain!

CRAIG DOWNER https://thewildhorseconspiracy.org Please support our work – we need your help!

Make a tax-deductible contribution to the Wild Horse and Burro Fund so that we can continue conducting research, education and outreach. To make a donation please follow the link (https://thewildhorseconspiracy.org) or mail your check to: The Wild Horse Conspiracy, P.O. Box 456, Minden, NV 89423.

Please also consider making a contribution to the Reserve Design Project: https://www.gofundme.com/mstngreservedesign 13 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

THE STRUCTURE OF THE HOOF PART TWO by Lindsey Field

In the previous issue of Concordia we looked at a section of the horse’s foot sliced like a stack of pennies and we looked at the slice 1 cm from the ground. Now we are going to look at the next 2 cm up, so a little higher, and the landscape is starting to change.

Figure 1. Position of the slice through the foot about 2 cm from the ground

This is a great view to see where the navicular bone sits in the foot. It actually is fairly deep in the hoof capsule. It is quite a small bone and called “boat shaped” – although I really don’t see that at all! – and it is situated between the coffin bone and the deep digital flexor tendon. It forms part of the distal interphalangeal joint (DIPJ) or also known as the coffin joint. This joint consists of three bones, the coffin bone, the short pastern bone and the navicular bone. It’s also good to remember that this joint is deep in the hoof capsule. It’s a very busy joint and it has the

Figure 2. Internal view at 2 cm

Figure 3. Navicular bones

hoof capsule surrounding it to give it protection. Think of the carpal joint - often called the knee joint. That poor joint does not have much to shed it, like the DIP joint does –just a bit of fascia and skin!

Did you know that the navicular bone on the fore feet is always under pressure when the horse is standing still? It’s only when a horse lies down, that the pressure comes off the navicular bone. We know that horses bear 60% of their weight on the front limbs so the poor little navicular bone as well as its ligament has to undergo a lot of constant pressure! It’s unusual to get navicular issues in hind feet because the horse can rest the hind foot by shifting weight, using the stay apparatus by locking the stifle joint.

The navicular bone is attached to the coffin bone by the impar ligament and we can see part of it in the photo. It looks like fibres, because the cut has been made just at the start of the ligament. The ligament covers most of the front of the navicular bone.

At the back of the navicular bone is another ligament, which is called the navicular collateral (suspensory) ligament, but we can’t see that in this slice. This ligament originates at the long pastern and runs along both sides of the short pastern. It looks almost like a swing. The seat of the swing is the part that is attached to the back of the navicular bone and the ropes of the swing are the ligament branches at either side.

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THE STRUCTURE OF THE HOOF - part 2 - page 2 The term “Navicular” puts dread in every horse owner’s heart. It’s not just a navicular bone issue, it’s most usually a soft tissue issue first. All the soft tissues at the back of the foot plus the deep digital flexor tendon, plus all the collateral ligaments in the foot, all can be affected well before any damage is actually seen on the navicular bone. Once the changes are seen in the navicular bone, then the problem is well advanced. But still not a death sentence, so always have hope! Not all X-rays showing issues correlate with how the horse is actually appearing in real life. I have recently dissected a foot from a horse that was “limping a bit for years” and the pain was always thought to be a shoulder issue.

He was managed well on bute and he was a paddock pet. On studying his foot, he had a massive hole in his navicular bone, and the bone was adhered to the deep digital flexor tendon by strong adhesions. So strong, I could not pull them apart. The whole area was red and looked inflamed. Seeing the horse in real life certainly did not correlate with his poor foot.

Figure 5.

The Sagittal section and X-Ray (not the same foot)

Figure 4.

The navicular collateral (suspensory) ligament

Let’s look at another view of the navicular bone as it is seen on a radiograph (X-Ray).

In the X-ray film we can see the bones quite well, as whiter structures on a dark background. The reason we see the bones is because they are dense and they stop some of the X-ray energy reaching the plate. The more dense the bone, the whiter the image. Whereas soft tissue lets the X-rays pass quite easily and it hits the plate with a lot of energy and makes it appear dark. The X-ray equipment today allows your vet to change the contrast and “tweak” the images and focus on some soft tissue changes, but the procedure is primarily used for looking at the bones. Your vet would be looking for the minute detail in tiny changes of shapes of bones, to assess if any extra bone has been laid down where ligaments attach, or he may look to see if there are any pieces of bone missing on the navicular bone.

In the images, we can see where the navicular bone is located and the X-ray film is very similar to the sagittal section. Your vet would do a series of different views to come to any diagnosis as any issue he may see on one X-ray needs to be seen on other X-rays of slightly different angles. That way, if he sees the same issue in different views then it’s probably a true issue rather than an artefact.

While we are looking at the X-ray film, let’s for a moment focus on the markers the vet will use. We can see a white line alongside the hoof wall.

That is a marker that is placed on the hoof wall by the vet prior to the film being taken. It is useful to define where the hoof wall is located.

This is important when we are looking at the coffin bone and how it is located in relation to the hoof wall. The distance between the surface of the coffin bone and the hoof wall should be the same at the top as it is at the bottom. Note in the photo, the yellow distance is the same (or very similar) at the top as it is at the bottom. This means the coffin bone is in the correct position related to the hoof wall and the coffin bone is nicely connected, from top to bottom, to the inner hoof wall. If the coffin bone is rotating, a symptom we often see in laminitis, then the distance in the bottom marker will be bigger than the top marker.

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THE STRUCTURE OF THE HOOF - part 2 - page 3 It's also important to know where the hoof capsule and the hairline starts, and the marker placed on the hoof wall should start exactly at the upper edge of the hoof capsule.

Why do we need to know that? Well, it’s important to see if the coffin bone has dropped inside the foot, and we use the white marker to determine that. It’s always useful to get a series of X-Rays if laminitis is suspected because the vet can look at changes of the coffin bone position between X-rays taken at different points in time and that is very important information. It’s the change that is important rather than a one-off X-ray.

Laminitis is the destruction of the connection between the sensitive and non-sensitive laminae and the laminae are the structures that suspend the foot in the capsule. If that connection is damaged then the coffin bone can rotate or drop down.

Going back to the photo of the fresh specimen in figure 2, we can see the laminar connection really well, the white and red lines that are present on the hoof wall and internal foot. I’ll be talking about laminitis and showing you some photographs of the inside view of feet with varying grades of laminitis, in the next few Concordia issues.

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Figure 6.

The yellow arrows show the distance between the coffin bone and the hoof wall. It should be the same all the way- top to bottom.

Archive ~ links to previous issues

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THE EQUINE MICROBIOME Equitopia Academy

In humans and horses alike, gut health is currently all the rage. New studies, linking the microbiota of the gut to various health issues are coming out every year and the general take home message seems to be that we should be paying far, far more attention to how healthy our gut is, because the health implications are huge! Studies of the microbiome in horses are less numerous, but there have still been a good number of them, linking the gut microbiome to issues like COPD and stereotypical behavior. In our nutrition course “The Equine Microbiome” we are going to look at just how important the gut microbiota is and how we can make sure to do everything we can to keep it functioning at its best.

What is Gut Microbiota?

The equine gastrointestinal microbiota are the microorganisms that live in the horse’s digestive tract. These organisms help the horse digest food and absorb nutrients and in return the horse provides them with food and board. It’s a symbiotic relationship. The equine gut is colonised by these microorganisms shortly after birth, in fact, a recent study showed that the colonisation process is complete around day 50 after birth and is interestingly not hugely impacted by weaning.

So, pretty early in life the horse already has a fully functioning microbiota.

These organisms are very diverse and consist mainly of fungi, parasites, protozoa, archaea, viruses and bacteria. While we humans also have quite diverse microbiota, some of the horse’s little helpers are specialized in fermentation of plant material, enabling them to break down tough fibrous materials like grass and hay into short chain fatty acids that can be used as building blocks or energy.

As long as all these different microorganisms live in harmony, the horse’s gut is healthy and the system is functioning beautifully. However, disturbances in the gastrointestinal microbiota can cause issues with the fermentation process and lead to metabolic disorders. Studies, mostly done in humans, have shown that disturbances in the gut health have far reaching consequences, including cardiovascular issues, irritable bowel syndrome, diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis and even depression. In short, your health is intimately connected to the health of your gut. The same goes for your horse.

The Implications of Gut Health In recent years there have been quite a few interesting studies about the effects of changes in the microbial population of the equine gut on the horse’s general health. The fact that the health of the microbial population has a big impact on the development of metabolic issues, the risk of colic and colitis (gut inflammation) makes a lot of sense and it’s not hard to believe.

But the impact of gut health is far more wide reaching. A recent study found a link between hind gut microbiota and the occurrence of stereotypic behaviours, such as cribbing.

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The study involved 185 healthy horses reared in similar conditions. Their microbiota was observed during a period of eight months and later analysed with additional environmental variables in mind. Interestingly, there seemed to be a clear connection between the composition of the horse’s microbiota and the occurrence of stress-related behavioural indicators like cribbing, aggressiveness and hypervigilance.

This observation supports the theory of the existence of a microbiota-gut-brain axis. The way this axis works isn’t exactly known just yet, but what we do know is that there is an intimate relationship between what is going on in the horse’s gut and its stress levels. This has huge implications for welfare! For example, if we have a horse that is exposed to a stressful event (let’s say he was injured and needs stall rest), the negative effects of stress could be mitigated to some degree by the proper application of pre and probiotics.

The jury is still out on their effectiveness though, so do your research before deciding on any particular brand. By supporting the microbiome, we could potentially make the stressful situation less harmful. This is all speculation for now, as there is currently no research to confirm it just yet, but it looks like a very promising concept. Another exciting area of research has been the connection between COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder) and the gut microbiota.

Studies of humans have looked at the connection between COPD and inflammatory bowel diseases and found a connection between the two. In horses, a perturbance in the gut microbiome is strongly connected to COPD, suggesting that imbalances in the gut contribute to chronic inflammation typical for the COPD patient. There is still lots of research that needs to be done, but these initial studies are very promising. All of this brings us much closer to understanding how different systems in the body function like an interconnected web.

Taking Care of the Microbiome As we all know, the horse’s digestive system is complex and also sensitive, which makes it prone to digestive upset. This is why one of the first things you learn as a horse owner is to bring in new feeds slowly, that you make changes from one type of hay to another slowly and so on. The horse’s gut does not like sudden change, because sudden change can negatively impact the populations of all those different types of microorganisms living in our horse’s digestive system. In addition to making sure all feed changes are implemented slowly, there are also other proactive measures we can take to make sure the microbiota stays happy and healthy.

Antibiotics and NSAIDs can have a negative impact on gut health, so if your horse requires medication, it might be a good idea to make sure to minimise the stress on the gut. A known factor that wreaks havoc on the microbial population of your horse’s gut is a high starch diet, so make sure to avoid large starchy meals and sugary treats and be careful to make fibre the baseline of your horse’s diet. Most horses do just fine on hay and a mineral mix. If your horse is working very hard or is having trouble keeping weight on a hay only diet, consult your nutritionist on the best possible low sugar, low starch option for your horse.

www.equitopiacenter.com 19 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

DOES YOUR HORSE LEAD A HEALTHY LIFESTYLE?

by Sue Palmer I think by now we all have an awareness that excess weight is damaging to our bodies. In their 2004 paper “Obesity as a disease: no lightweight matter”, authors Conway and Rene argue for obesity to be classified as a disease, stating “Contrary to just being a medical condition or risk factor for other diseases, obesity is a complex disease of multifaceted aetiology, with its own disabling capacities, pathophysiologies and comorbidities”.

By extension, excess weight is damaging to the bodies of all mammals, including our horses, dogs and cats.

At first glance, it would seem relatively simple to restrict the intake of calories to our animals for them to lose weight. In theory, that wouldn’t involve the same psychological complications as are involved in losing weight ourselves.

And yet, it isn’t simple at all. If you have ever owned a horse who seems to live on fresh air, you know that reducing his weight is extremely difficult. I was thinking about this recently and wondering whether some psychology around this issue is similar to the guilt I feel when I don’t allow my son to have the piece of cake that he’s asking for. All too often, I give in and allow him the cake. Then, because he sometimes gets cake and sometimes does not, he is on a variable schedule of reinforcement, which strongly encourages him to keep asking for cake. I’m not convinced, though, that the same psychology applies in terms of restricting what our horses eat.

I am a horse physiotherapist, not a nutritionist, and I don’t have the answers. But I am treating horses daily that are suffering increased levels of discomfort because of the excess weight they are taking through their joints. It’s likely that weight has an influence on many

behavioural and performance factors as well. In a 2021 study, mice showed pain-related behaviours when they were fed a diet that caused them to become obese. The study concludes “Diet-induced obesity accelerates intervertebral disc degeneration and knee osteoarthritis in mice; however, pain-related behaviours precede and are independent of histopathological structural damage. These findings contribute to understanding the source of obesity-related back pain and the contribution of structural intervertebral disc degeneration.”

chart which compares mortality between different groups based on their BMI.

When I shared my thoughts on this subject on my FB page (The Horse Physio), one of my friends and followers, Justin Kirkham-Myers, gave the following comment:

What you can see from this research is that for individuals who live an unhealthy lifestyle, being obese is a huge risk factor, which led to far greater mortality than those with a normal BMI. However, as soon as one healthy lifestyle choice was added, that difference began to shrink. By the time you compared those who adopted all 4 healthy habits (no smoking, regular exercise, eating fruit and veg, restricting alcohol intake), there was NO REAL DIFFERENCE in mortality between the different BMIs, but the obese group here had a significantly lower risk of early death than the regular weight individuals with an "unhealthy lifestyle".

“I think it's really important to emphasise that weight is not the primary health problem for overweight humans. This goes against all that the various diet agencies promote, and in fact against what we hear from the government. I would urge everyone to look through the research study titled “Healthy Lifestyle Habits and Mortality in Overweight and Obese Individuals”, and particularly at the

If our focus is weight, we lose track of what actually matters, which is leading a healthy lifestyle. And we can also feel that we aren't making progress, despite our efforts. I don't know how this relates to horses or pets (I would hope none of them are drinking and smoking), but definitely, for people, we need to focus less on the scales, and more on our lives.”

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The final couple of sentences in the abstract of the 2012 study that Justine mentions state “When stratified into normal weight, overweight, and obese groups, all groups benefited from the adoption of healthy habits, with the greatest benefit seen within the obese group. Healthy lifestyle habits are associated with a significant decrease in mortality regardless of baseline body mass index.” Basically, a healthy lifestyle is good for us, regardless of our weight. It would seem likely that the same applies to our horses.

For me, the difficulty is in knowing what a healthy lifestyle might be, either for us or for our horses. It’s almost as difficult, I think, as the question I addressed recently around how do you know if your horse is happy. I have spent the past year or so reading about human health issues, with a focus on preventative health (doing what we can to prevent problems, rather than fixing them once they’ve happened). As with most things that I’ve done a deep dive into, the advice being given to the public is often several years behind the advice that comes directly from the latest scientific studies. I’m not

saying that we should jump on every bandwagon as it comes into sight. But it’s easy to be swayed by what everyone else is doing, and by what you’ve done for most of your life. All too commonly I hear a client say to me “She’s on a bare paddock, there’s nothing in it for her to eat,” when the size of the mare clearly indicates that she’s finding calories from somewhere. It’s hard to look objectively at yourself, or at your horse when there are so many psychological factors involved.

Perhaps it’s time, though, to take greater responsibility for your lifestyle choices, and for those of your horse. Or perhaps you already do so and are leading by example.

References B. Conway, A. Rene (2004) Obesity as a disease: no lightweight matter https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/15245383/ Geoffrey J Kerr et al. (2012) Diet-Induced obesity leads to behavioural indicators of pain preceding structural joint damage in wildtype mice https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33752736/ E.M. Matheson, D.E. King and C.J.Everett (2012) Healthy Lifestyle Habits and Mortality in Overweight and Obese Individuals https://www.researchgate.net/publication/519 83342

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www.touching-wild.blog

Welfare Aware

Consultancy for Animals

Welfare Aware can offer advice on all activities involving animals, development of policies and procedures surrounding ethical and welfare considerations for animals, evidence-based animal welfare assessment in all types of situations and training for organisations on practical application of welfare protocols.

www.welfareaware.com

22 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

Consultancy, Training & Resource Development with Kate Fletcher

TOUCHING THE WILD HEART OF HORSES

By Bonny Mealand

I trim the hooves of wild horses. It is my specialised niche where I feel most alive. My body knows the work. During the 20 years that I have worked as an Equine Podiatrist, I've trimmed thousands of hooves. So my muscle memory can take over allowing me to focus on staying as aware and in harmony with the wild horses as I can be.

Horses who live life on their own terms are so completely in tune with themselves, each other and their environment that working with them is always an extraordinary and humbling experience.

I work with them in pens or open fields, but wherever we are, they are free to choose to be with me or not. Standing unhaltered and allowing the work to take place in a way that feels safe for them. This, of course, is the end result, the photo opportunity. The foundational work leading up to this moment may look less remarkable but is where the life-changing experiences happen.

I also work with domestic horses and those lucky enough to be involved in the “work” of regenerative grazing. Whatever type of equine I am interacting with, my aim is to recognise and respect their innate being, touching their wild heart.

I am very grateful to have been asked to be a regular contributor to the Concordia Magazine, A Voice for Horses. I will use my articles to share with you some of the amazing encounters and experiences that I am so lucky to have as part of my day-to-day life. I would also like to share some of what I learn as I follow the path to which I am committed. To better understand horses and equines of all kinds.

So I like to start by giving an overview of the concepts, principles and information that are the foundation of my work...

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TOUCHING THE WILD HEART OF HORSES - page 2

By Bonny Mealand

Training Redefined

The more I study free-living equines the clearer it becomes to me that by nature they are curious and social animals who choose to seek company, even with another species. It is the most natural thing in the world for an unhandled equine with no prior bad experience with humans to be curious about us, approach and then interact.

The dictionary definition of to train is “to develop or form habits, thoughts or behaviour by discipline and instruction”. The miserable experience I had at school with discipline and instruction goes a long way to explaining why I would be resistant to imposing this on others.

A more accurate description of how I work is by encouraging communication and interaction. I do so by building trust and connection whilst working towards flexible objectives.

My two biggest influences have come from what I have learnt from equines themselves and Equine Ethology (the study of the behaviour of equines in their natural habitat). I do my best to combine my experience and common sense with intellectual knowledge. My work is almost always equine-led, allowing them to shape and direct our interactions. I have a plan but I don't get attached to it and take the long-term view of its accomplishment.

The information I learn through regular ethological field studies is the bedrock of my work. It has given me wonderful insights into why horses do what they do. Freeliving populations give us a window through which we can view natural behaviour. When we look at equine behaviour from an ethological perspective (through a horse lens) we can really choose to take what we have learnt about them into consideration in all our interactions. We can then find answers that can enlighten us about how to create a high-quality life for them.

I was very fortunate when I first started researching natural animal behaviour to come across the book

ʻTouching the Wildʼ written by the remarkable Ethologist Joe Hutto, in whose honour my work is named. This book is about his experiences over the nine years he spent living with mule deer. Every day he would pack a lunch and go out with the herd, experiencing as well as observing their lives.

I believe the starting point for any interactions before we get anywhere near equines is to study their species in depth. If we can get our heads around their innate behaviours, we can then understand not just their physical needs but also their social, emotional and cognitive ones too. I don't claim to know their inner lives but I do my best to learn from their subtle communication and behaviour and to attempt to interpret and respond appropriately. I think it is our responsibility and privilege to study them as a species and then to get to know them as individuals.

This is what Joe has to say about his ethological work, “The observations I've made are not complex. If I have a gift, it is for recognising the obvious. But unless you become a part of the lives of these animals and put in the days and months and years, these observations will elude you.

I'm like a cultural anthropologist, studying the animals’ social lives”.

I had a moment of epiphany when reading Joe’s book. He describes the first contact between the deer and himself which was instigated by the deer. I had experienced the same with free-living ponies and I thought it was just an anomaly. It was a revelation to think that this could in fact be a more pure expression of natural behaviour than running away.

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ʻTouching the Wildʼ written by the remarkable Ethologist Joe Hutto, in whose honour my work is named.

TOUCHING THE WILD HEART OF HORSES - page 3

By Bonny Mealand

Then the decisions we make about how they live their lives more closely align with what nature and evolution have equipped them for. This in turn creates a well-balanced animal who feels safe in their world because it makes sense to them.

The brilliant work of the lifelong Equine Ethologist Lucy Rees is thoroughly researched and comprehensive. Her book ʻHorses in Companyʼ is the best source of information about horse behaviour that I know. It's my equine behaviour bible (www.lucyrees.uk).

Horses are a social species that do their best to get along. Being in a group equals safety on a very fundamental level, so they have strong motivation to adapt their behaviour to those around them.

Even though I may be making a request of them, one of my goals is to help them find the easiest way to do that. I prioritise calmness and confident engagement. It helps that they are so curious. I always allow them choice in their responses so that they can be as comfortable and accepting with what is being asked of them as they can possibly be.

As I write this, I realise that it is so important to question everything (this included!) With so much information at our fingertips, we need to remember to be discerning, and also to incorporate the wisdom gleaned from our own life experiences. I always look into the credentials and ethos of the people whose teachings I may take on board. Science is often used to establish credibility, but there is a significant variation in the quality of scientific studies, so again this is an area where we need to do our own research. We owe it to our equines to be like gold panners and sift through information to find the nuggets.

When we have sound information and understanding, we can look from the equine perspective, through a horse lens. Millions of years of evolution have provided them with a blueprint for survival.

They are hardwired to behave in certain ways. They have an innate need to express these behaviours and when they are unable to do so, due to our influence, it creates long-term stress which leads to multiple physical and behavioural problems. Equines who express natural behaviours lead a fulfilled life, which in turn develops confidence and contentment. This means that when we are interacting with them there is a good chance that it will be calm, safe and straightforward.

Horses are often referred to as a prey species and this does indeed shape their behaviour. However, knowing that a far bigger part of a

horse's life is devoted to developing and maintaining strong social bonds, I choose to work with their sociability and curiosity.

By first considering and addressing their intrinsic needs, I work towards having shared experiences and reciprocal attention to form a connection.

Once this is established, we end up as two beings who confidently and happily spend time and interact with each other. I've been repeatedly astounded by what is possible once this foundation is in place.

I have many tools in my equine toolbox, but in the end, I always take my lead from them. This is my priority – which I combine with the concepts I have outlined. I base my ʻtrainingʼ on this foundation.

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EQUINE WELFARE AS A FOUNDATION FOR EQUINE-FACILITATED INTERACTIONS Page 1

The Athena Herd Foundation is a not-for-profit Community Interest Company located in West Kent, UK. It was founded by Jennifer and Brent Geach in 2014 with the intention of creating a space dedicated to the whole health and well-being of their horses and other animals. It is home today to a sizable barefoot herd of horses who live as naturally as possible on an equine track system.

A unique interactive environment built on the core ethos of the well-being of the horses and further providing a space which supports the powerful benefits of Equine Facilitated Interactions.

Jennifer and Brent went on to establish a unique interactive environment built on the core ethos of the well-being of the horses and further providing a space which supports the powerful benefits of Equine Facilitated Interactions.

Building on this ethos of whole health and wellbeing, the Athena Herd Foundation Learning arm offers a unique range of training programmes and qualifications, from learning more about equine track systems to Equine Facilitated Interactions, which includes the Athena Herd Foundation Level 2 Certificate in Equine Facilitated Interactions and the Level 4 Equine Facilitated Practitioner Diploma.

These qualifications are accredited by the Accredited Counsellors Coaches Psychotherapists and Hypnotherapists (ACCPH) of which Athena Herd Foundation is an Organisational Member. It is also an Organisational Member of the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP).

The unique approach at the Athena Herd Foundation is based upon acknowledging the professional skills and practices of those who come to learn with us, working with them on their own unique journey to develop the most effective means of bringing the Equine Facilitated Interactions into their work. This approach enables us to support and develop those from a range of practices, this can include wellbeing to Coaching or Counselling and Psychotherapy.

We offer our learners the option of onsite or remote (online) training.

The option of online programmes also enables us to offer these qualifications internationally. To date, we have had learners complete our programmes from all around the world, including Australia, Europe, Hong Kong, Lithuania, UK and USA. The Athena Herd Foundation has grown over recent years into a truly global community.

as committed to standards of best practice in professional activity as well as committed to the compassionate ethos of equine wellbeing in their upkeep and participation in Equine Facilitated Interactions, see below for more information.

Further to our strong horse-centric ethos and our commitment to quality training with a focus on community, we aim to create a strong and engaging environment for our learners, one which not only supports them through their learning but also once they have completed their studies, holds them within a well-connected and supportive community. We do this by not charging any ongoing membership fees, having dedicated log-in areas on our website, Facebook and WhatsApp groups, as well as regular networking events (both in-person and online).

Equine Facilitated Interactions (including Equine Facilitated Learning and Equine Facilitated Psychotherapy) involve working alongside horses to create personal learning or personal insight, or develop individual wellbeing, or structure therapeutic support and healing. There is no one standard approach to this work. These interactions range from simply observing the horses from a distance, quietly interacting with them within their environment, or working alongside them in a more structured way in an arena or sandschool.

The Athena Herd Foundation's ethos, values and benefits lie at the heart of the new awarding arm Accredited Practitioner Register™ (the “Register”). Practitioners who join the Register will be recognised

Equine Facilitated Interactions develop social intelligence and conscious somatic (embodied) presence. By their nature, horses are situationally and socially present.

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What are Interactions?

Equine

Facilitated

EQUINE WELFARE AS A FOUNDATION FOR EQUINE-FACILITATED INTERACTIONS Page 2

Photo: Ernie the horse with Jennifer Geach - Co-founder of the Athena Herd Foundation CIC and trained facilitated Learning Practitioner, with Graeme Green Equine facilitated, embodied and experiential learning expert.

If we are to work effectively with the horses we need to be the same, and so we must learn to nurture and engage these qualities in ourselves.

Being Heard Being heard underlies everything that is undertaken at the Athena Herd Foundation, whether that is the physical and emotional needs of our animals, the needs and requirements of visiting service users or beneficiaries, or the objectives and aspirations of our learner community. These commitments also feed into the ethos of the Accredited Practitioner Register™.

At the Athena Herd Foundation, we recognise both the importance of building community and the acknowledging of individual contribution. As such, as we grow, we seek to connect and support.

For more information on the work of the Athena Herd Foundation, its qualifications or the Accredited Practitioner Register™ please email info@athenaherd.org or visit the website https://athenaherd.org.

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EQUINE WELFARE AS A FOUNDATION FOR EQUINE-FACILITATED INTERACTIONS Page 3

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EQUINE WELFARE AS A FOUNDATION FOR EQUINE-FACILITATED INTERACTIONS Page 4

Accredited Practitioner Register™ The Athena Herd Foundation established the Register under its Awarding arm to define a set of applicable professional standards for, and the ethical treatment of horses involved in, the delivery of Equine Facilitated Interactions (including, for example, Assisted or Facilitated Learning, Coaching, Counselling, Psychotherapy, Therapy or Hippotherapy).

Application to the Register is invited from non-Athena Herd Foundation trained practitioners and open to all those who complete the Athena Herd Foundation ACCPH accredited Level 4 Equine Facilitated Practitioner Diploma.

The Register also provides an exciting new opportunity for the Equine Facilitated Interactions marketplace as the Athena Herd Foundation has applied to the Professional Standards Authority in the UK for this to be held as an accredited register, providing a formal commitment to and recognition of professional standards for those coordinating the wider provision of professional health-care services.

As far as we are aware, the Register will be the first accredited register to be held in the UK which directly recognises and regulates work with animals in the provision of health care, therapy and wellbeing.

Melanie Venables, Head of Accreditation, Professional Standards Authority said: “We were pleased to conduct a preliminary assessment of Athena Herd’s register against Standard One of the Standards for Accredited Registers.

Following this being provisionally met, we have welcomed their application for a full assessment against Standards Two to Eight.”

Please visit the Register’s web pages under the Athena Herd Foundation Awarding arm for more information on the application process and supporting conditions.

https://athenaherd.org/accre dited-practitioner-register/

The objectives of the Register serve to: create and maintain professional ethics and standards that prioritise the health and wellbeing of clients and the public and protect them from harm or injury; promote and maintain client confidence and public credibility in the benefits of Equine Facilitated Interactions and the delivery thereof; provide a clear definition of professional standards required to support the delivery of Equine Facilitated Interactions; maintain ongoing compliance with these standards by all registered Practitioners.

Practitioners on the Register have: demonstrated that they have all of the above in place; equine health and wellbeing is at the heart of what they do; and submitted and maintain compliance with all of the Athena Herd Foundation Awarding requirements (for example appropriate insurance policies, contracts, policies and procedures, ongoing professional practice) which have been verified by the same.

All photo credits - Athena Herd

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www.equitopiacenter.com

Sue Palmer - The Horse Physio

With over 40 years of experience with horses, Sue uses her knowledge of the links between equine pain and behaviour to help you understand and enjoy your horse.

www.thehorsephysio.co.uk

30 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

A constructive guide for meeting the nutritional needs of horses

FEEDING HORSES A Practical Approach

by Gabriele Meyer Feeding horses is as much a science as it is an art. The goal of any feeding is to provide a diet with balanced nutrition that promotes the horse’s health and wellbeing and enables the horse to do the job we ask him to do.

Any feeding program needs to take into account a host of variables like life stage, size, breed and workload and to name a few. Furthermore, every horse is an individual with his unique genetic make-up which determines what nutrients it needs and how well it can digest them.

The circumstances under which horses are being kept play a great role in how much flexibility owners have to feed their horses. Someone who can house their horses on their property has a lot of leeway to try different feeding approaches, while someone who stables their horse in a horse facility has little say in what the horse gets fed and when.

In either case, the owner will constantly monitor a horse to get feedback if the horse is doing well. One of the criteria she will look at is if the horse has an appropriate amount of body fat, or if it is too fat or too thin.

The Henneke Body Condition Scoring System (BCS) is a scientific method of evaluating a horse’s body condition regardless of breed, body type, sex or age.

The veterinarian Don Henneke developed this system in the 1980ies at Texas A & M University. It’s based on both visual appraisal and palpitation of the fat layers of six major points of the horse that are most responsive to changes in body fat.

Scores range from 1 to 9, with 1 being poor and 9 being extremely fat. The ideal range for horses is from 4 to 6.

The Cresty Neck Scoring (CNS) is another measure of adiposity that focuses on the neck of the horse (Carter et al. 2009). The cresty neck scoring is on a scale of 0 to 5, where a score of 0 equals to no visual appearance of a crest, and a score of 5 equals to an enormous crest that is drooping to one side. Certain genetic types, and especially ponies displaying a cresty neck (score of 3-5), are at risk for metabolic issues, including laminitis. A horse with a 5 in the body condition scoring is likely to have a cresty neck score of 2.

Traditionally, it is said that one should not see the ribs of the horse, but be able to feel them. That method works, but it is highly subjective and I would like to point out that feeling the ribs does not mean poking with the fingertips into their flesh until you hit the bones – it means feeling the ribs with the hand flat against the ribs.

Researchers have found additional, and more objective, ways to determine a horse’s body condition. One is the Henneke Body Condition Scoring, the other is the Cresty Neck Scoring System. To be accurate, both scoring systems should be applied by someone trained, most likely that would be your vet. So, if she or he comes out for a routine visit, ask her to evaluate your horse's body condition! For details on both methods, please see the sidebar.

Ideally, you or your vet found out that your horse’s body condition is just right. This means that diet and exercise are in a good balance and an adjustment of the amount and/or quality of the feed is not necessary. But what if you determined that your horse has too much or too little body fat? In this case, you probably want to adjust the feed ration and workload to bring him back towards a healthier body condition range.

In the following, I describe a proven approach that can be used to design a feeding program for horses by taking the horse’s body weight, his workload and the energy density of his forage into account to calculate his forage ration. The very last step would be to figure out if a feed concentrate (grains or a pelleted feed) is needed at all and what information about the feedstuff is available to make an informed decision about which one to buy.

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FEEDING HORSES - A Practical Approach - by Gabriele Meyer - page 2

Step #1 Determining a horse's weight Assuming that the vast majority of horse owners do not have access to a livestock scale, the easiest way to determine a horse’s weight is to use a special weight tape. These tapes can be purchased in tack shops or online. While they might not be 100% accurate, they still provide a good estimate of a horse’s weight and the owner can easily keep track of any weight changes over time if measurements are taken every few weeks or months.

There is also the possibility to calculate a horse’s weight using a normal measuring tape (in inches).

Two measurements, heart girth and body length are taken and put into this formula: body weight = heartgirth2 x body length ÷ by 330 The result is in lb. and can be divided by 2.2 to get to kilograms. To determine the heart girth, measure around the girth line, from the highest point of the withers, under the belly just behind the elbows and up again to the withers. To determine the body length, measure from the point of the shoulder in a straight line around to the point of the buttock on the same side.

Step #2: How much exercise does your horse get?

It’s self-evident that the amount of exercise needs to be considered when calculating the feed ration for your horse.

The US National Research Council (1989) has published nutrition guidelines for a number of key nutrients, including the amount of “digestible energy” (DE), for horses in different life stages (growing, adult, pregnant, lactating) and for riding horses under four different workloads: Maintenance = adult horses, no work Light = recreational riding and showing in pleasure and equitation classes Moderate = ranch work, roping, cutting, jumping and hunting Intense = polo, endurance, racing, prolonged moderate work.

Table 1 shows how much digestible energy (DE) horses with these various workloads need. The unit for digestible energy is Mcal (Megacalories) and 1 Mcal is equal to 1000 kcal.

As you see, a horse or pony in intense work needs more than twice as much energy than a non-working horse. Or you can look at this the other way around, a non-ridden horse needs only half the calories that a hard-working horse does!

Table 1: Minimal digestible energy (DE) requirements for horses of 500 kg (1100lbs) and ponies of 360 kg (800lb.).

Adapted from the “Nutrient Requirements of Horses”, National Research Council, 1989. Included are only mature horses/ponies with different workloads. For growing horses and pregnant/lactating mares, please see the original publication.

It is important to be critical when assessing our horse’s actual amount of exercise. I have noticed that most amateur horse owners, myself included, tend to overestimate the workload of their horses. I believe my horse gets plenty of exercise because I ride 6 days a week. While this is certainly a big effort on my part (having to drive 40 min one way, braving hot or cold, wet or dry, on top of being tired from work), not all our rides can be regarded as moderate or even vigorous exercise for my horse. So rather than classifying my horse as being in moderate work, I have to admit that he belongs into the “light work” category!

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FEEDING HORSES - A Practical Approach - by Gabriele Meyer - page 3

Step #3: Know your forage Why is forage so important as the basis of all feeding? Horses have evolved to be “trickle feeders” and are meant to eat for 12-14 hours per day. Compared to humans, horses have a very different digestive system. They have a small stomach and a big fermentation chamber, the cecum, that takes up much space in the abdomen. Billions of bacteria and other microbes break down the horse’s forage and make it available for the horse to absorb.

Forage can be either pasture or any kind of hay and it contains everything a horse would need: Fibre for the hindgut, energy (measured in digestible energy DE, protein (measured crude protein CP), fat, vitamins, minerals, as well as sugars and starches. All of these should be in the forage in appropriate amounts, and therefore, it is important to offer hay or pasture of good quality.

Depending on where in the world you live, there might be different hay choices available. Here in California, people feed either straight grass hay, legume (alfalfa or clover) hay or a mix of both in various proportions. The nutrient content of hay depends on many factors, such as grass type, soil, climate, cutting (1st, 2nd, 3rd), maturity at harvest (early/late), as well as length and conditions during curing time.

On the left alfa hay On the right grass hay

It would be ideal to have the hay tested if at all possible. While we can determine some of its qualities, like green color, clean, not too dry, not mouldy, not dusty, etc., by just looking at it, this doesn’t tell us if the hay has all the nutrients the horse needs in a correct balance and sufficient amounts. Just as if we would be looking at a house from the outside.

We would be able to see if it looks nice and well built, but we cannot see how many people actually live there.

With that said, regular hay testing might not be feasible for the majority of horse owners, especially if their horses live in a barn that buys in smaller batches and from different growers or brokers. In this case, we can make some educated guesses by looking at average test results that are being published by laboratories that perform hay testing.

Let’s take California grass and alfalfa hays as a sample. There are three main nutrients that differentiate these two hay types: energy, protein, and calcium. Table 2 compares their respective levels for grass and alfalfa hay as tested by EquiAnalytical Services averaged over the last 14 years.

Table 2: Comparison of three main nutrients that differentiate grass hays from alfalfa hay: digestible energy, crude protein and calcium (source: Equi-Analytical Services)

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FEEDING HORSES - A Practical Approach - by Gabriele Meyer - page 4

Step #4 The math You might know the rule of thumb that the horse needs 1.5-2% of its body weight in forage. This is under the assumption that the hay is of average quality with an average DE value and protein content. As you see by the spread of the CP values in table 2, this assumption might not always be true and therefore there is always an element of trial and error involved in horse feeding unless the hay can be tested.

To calculate the daily minimum hay ration, you can take tables 1 and 2 as guidelines: Let’s assume a horse weighs 500kg (1100lb.) and is used mainly for trail riding and some arena work, I will call him Horse A. His workload is considered to be “light” according to the NRC classification, and according to table 1, he would need 22 Mcal digestible energy per day. If he is fed grass hay with an average energy content of 0.9 Mcal/lb. (see table 2), he should receive around 24 lb. of hay per day. If he is fed alfalfa hay instead, with an average of 1.1 Mcal/lb., he would need only 20 lb. If, however, the owner would feed that horse alfalfa hay in the same amount as she would feed grass hay, the horse would get 26 Mcal per day instead of 22 Mcal and most likely become quite overweight over time!

Another example is Horse B: He is of the same weight, but because he is a high-level eventer, he is in intense work. He would require 35 Mcal per day (table 1), and this horse would need to be fed a whopping amount of 39 lb. grass hay or 32 lb. alfalfa hay per day.

A hay ration needs to be weighed and not roughly estimated by taking a look. The volume-to-weight ratio of hay is deceiving. Some hays are packed tightly, others come loose already when opening the strings. Even at a boarding facility, one might be able to weigh out the hay ration for a day or two in advance and store it in big bags. This also has the advantage that the daily ration can be divided up and spread out over several smaller meals that can be given to the horse over the course of the day by staff members or a fellow boarder. At my barn, we have a buddy system in place which works quite reliably.

Photo: Important feed room tools: weight tape, fish scale and large bucket.

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FEEDING HORSES - A Practical Approach - by Gabriele Meyer - page 5

Step #5 Grains and pellets – read the labels!

Grains or pellets are concentrated feeds and are only needed – if the caloric intake of the horse cannot be covered by forage alone, – if it is known that there is a nutritional deficiency or imbalance in the forage that calls for some kind of supplementation, or – if a small amount of feed is needed to hide medications.

Let’s take Horse B again as an example. He would have to eat at least 39 lb. of grass hay to cover his caloric requirements. This is a lot of hay. If he eats about 2 lb. per hour, he would have finished his hay in about 20 hours. His chewing muscles would tire out and he would not finish his hay and thus not receive the needed amount of nutrients.

His owner therefore will substitute part of his hay with a grain or pellet that is formulated to have a higher calorie and nutrition density.

Conversely, horse A can eat his 20lb of hay without problems and he would be happily munching on it for many hours.

He would not need any additional concentrates, except if there were any known deficits in his hay. But if the owner chose to give him a couple of pounds of pelleted feed just for peace of mind, this horse will slowly and surely gain weight unless she also reduces the hay, which however would result in the horse having less chewing time and in this case, this would not be a good thing!

Traditionally, owners did add whole oats to the daily ration of working horses (ranch or carriage horses that worked for many hours a day). There are pros and cons for feeding oats. The energy density of oats is 1.5 Mcal/lb. and thus 50% higher than that of hay or alfalfa. This energy comes in the form of starch which is broken down to sugars by the gut bacteria. If a horse needs a lot of energy in a short amount of time – for example during a short break during a long day pulling a carriage – this would be a good thing. But it most certainly is a bad thing for today’s recreational horses and their energy requirements. Moreover, oats have only around 12% of crude protein (similar to grass hay) and are low in the essential amino acid lysine. Therefore, it is not an effective feed if a horse owner is looking to provide more protein for muscle recovery or building new muscles after exercise.

When it comes to pelleted feeds, the situation is very complex. There are pellets for weight gain, pellets for weight control, “safe” pellets, low carb pellets, high fat pellets, just to name a few options. Feed companies do a great job in making us believe that all our problems are being solved if we feed their product X or Y.

Photo: Grains, pellets and mixes - read the labels 35 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

FEEDING HORSES - A Practical Approach - by Gabriele Meyer - page 6

Have you ever tried to decipher the labels on human food packages to figure out if a certain food is a healthy choice for yourself and your family? Shopping for horse pellets is no different. In many countries, manufacturers are legally required to have certain information about their feeds printed on the bags. In the US, the information can be found on little paper tags that are attached at the bottom of the bags.

Besides the manufacturer's name, address and the purpose of the feed (“Feed for mature horses”), there are three important blocks of information: The first block is the “Guaranteed analysis”. This section contains information about protein, fat and fiber contents, as well as macro and micro minerals and vitamins. Not included are the values for sugars and starches, because listing those is currently not required by law, at least in California. Therefore, the manufacturers list them only if they believe that it is to their advantage, which is of course the case in feeds that contain little molasses. It is interesting and telling that the digestible energy content is also not required to be listed.

The second block is the list of ingredients, this is an even more important part to read and understand. The ingredients are listed in the order of how much of a particular ingredient is in the feed. The first ingredient is the one that constitutes the greatest proportion of the feed, and the last ingredient on the list is the one with the smallest proportion.

The ingredients tell us the sources of protein, fat and fiber that were used in making the feed. Here is where you also find what was not listed in the guaranteed analysis part, namely the sugars! Sugars show up as “molasses”, and depending on the position of the word molasses in the list, one can roughly estimate if the feed contains a lot of sugar (the molasses would be listed at position 4-6), or less, in which case it would be listed further back. (BTW, another indicator for molasses is color and consistency of the pellets. Dark brown pellets with a sticky feel indicate high molasses content.)

Positions 1 to 4-5 are the main ingredients. These can be alfalfa meal, beet pulp and a range of other ingredients, some of which are so-called by-products of milling processes: Wheat middlings, oat hulls, rice bran, or soybean hulls.

The list continues with other ingredients needed to manufacture a product with a specific formulation: calcium carbonate, sodium chloride, dicalcium phosphate, magnesium oxide, certain amino acids, trace minerals, vitamins, flavors, binders and preservatives.

The third part of a feed tag is the feeding directions, either given as a table with horse weight or type, or as a certain amount per 100lb. body weight, usually 1lb. pellet per 100lb. of body weight. Important here again is that the daily pellet ration is measured by weight, not volume!

Nutritionists and veterinarians point out that horses and ponies in light work likely will not need any concentrated feeds unless there are specific circumstances or nutritional deficits in the hay that need to be compensated for.

The downside of feeding concentrates to horses that do not really need them, or feeding too many pellets at a time, is the risk of creating problems such as weight gain, digestive imbalances, colic and laminitis.

For horses and ponies in moderate or intense work, some concentrates usually are required. Commercial pellets offer convenience by having vitamins and minerals incorporated for a balanced ration. If pelleted feeds are used, they should be selected to complement the forage. It is important to critically read the manufacturer’s label and compare the available products carefully. Choose the one that fits your horse’s situation and if possible find pellets that rely on fat and fibers to raise the energy content of the diet.

Resources Henneke Body Scoring System https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henneke_horse_body_condition_scoring_system Carter, R. A., R. J. Geor, W. Burton Staniar, T. A. Cubitt, and P. A. Harris (2009): Apparent Adiposity Assessed by Standardised Scoring Systems and Morphometric Measurements in Horses and Ponies.” The Veterinary Journal, Volume 179, Issue 2: 204–210. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/18440844/.

US National Research Council (1989) in: Nutrient requirements of horses. 6th edition 2007 Downloadable at: https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/search_results?q=nutrient+recommendations+horses Equi-Analytical Services: Dairy One – Feed Composition Library https://www.dairyoneservices.com/feedcomposition/

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FEEDING HORSES - A Practical Approach - by Gabriele Meyer - page 7

Conclusion Managing the body condition of horses is more than just throwing a flake or two of hay in their stalls! It can become a serious welfare issue if horses are not fed according to their needs. Our horses are living in stalls and paddocks, and even when on pasture, they are confined in a relatively small area. Because we prevent them from roaming free in search of their own feed, we owe it to them to make the best possible nutritional choices for them.

Over time, many changes are happening in a horse’s life, from changes of season to changes in feed quality, changes of workload and living conditions. Therefore, it is very important to continually evaluate our horse’s feeding program to maintain a healthy and capable equine partner. Regular assessment of the body condition, in combination with the use of a weight tape, a feed scale and some math, helps to fine-tune a horse’s diet.

With that said, restricting any equine’s feed or feeding time leads to discomfort, pain and stress. Because feed ration and workload are two sides of the same coin, it is preferable to increase the exercise rather than decrease the feed intake! If free feeding is not feasible and more exercise still does not yield the results desired, the duration of the horse’s chewing time should at least be stretched out to as long a time as possible. This can be achieved by several smaller portions throughout the day or by using so-called “slow feeders”. There are a variety of different slow-feeders available on the markets.

There is the theory that horses eventually self-regulate their hay consumption if fed long enough ad libitum (Getty, 2009). In many cases this is true, but ad libitum feeding might not be appropriate for glucose-sensitive horses and ponies (Kellon, 2020).

We as horse owners need to push for a change in the way we keep our horses. We need boarding facilities that have implemented modern strategies that keep the horses in groups and allow for social interactions and play, for freely moving around and thus for more exercise and less necessity to restrict their forage. Unfortunately, these track systems or paddock paradise types of facilities are still very rare to non-existent, at least here in the US. But if we put our money where our mouth is, we might get there one day!

Juliet m. Getty (2009) Feed your horse like a horse.

Juliet M. Getty Blog post: Free-Choice Forage Feeding: Beyond the Basics, https://gettyequinenutrition.com/pages/free-choiceforage-feeding-beyond-the-basics Juliet M. Getty (blog post): Restricting Forage is Incredibly Stressful - Choose a different approach for weight loss https://gettyequinenutrition.com/pages/restricting-forage-is-incredibly-stressful Eleanor Kellon Newsletter (9/13/2020): Free Choice Feeding Is NOT The Answer To Equine Obesity https://wp.me/p2WBdh-VH

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EquiMind Equimind, Concordia & 4D Equitation bring you

Visit our website to find out about our mission to improve equine welfare and relieve animal suffering by providing free-ofcharge education and support to horse owners in deprived areas.

We believe in a future where all horses are well cared for, and where their owners can ask for help when they need it.

www.communitiesforhorses.org

Fine-contact Competitions Online App Easy to video Easy to upload Eco-friendly Equine-friendly International Based on Science Compassion Empathy Rewards Correct training Lightness Harmony Partnership

www.equimind.co.uk www.equimind.de

38 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

SPORTS HORSE WELFARE

By Dr Jo Hockenhull

The welfare of horses involved in equestrian pursuits, particularly those competing in the higher levels, has long been scrutinised. It is common to see people having their say about what is wrong with competitive equestrian sport on social media, after all, nothing seems to get people’s juices flowing better than a snapshot of a competition horse.

The equestrian research community is increasingly considering this issue in their academic studies. Some of the resulting papers, such as “How Happy Are Equine Athletes?”, which was discussed by Sue Palmer in Issue 3, take a wider view of the potential welfare issues across the industry and the complexities of addressing these, while others focus on specific areas where change could make a tangible difference to the welfare of individual horses.

In this issue, I am taking a look at three papers that have been recently published in this area. While each paper originates from a different perspective, either taking a broad view of the issues or a focused view on a specific problem area, each gives plenty of food for thought and raises awareness of factors that may be relevant to our own horses.

AN HOLISTIC APPROACH TO REVIEWING THE WELFARE OF SPORTS HORSES In the first paper, Holmes and Brown (2022) take a holistic approach to reviewing the welfare of sports horses, considering all aspects of their lives, including breeding, veterinary treatment, housing, feeding and training. The authors use the term ‘sport horse’ as a catch-all for any horse, donkey or hybrid that is used for “competition, entertainment or athletic excellence” with humans – from the donkey derby to hunting and covering all sports in between. This paper is substantial in size and well researched and most excitingly, freely available to anyone interested in reading it, so I will give an outline here to whet your appetite but won’t dwell on the details as it would be hard to do them justice here.

The paper focuses on the UK and opens with an overview of the historical use of horses for sport, from the Bronze Age onwards and then describes the size and popularity of the main equestrian sports today. The authors move on to equine welfare, exploring how welfare is defined and measured – a complex area to squeeze into a couple of sections in a review paper – but they do a good job of getting the key points across, particularly how subjective it is. Our own personal definition of welfare (whether we put greater emphasis on physical health, or the ability to perform natural behaviour) will strongly influence what we each consider positive and negative welfare in equines (and other species, including humans).

While the scientific evidence base regarding equine welfare continues to grow, there is still much we don’t know and often decisions have to be made about whether something should be done or not done without having sufficient evidence. In these instances, the precautionary principle is often advocated, whereby if a risk of causing harm is suspected, protective actions should be taken even in the absence of scientific proof.

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SPORTS HORSE WELFARE - By Dr Jo Hockenhull - page 2

This comprehensive review draws on over 200 published sources to assess welfare risks in equestrian sport across four key timeframes or life stages – those that occur throughout the lifetime of a sports horse (housing, feeding, veterinary intervention, hoof management, and handling and training); those that arise prior to participation in equestrian sports (breeding, broodmares, stallions, foals/ offspring); those risks that occur during participation in equestrian sports (equipment used on the horse, injuries and death, and transportation); and lastly those risks following participation in equestrian sports (considering what the options are for horses leaving

their competitive career). The last section of the paper considers how equine welfare is governed in practice (formally and informally), the role of ethics, attitudes and values, various stakeholders, anthropomorphism and the horsehuman relationship.

The last part of this section highlights the role that improved scientific communication has to play in welfare improvement. It is great to see that an increasing proportion of scientific research is published in a way that makes it freely available to anybody who wants to read it, rather than festering in a university library in a printed academic journal! But there

is so much more we can do! The Concordia Equestrian Magazine provides another, arguably more accessible platform to disseminate equine welfare research. I think scientific communication has come a long way in the last decade or so, but as ever there is still plenty of room for improvement. The authors conclude the paper with a framework for how change for equine welfare improvement can be facilitated going forwards, including incorporating the precautionary principle to protect our horses.

The two additional papers I would like to draw your attention to are also open access, so freely available, and they are focused on very specific issues.

THE ORAL DIMENSIONS OF MOUTHS AND THE SIZE OF BIT BEING USED Antilla et al (2022) investigated the oral dimensions of the mouths of 554 horses and ponies and the size of the bit being used with them. The four dimensions measured were the width of the mouth, the distance between the upper and lower jaw, the width of the lower jaw and the thickness of the tongue. Oral dimensions were associated with sex and breed, with geldings having larger oral dimensions than mares, ponies having the smallest oral dimensions and native Finnhorses having the largest. Interestingly, the authors found an association between mouth width and the distance between the upper and lower jaw, and age. Owners commonly used a bit that was too long, too short or too thick for their horse’s mouth. The authors discuss how different sizes and types of bit can impact the horse's mouth. Based on these findings, it is recommended that bit fit is regularly assessed throughout the horse’s life as the horse ages and the soft tissues of the mouth change.

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SPORTS HORSE WELFARE - By Dr Jo Hockenhull - page 3

IMPACT OF HOUSING ON STALLION SOCIAL BEHAVIOUR Gmel et al (2022) focused on the impact of housing on stallion social behaviour during carriage driving when they are driven in pairs. Stallions are conventionally housed alone in individual stables. Carriage driving requires horses to work in close proximity to each other, and interactions between horses are strongly discouraged for safety reasons.

The authors compared the behaviour of the stallions when housed in conventional boxes and when housed in ‘social boxes’ where full vertical bars between stables allowed social interaction between horses. The bars were spaced 30cm apart enabling horses to get their head and neck through them and engage in tactile contact. While the conventional boxes did have vertical bars incorporated in the upper part of the stable wall, these were placed 5cm apart which limited tactile contact between them. Ten horses were involved in the study – 8 ‘test’ stallions exposed to the two housing conditions, and two ‘neutral’ stallions who had never lived in a social box and were housed in conventional stables throughout the study duration.

Behaviour during driving was observed the week prior to entering the social box when they were conventionally stabled, in the fourth week of being housed in the social box, and then again 8 weeks after they had returned to the conventional stable. Each driven pair acted as their own control. The authors found that housing the stallions in social boxes did not increase their social behaviours during driving and in fact seemed to reduce them. The authors acknowledge that their findings could have been influenced by confounding factors, such as habituation to the stallion they were driven with, that were not measured or controlled in this study. As so often happens, this study raises more questions than it answers, for example, how would social behaviour be affected if the driven pair were both housed in social boxes or neighbouring each other? However, it also shows how the social life we allow our horses can impact their behaviour during their work and training, a fact that is often overlooked.

Together, these three papers highlight how different aspects of our ridden/sports horses’ lives can influence their welfare. Welfare is complex and multifaceted. Factors that can affect welfare are interwoven across the horse’s lived experience. The impact that we have on equine welfare through our management and equipment choices is increasingly being recognised and the evidence base is growing. But while this process continues, we need to protect our horses using the precautionary principle to guide us. Lack of evidence should not give the green light to harmful practices.

Anttila M, Raekallio M and Valros A (2022) Oral Dimensions Related to Bit Size in Adult Horses and Ponies. Frontiers in Veterinary Sciences 9:879048. doi: 10.3389/fvets.2022.879048 (OPEN ACCESS) Gmel AI, Zollinger A, Wyss C, Bachmann I, Briefer Freymond S (2022) Social Box: Influence of a New Housing System on the Social Interactions of Stallions When Driven in Pairs. Animals 12: 1077. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12091077 (OPEN ACCESS) Holmes TQ & Brown AF (2022) Champing at the Bit for Improvements: A Review of Equine Welfare in Equestrian Sports in the United Kingdom. Animals 12: 1186. https://doi.org/10.3390/ani12091186 (OPEN ACCESS)

"The Concordia Equestrian Magazine provides another, arguably more accessible platform to disseminate equine welfare research" 41 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

The conference your horse wants you to attend

The Best Horse Practices Summit director Maddy Butcher and the Board of Directors are pleased and excited to announce the presenters for arena and academic offerings for October 21-23, 2022, at Spy Coast Farm in Lexington, Kentucky.

In addition to the weekend’s academic and arena presentations, this year, the Summit has added three half-day Friday electives. They are Stockmanship, Saddle Fit, and Women’s Leadership and Mindfulness Tools.

Here are our 2022 Summit presenters!

Dr. Doug Thal. Is an accomplished veterinarian and owner of Thal Equine in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Thal is the developer of the Horse Side Vet Guide, an encyclopedic website and application for all things medical. He will discuss topics around the clientvet-horse relationship.

Dr. Sheree King PhD - teacher, author, scientist, researcher – is Professor Emeritus and founder of the Equine Science program at Southern Illinois University. Dr. King is a Distinguished Service & Fellow with the Equine Science Society, past President of the Horsemen’s Council of Illinois and exofficio Board member of the Best Horse Practices Summit. Providing continued education for horse lovers and working for equine welfare is her lifelong passion. She will speak on equine digestion.

Jim Masterson offers a unique method of equine bodywork for equine massage therapists and horse owners in which one recognizes and follows the responses of the horse to touch to release tension in key junctions of the body that most affect performance. He created the Masterson Method and has certified instructors worldwide.

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Nahshon Cook will present in the arena. He is a classically-trained dressage trainer from Denver who has coached, competed, and trained internationally in jumping and dressage. His current training interests lie in rehabilitating horses with major mental, physical, and emotional training-related trauma. He is the author of Being with Horses.

Patrick King will offer a hybrid presentation, blending academics with arena and likely in collaboration with another clinician. King is an accomplished horseman of Western and dressage disciplines and has studied with Ray Hunt, Mark Russell, and scores of others. He has a large following and travels the world to offer clinics and present at expos.

Jec Ballou helps horses and riders from multiple disciplines to become more fit and better performers with straightforward tools. Ballou is the author of several books and works tirelessly as an advocate for understanding proper biomechanical movement and ease. A proponent of interdisciplinary study, she serves as an advisor to the Western Dressage Association of America. She also develops the Best Horse Practices podcast, which is produced by Maddy Butcher.

Learn more about the Summit registration, its electives, costs, and other information here.

Daniel Dauphin is a Louisiana horseman with a steady client base and growing podcast. He will present an interactive talk on the horse’s mouth, anatomy, and bits. Dauphin has done exhaustive research and produced a multi-disc, multi-hour video on bit information/horse mouth anatomy.

Josh Nichol is a Canadian horseman with strong Western and dressage backgrounds. He focuses on the horse-human relationship and will present in the arena.

Join Us!

October 21-23, 2022 Spy Coast Farm in Lexington, Kentucky 43 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT FOR HUMANS

By Kate Fletcher

O D T ER KIN TH BE E ANO ON

Being criticised is akin, for a human, to being punished, and punishing a human will not result in behavioural change There seems to be a worrying trend in parts of the equine training world.

Some of those who staunchly promote the use of positive reinforcement methods for horses don’t seem capable of using this approach towards other humans. It can reach the stage where they completely alienate other horse owners and make them scared to share their experiences for fear of criticism.

A couple of years ago, after a celebrity’s tragic suicide, the hashtag #bekind was trending. Why is this so rapidly forgotten? Why do we pick and choose to whom we show compassion?

Those who expound on the virtues of positive reinforcement for horses are not wrong. All evidence suggests that it is the most effective way of creating a calm and happy horse. It successfully creates new neural pathways in the brain to encourage active learning and helps to build a strong human-animal relationship. However, some of those who practice positive reinforcement are doing themselves and their horses an injustice when it comes to encouraging aligned thinking with this method of training.

We are not just responsible for our actions, we are also responsible for our reactions. We might not be able to choose how we innately feel in response to someone’s actions, but we can choose how to respond to other people’s behaviour.

One thing that Covid19 has taught us is how humans respond to confinement and isolation – they become anxious, depressed, develop strange coping mechanisms, act like coiled springs, become short-tempered… all reactions that horses can often develop in the same situation. We know, from vast amounts of scientific evidence, that horses will always choose space, free movement and company of their own kind over any other option. So if horses also prefer positive reinforcement, learn better through that method and remember humans that have treated them kindly¹, why should humans be any different?

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POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT FOR HUMANS - PAGE 2 Being criticised is akin, for a human, to being punished, and punishing a human will not result in behavioural change. Human behaviour change models clearly outline that people must be aware of a problem before they contemplate change² and this contemplation must arise in their own time, as a result of their own thinking, albeit carefully and considerately sculpted by a change agent, not because they have had people tell them “you’re an idiot, you’re doing it wrong.” That kind of feedback just makes them feel alienated and defensive, which will engage their fight or flight systems and, just like horses, they can’t learn if they’re highly stressed.

The saying ‘know better, do better’ unfortunately isn’t commonly acted upon because knowledge alone is not always enough. We need to lead by example and be the change we wish to see by showing not telling.

Kindness to people can create kindness to animals. Help to guide people along the path of change to encourage them to realise that becoming open to new ideas and learning new things can aid them in building a better relationship with their horses.

Positive reinforcement encourages positive change. Criticism blocks change. Let’s try and create a supportive, friendly community of equestrians where every small, incremental step towards positive change is embraced and encouraged rather than dismissed as not being enough because what really matters is that we are all trying.

Kate Fletcher

References: ¹Sankey et al., (2010). Positive interactions lead to lasting positive memories in horses, Equus caballus. DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.anbehav.2009.12.037 ²DiClemente, C. C., & Prochaska, J. O. (1998).

Toward a comprehensive, transtheoretical model of change: Stages of change and addictive behaviors. In W. R. Miller & N. Heather (Eds.), Applied clinical psychology. Treating addictive behaviors (p. 3–24). Plenum Press. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-1934-2_1

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Representing and providing a network for equestrians, owners, vets, equine professionals and trainers who believe in fairness, equality and choice of bridle for Bitless, Bitted (Part-time, thinking about it, transitioning) & Bridleless for all horses around the world.

www.worldbitlessassociation.org

Bitted or bit-less, Concordia respects the rights of equestrians, who share Our Principles, to choose what they feel is best for each individual equine.

Concordia encourages and supports scientific research and the most compassionate practices.

46 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

WORKING TOGETHER CONCORDIA is building a community of like-minded equestrians. Anyone - no matter what their background who shares our principles (see page 2) can call themselves a Concordian. No way will we all share exactly the same beliefs, but we have principles in common, and together we can be a powerful voice, a positive influence for all equines.

Each of us can do our bit - but together we can make the world a much better place to be a horse.

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Share this FREE MAGAZINE. Lead by example.

Work by and share 'Our Principles'.

Share campaigns for equine welfare.

Raise awareness of both good and bad practices.

Be compassionate.

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COPYRIGHT All content of this magazine is copyright. Please do not use the whole or part of any article without permission from the author. Photos are the copyright of Canva unless credited individually.

CONCORDIA MAGAZINE is published online qu, to inform, educate and entertain the Thoughtful Equestrian Community.

The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of Concordia Equestrians. The Editor and publishing team accept no responsibility for any supposed defects in the goods, services and practices represented or advertised in this magazine. The Editor reserves the right to edit contributions.

SUBSCRIPTIONS are free. The Concordia Magazine is automatically emailed on the date of publication to all Concordia Friends and Professionals. Registration is free and the current and archived Concordia Magazines can also be accessed from the Concordia-Website: www.concordiaequestrians.org WEBSITE The Concordia Equestrians website www.concordiaequestrians.org is where the Concordia Magazine and all archived issues can be freely downloaded.

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47 CONCORDIA MAGAZINE JULY/AUG/SEPT 2022

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