world horse welfare british equine vetinary association cieh abrs bhs rspca
Are you:
Livery Yard Owner / Manager
Livery Yard Client
Veterinary Surgeon
Farrier
Saddler
Riding Teacher
Member of the General Public
1. Location of the livery yard (minimum entry is the county):
2. Does the person / persons in charge hold formal equine qualifications?
Yes
No
Don't know
3. Is the yard approved (eg BHS, BHA (Jockey Club), ABRS, local authority)?
Yes
No
Don't know
4. Is this yard (please tick all that apply):
Grass livery (field and water supply)
DIY
Working livery
Part livery (service provided by yard that requires input from the owner)
Full livery (service provided by yard that does not require input from the owner)
Training / competition yard
Dealers yard
Rescue and / or retirement
5. What is the maximum number of horses that the premises can accommodate?
Fewer than 5
5-9
10-19
20-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
60-69
70+
6. How many horses are currently located at the premises:
Fewer than 5
5-9
10-19
20-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
60-69
70+
7. About the premises (please tick all that apply):
Buildings are of sound construction
Roofs are in good repair and weatherproof, and no part of the premises floods after rain
There are no projections in the stables likely to cause injury
Stable floors are non slip and provide good drainage away from the horse
Stable doors are free from projections and can (easily) be secured to prevent escape
Stable doors slide sideways or open outwardly and are a minimum of 4ft wide
All horses have adequate head height in the stable (2-3 feet) and roofs are high enough to provide adequate ventilation
All stables have artificial lights that allow easy inspection of the horse at all times
All electrical installations are out of reach of horses and / or have suitable covers
All fixtures and fittings for feeding and watering are safely secured
Non-toxic products are used on all painted or treated surfaces
All floor and wall surfaces are concrete or another material capable of being easily cleaned and disinfected
All boxes are cleaned between a horse leaving and a new horse arriving
Communal areas are suitable for farriers or vets to carry out necessary work at any time of day or night in safety
Riding areas are well drained and the surfaces regularly maintained
Passageways and yards are clean and tidy and rubbish is removed regularly
8. Are the premises likely to suffer from flooding?
Yes
No
Don't know
9. Are turn out areas available?
Yes
No
Don't know
10. Is a reasonable amount of grazing available for the majority of the year?
Yes
No
Don't know
11. Is there a fresh water supply in grazing / turn out areas?
Yes
No
Don't know
12. Does the livery yard allow restricted or strip grazing?
Yes
No
Don't know
13. Are horses turned out individually or in groups?
Individually
Pairs
Small groups (up to 4 horses)
Herds
Any of above depending on needs of the individual horse
14. Are horses free to exhibit normal behaviour (eg: adequate exercise; freedom to live in social groups if appropriate to that horse / penned near to other equine; regular access to human company etc)?
Yes
No
Don't know
15. Are droppings removed from grazing / turn out areas regularly?
Yes
No
Harrowing Only
Don't know
16. What of the following are in place (please tick all that apply):
Egg counts
Routine worming
Mixed species grazing
Resting fields
Don't know
17. Are worming programmes run by:
Yard owner / manager
Horse owner
Don't know
18. Is shelter available in all grazing areas (either natural eg. trees or manmade eg. field shelters)?
Yes
No
Don't know
19. Are there any physical dangers in the field? (please tick all that apply):
Unfenced wells, quarries, poorly constructed / derelict or potentially dangerous buildings
Boggy areas or unfenced ponds, rivers , streams, lakes, canals or ditches
Unguarded material, such as old vehicles, caravans, implements, farm machinery etc
Unguarded rabbit warrens or badger setts etc
Used batteries
No
Don't know
20. About the fencing: (please tick all that apply):
Fences and gates are free from projections likely to cause injury
Gateways are maintained to control mud and allow easy access
Horses are not in danger of having contact with barbed wire
21. Poisonous plants: (please tick all that apply):
There is a ragwort problem
There are other poisonous plants and trees (eg yew, laburnum etc) that are accessible to horses
There are no problems
22. Are measures put in place to control poisonous plants?
Yes
No
Don't know
23. Is there one vet / veterinary practice responsible for devising a health and welfare programme (eg. worming, vaccination protocol, foot-care etc) for the whole premises?
Yes
No
Don't know
24. Is an emergency veterinary contact number readily available?
Yes
No
Don't know
25. Are horse owners contact details readily available?
Yes
No
Don't know
26. Is there a system for delegation of authority in horse owner's absence (e.g. for authorising emergency veterinary treatment)?
Yes
No
Don't know
27. Do all of the horses on the premises receive dental care?
Yes
No
Don't know
28. Is the person administering the dental care qualified in one of the following areas:
Veterinary Surgeon
Equine dental technician
Don't know
29. Are there isolation facilities available on the premises (i.e. box and grazing completely separate from other equine / grazing animals)?
Yes
No
Don't know
30. Is there any routine procedure to exclude horses that may be showing symptoms of disease (e.g. Strangles)?
Yes
No
Don't know
31. Are records kept relating to the movement of resident horses joining or leaving the yard?
Yes
No
Don't know
32. Is there a routine vaccination programme at the premises?
Yes
No
Don't know
33. Is it compulsory for all horse owners to present a valid passport before their horse is permitted to stay on the premises?
Yes
No
Don't know
34. Are the passports of each horse kept:
Onsite
Offsite (by the horse owner)
Offsite (held by a third party)
Don't know
35. Have any of these serious welfare problems been identified at the premises within the last 12 months (please tick all that apply):
Abandonment
Inadequate food or water
Gross obesity
Poor foot management
Failure to deal with a dental problem
Injury
Physical abuse e.g. beating, overriding
Failure to call veterinary surgeon to treat serious injury, disease or condition
There were none
Other
Please give a brief overview
36. Are you aware of any welfare problems at these premises being reported to the local authority, police or a welfare organisation?
Yes
No
Don't know
37. Are you aware of the Animal Welfare Act (England and Wales) or Animal Health & Welfare (Scotland) Act?
Yes
No
Don't know
38. Are regular fire risk assessments carried out on the premises?
Yes
No
Don't know


The Questions below are optional

Your Name:
Your address:
Your postcode:
Your telephone number:
Your e-mail:
Name of the yard:
Postcode of the yard:
Please provide any additional comments here:
Are you happy to be contacted by World Horse Welfare in future?
Yes
No

Reporting a Welfare Concern

If you are concerned about the welfare of any horse in the UK it is important that you contact the free phone World Horse Welfare Hotline on 08000 480180. All calls are confidential and we have a team of Field Officers throughout the UK who investigate welfare concerns reported to us through this number.

World Horse Welfare Field Officers achieve great improvements in many situations simply by offering advice. However, in more serious cases horses may be removed on welfare grounds under the Animal Welfare Act (England and Wales) or Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act.

World Horse Welfare will not share personal contact details. However, anonymous questionnaire answers will be shared amongst a number of organisations for analysis.