Welfare

Horse welfare is at the heart of the mission of Maarsbergen Horse Trials. Maarsbergen Horse Trials is not the only equestrian organisation focusing on safety and horse welfare: nationally and internationally there is growing attention for the welfare and safety of horses at equestrian competitions. On the one hand this is intrinsically driven, as every horse lover and rider wants the best for horses. On the other hand media attention for incidents and excesses is growing. Abuses influence public opinion and lead to criticism of equestrian sport.

Maarsbergen Horse Trials takes responsibility for encouraging a change of culture, ‘embracing horse welfare as a core value’, and so making a positive contribution to the future of equestrian sport. It is important to embrace horse welfare not just as a precondition but as a core value of the sport. Although various organisations have welfare guidelines, competition organisers lack concrete tools to implement them. Welfare guidelines are also mostly aimed at riders and their own horses, whereas Maarsbergen Horse Trials is a competition without horses of its own. This raises questions about the position of Maarsbergen Horse Trials within the equestrian sector. How can the organisation not only comply with existing rules, but also help promote horse welfare at its competition? What can it facilitate so that the welfare guidelines for riders and their horses are also safeguarded at an external venue?

From 1 September 2024 to 31 January 2025 we carried out research into horse welfare at Maarsbergen Horse Trials. The resulting report (in Dutch) can be downloaded below.

We are currently looking further into how we can integrate the recommendations from this report at Maarsbergen Horse Trials.