Hi All,
Welcome to topic 7 for 624EHS - Contemporary Issues in Equine Science.
This topic is all about the public feeding horses and the issues associated with it. You are required to contribute to this blog as part of your CW3 assessment. All students have from now until 05:00 pm on Friday 27th of May 2022 to contribute to this blog, to debate the issues surrounding the public feeding horses without permission. Ensure you can also evidence your opinions and remember that you are also required to submit a reference list (word document emailed to module leader) by 05:00 pm on Friday 27th of May 2022. You will be graded on the quality and quantity of both your blog contributions and your reference list. Remember, the point of this is to debate the issues, so you should be replying to each other's posts. I will be keeping an eye on the blog, but if you have any issues, you should email me. Please remember to register your name with your comments so that I know who has contributed with which comment.
Rosa
Public feeding of horses is an issue within the equine industry which can cause grievances for both equine stakeholders and members of the public. The recent pandemic has perhaps highlighted the issue of the general public feeding horses due to people walking and expressing increased activity within the countryside. This increase has led to conflicts between equine owners and the public regarding the ethics surrounding feeding horses (Nellist, 2021)
ReplyDeleteIn March 2020 the Uk government implemented a national lockdown in an attempt to limit the spread of COVID - 19. This lockdown had both positive and negative impacts on the environment and human behaviour. Hockenhull et al., (2021) conducted an online survey to determine impacts the lockdown had on exercise and determine the role of wild animals and domestic animals. This was completed by 308 respondents, indicating that there was an increase in frequency respondents went on walks during lockdown, and engaging with the environment was an important factor for 81% of respondents. A small proportion of respondents reported physically interacting with the animals (i.e. feeding them) which could implicate the animal’s welfare. It is important to consider that this an online survey which means the validity and reliability of respondents should be scrutinised as perhaps responses could be mitigated.
Jasmine Pook
Kaya: Jaz is correct and evidence shows that due to the covid pandemic and consequential nationwide lockdowns, there was much more inclination of the general public to venture out into the countryside. Many having previously spent little time in the countryside, thus lacked a general understanding of the country code, which clearly states “Do not feed livestock, horses or wild animals as it can cause them harm” (GOV.UK, 2022). As Jaz has explained, this increased country traffic saw a huge spike in horses becoming injured, seriously ill and even dying due not only to public feeding, but walkers leaving closed gates open and littering (BHS, 2020).
DeleteIn an attempt to resolve the issues surrounding the effects on horses, the British Horse Society (BHS) initiated the campaign #BeHorseAware in June 2020, during the covid pandemic and during a year which experienced some of the sunniest and hottest UK summer weather in recent record (Met Office, 2022). The UKs 2020 social and weather climate combination, only increased the enticement of the countryside, much to the dismay of rural populations.
The #BeHorseAware campaign dispersed posters and leaflets throughout popular countryside destinations to make the seemingly oblivious general public aware of the issues facing land and livestock owners, such as the dangers of feeding horses, to both themselves and the animals. Additionally, the BHS created free downloadable posters for horse owners to put up around their fences so that the public will stop feeding grass cuttings and other foods.
Kaya: However, it could be argued that this campaign had much room for improvement. For example, the terminology used in many of the available posters was seemingly too passive and verbose. It is likely that more concise and straightforward wording would have more effect.
DeleteCampaigns such as the #BeHorseAware can be compared to the issue facing shepherds and sheep farmers alike, the rise in country walkers also saw a huge increase in dog attacks, which was very worrisome as the first two lockdown covered lambing season. Hundreds of sheep and lambs alike were needlessly attacked and killed by thoughtless dog walkers (Riches, 2021). This issue was combated by very bright, verging on aggressive looking posters splattered all over fences and public walkways. Many of these warnings contained graphic pictures of the results dogs could have on sheep. These signs and posters in combination with a huge social media movement in aid of sheep worrying did appear to see a drop in attacks and increase in public support for farmers and awareness of the importance of dogs wearing leads, especially during lambing season (Riches, 2021). Perhaps similar imagery and visualisation on the effects of public feeding could have on horses may be more appropriate.
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DeleteTo elaborate further on Kaya's discussion of "behorseaware" Foods such as meat, cruciferous vegetables (kale, cabbage, broccoli and sprouts); Chocolate; garden clippings and large amounts of fruit can be incredibly detrimental to the health of the horse. However, feeding horses these can be incredibly appealing to the general public which is where conflict can occur, however lack of public knowledge of the dangers of feeding horses could potentially lead to the increase in horse deaths. Perhaps, greater campaigning, legislation or laws could be implemented to prevent public feeding, increased sanctions/ fines could limit this issue. The British Horse Society (BHS) and the university of Bristol created the “#behorseaware” campaign which aims to highlight the dangers of interacting with horses without owner permission. Due to the recent lockdown, there has been an increase in the public spending time outside, however, this increase has also led to a greater incidence of illness / death in horses as a result of being fed unsuitable food (BHS, 2021). The BHS aims to increase awareness of this issue by promoting and creating signs which depict the consequences of feeding unknown horses. Dawwas and Dyson, (2021) investigated the changes with green spaces and human behaviour, suggesting that there was increased traffic in green spaces, indicating that at least 35 horses died due to being fed incorrect feed. Jazz Pook
DeleteAdding to Jaz'z point, another food source that is commonly misconstrued as horse safe are vegetable offcuts and peelings.
DeleteWith the modern mindset being much more aware of the waste we produce and being made more conscious about how we affect the environment around us, people are much less hesitant to simply throw food away. This can be evidenced by the soaring of compost product sales during the pandemic, and according to evengreener.com, composting sales surged from 50,000 in 2019 to 75,000 in 2020 (Stafford, 2021).
According to Robertson et al 2019 this is likely due to a combination of modern day pressure to be as eco-friendly as possible, in addition to the pandemic making most people spend much more time at home. When you combine this pattern of thinking with people's desire to feed their local horses, it makes sense that waste food such as vegetable peelings ect are given. People think they are doing a kindness to the environment and their local horses. However, many vegetable offcuts may appear safe, such as potato peelings but what many members of the public do not realise is that all parts of the potato plant are potentially poisonous to horses. Additionally, the leaves and skins of potato “tubers” (the edible part) may turn toxic when exposed to too much light during the growth period (Ryan, 2019).
Furthermore, it should be noted that whilst the pressures of being eco-friendly has not subsided, nor has our waste production decreased, Shelton et als 2022 more recent studies findings highlight the potential health hazards composting poses to individuals with predisposing factors to A. fumigatus lung infections. Shelton et al 2022 found that 14% of A. fumigatus isolates in garden soils were resistant to an agricultural triazole, which confers cross-resistance to medical triazoles used to treat A. fumigatus lung infections and concluded that composting may be a potential health hazard to immunocompetent individuals who could be exposed to sufficiently high numbers of spores to develop infection.
DeleteShelton et al 2022 highlighted the need for compost bags to carry additional health warnings regarding inhalation of A. fumigatus spores, and whether individuals should be advised to wear facemasks while handling compost, or whether commercial producers should be responsible for sterilizing compost before shipping. Shelton et al 2022 claimed that their paper did increase public awareness of the hazards posed by composting.
However I wonder they considered the consequences of thier findings, instead worrying people into finding other methods of disposing of their waste in what may appear to still be eco-friendly but far from their homes to reduce risks to themselves, such as dumping their food and gardening waste into livestock fields, causing catastrophic effects on the animal populations.
It should be also noted that the soil samples Shelton et al 2022 studied, were collected as part of a citizen science project undertaken in June 2019. 246 UK donated a total of 509 soil samples from different locations in their gardens. It was up to participants to indicate via questionnaire where samples were collected from (border, pot, planter, compost heap, bag of manure, or bag of compost). What may have been more accurate is if researchers had collected the samples themselves. There have likely been mix-ups and mistakes made on questionnaires completed by members of the public who clearly supplied more than one sample of soil each, and have likely not conducted scientific research before. Most samples were also taken from residential gardens, so this study does not apply to horticulture or more rural areas.
In the Uk there are free roaming ponies, and these tend to be located in areas such as Dartmoor, Exmoor, Wales, New forest and the Highlands, amongst others. Harley et al., (2021) investigated the feasibility, reliability and repeatability of welfare indicators in free roaming horses within the Uk. The results indicated that often local members of the public expressed concern with welfare of the horses in regards to food scarcity in some cases providing the horses with food themselves, this may appear to be beneficial and helpful for the horses but can actually be detrimental to the welfare of the animal. Jasmine Pook
ReplyDeleteHorses are pseudo ruminants which means that horses require a large amount of fibre (i.e haylage or hay) or concentrates/ grains. Horses do not have a rumen but do possess an omasum, abomasum and reticulum, the caecum contains microorganisms needed for digestion of the fibre and when implementing feed changes it is important to factor a suitable increase in the new feed over time some new microorganisms can be developed to digest the feed (Castellero et al., 2021). Kauter et al., (2019) conducted a literature review to determine the effectiveness of the horse's microbiome, concluding that while it is a new area of research , it is progressing rapidly and future research needs to determine how changes in the microbiome could lead to potential diseases. However, this paper was a literature review so it is important to consider that there could potentially be bias. Jazz Pook
DeleteJaz’s initial point here is an interesting one, as it poses the question of good actions reaping unintended dyer consequences. There are those who feed horses due to sympathy and concern, especially wild free roaming ponies of the moors and dales. This issue appears to occur more often in late winter, when the wild horses have suffered a loss of vegetation over the colder months. What the public often don't consider is that this is a natural, annual occurrence from which these ponies are adapted to, as fresh spring grass is just around the corner. This phenomenon is less influenced by the covid lockdown. However, it is no less damaging.
DeleteAlthough some of the older perhaps sicker ponies and horses may not make it through these cold winter months, that is nature's way and feeding these individuals is actually detrimental to the overall population, by keeping weaker specimens in the fight for survival thus reduces the amount of food available and increases infection risks to the stronger healthier specimens which are far more beneficial to keep in the gene pool. Larska and Krzysiak 2019 highlighted these risks in the endangered wild European Bison herds. Larska and Krzysiak 2019 identified weaker specimens as potential epizootic threats to the overall herd; this was counteracted by gathering the herds during winter and culling weaker members to ensure remaining members survived.
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DeleteAdditionally, having any form of wild creature dependent on human intervention is damaging, it reduces their natural inclination and ability to survive on their own. Moreover it can create a trust or even bond with humans which may not be reciprocated with the next person that crosses that animal's path, this is when aggression is seen between humans and wild horses, which can lead to paranoia, hysteria and even culls at best or worst the horses in the same position they were in before but without the handouts they had become accustomed too.
DeleteIncreasing interactions between humans and wildlife are not isolated to England's wild ponies. The Bale Mountains National Park in Southwest Ethiopia (Mekonen, 2020) and the National Preserve of Florida (NPA.gov, 2022), which also houses some wild equids, has reportedly seen a huge increase in wild animal and human interaction since the COVID19 endemic. Mekonen, 2020 agrees that the interactions seem to be connected by animals receiving food as a reward for their willingness to come close to people. The NPA, 2020 note that the issue with people feeding wildlife, not disposing of litter, leaving food unattended at campgrounds and leaving food scraps behind is that once animals associate food reward with humans, they lose their innate fear of us (NPA.gov, 2022). This change in behaviour may lead to property damage and human injury . For the animals involved it may mean negative health effects of overpopulation resulting from unnatural food sources, dependence on a seasonably unreliable food source, and greater susceptibility to predators and vehicle collisions. They have unfortunately had to deal with poisoned animals who have chewed their way into packs and coolers and injured animals following attempts to enter damaged tents and buildings thinking these areas are sources of food. Finally, animals are often injured or killed following vehicles at roads and parking areas. They are also easier for predators to catch in these open areas (Mekonen, 2020) .
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DeleteIt should be added that Mekonen, 2020 paper was extemly thorough by covering multiple means of collection and dsitribution; household questionnaires, focus group discussion, interviews, field observations and secondary sources. For this reason, thier findings out to be heavily considered when debating the effects of humans on wild animals. The main points of advise where:
Delete1. Palatable and nutritive crops should not be grown near the park edge.
2. The concerning bodies should improve efforts to increase awareness to the local people about the importance of wildlife conservation.
3. The park authority should provide fence or other method that used to protect crops, campsites and roadsides to protect both people and livestock from threat.
4. Human settlements should be kept top a minimun around the areas of high denisties of wildlife, stakeholder should deter expansion of farmland and cattle grazing in and around National Parks.
5. Finally, Mekonen, 2020 called for further investigation to identify and focus groups to detemine best methods of keeping humans and animals cohabbiting healthily.
All the above points can be translated from teh Etheopian landscaoe to teh british, especially in and around the moores and dales where most wild poneis roam.
For example, a complication that could arise from the public feeding horses is Esophageal disorders. Bezdekova et al., (2018) investigated the prevalence of esophageal disorders and determined that it was significantly higher in groups of horses up to 4 years of age in comparison to other age groups. The most common form of esophageal disease was a simple obstruction 22/39 cases (i.e something trapped in the oesophagus) and the complications associated with this was oesophagitis (16/39) and aspiration pneumonia (11/39). Choke can be characterised as the horse standing in a tense position with the neck stretched out and appears to be “gagging” as the horse attempts to swallow. Furthermore, there could be some food in nasal discharge, the horse may show signs of colic such as kicking and sweating (Chapman, 2019). jazz Pook
ReplyDeleteJaz highlights another severe danger of knowledgeable feeding of horses; choke (Bezdekova and Janalik 2018). There are members of the public who are oblivious to equine care, but these are not the only ones guilty of feeding horses without permission. Some of these public feeders do have a general idea of what a horse's diet consists of and make the lethal mistake of leaving food that is seemingly inline with their natural diet, the most common choice being grass cuttings. However, there are numerous issues with feeding horses grass cuttings.
DeleteFirstly, the majority of horses presented with a pile of grass cuttings will naturally gorge themselves. Not only are cuttings obviously chopped up smaller than whole blades of grass which a horse would have in a mouthful of taken from the roots. This reduced the animasl need to chew, instead swallowing huge mouthfuls whole. Chewing initiates the production of saliva, but as the horse does not have to chew, clippings are swallowed without being mixed with saliva. This increases the chances of choking as Jaz has said, but more than this it can cause further issues down the digestive tract. (Bezdekova and Janalik 2018).
It should be noted that Bezdekova and Janalik 2018 theorised that cost, breed and age affected the population of their study. Havng only included hospitalised patients, Bezdekova and Janalik 2018 suggestetd that owners who could not afford intensive vet care and deemed their animals well enough for home remedies were not included. Furthermore as Jaz memntioned, younger horses appear to suffer more than older hoses. Duncanson (2006) and Breuer et al. (2011) suggested that pony breeds are more prone to oesophageal obstruction. Ponies being the primary free roaming horse in this country.
Another issue with fresh lawn mower clippings is that they are already starting to ferment. This means that the clippings arrive in the stomach already fermenting and without the benefit of saliva to ‘dilute’ them. Normally, grass consumed by the horse does not start to ferment to this extent until much further along the digestive tract (Prutton, 2019). The gases given off by the fermenting clippings then begin to expand in the stomach, an area of the digestive tract not designed to contain such gas production. This often causes a rupture in the stomach lining, which is excruciatingly painful and typically fatal (Prutton, 2019). However, if caught in time and managed correctly such issues may be resolved. For example, Pothiappan, 2019 found that Gastric decompression performed by nasogastric intubation was able to remove six litres of gastric reflux. The individual recovered following therapeutic management, however this was a case study. Often the animal is not so lucky especially if fed by a stranger unbeknownst to the owner who may not return to their animal until the following day. In instances of gastrointestinal distress, time is truly of the essence.
DeleteIf the clippings do not cause rupture of the stomach, build up of gas can still result in colic and ulceration of the stomach lining (van den Boom., 2022). Both of which are also very painful and requires costly medical attention, with colic also being a life threatening condition.
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DeleteGrass cutting may also contain plants that are deadly poisonous to horses, such as ragwort. Whilst horses are able to innately recognise growing plants which are incompatible with their bodies, once the plant is dried and mixed with other food they are not longer able to decipher which is safe and which is toxic, even though the plants potency has not decreased and in some cases may have even even increased.
DeleteNielsen, Rimbey, and James, 2019 highlighted the economic implications of poisonous plants on livestock. Through interviews and questionnaires they detailed the concerns of ranchers in the Americas, who complained that poisonous plants cost them money in increased death losses, reduced weight gains and reproductive efficiency, and decreased livestock values due to unthrifty animals. Many poisonous plant situations have the potential of putting ranchers out of business when a given set of circumstances occur to cause catastrophic losses. Although this literature is from a book not a journal, so is likely more dated than it appears, and English farming is typically on a smaller scale, these authors do highlight the dangers that poisonous plants pose to livestock that the general public is likely unaware of.
Finally, often the grass has been treated with an array of different chemical treatments before being cut, such as pesticides (RSPCA, 2022). Pesticides are poisonous and when ingested in large quantities, can be lethal to horses and ponies, especially foals. (Caloni and Cortinovis 2015.)
Continuing on from my previous comment, perhaps, another alarming aspect to the public feeding horses, is the potential for poisonous plants being fed to the horses. Caloni and Cortinovis, (2015) investigated plants poisonous to horses in Europe and consequences when fed them. Poisoning is a common issue which can often be sourced from feed such as hay, haylage, silage and feed, the most common plants being:
ReplyDeleteSt John's Wort
Yew
Fern
Bracken
Within the Uk, there is a significant amount of plants which can potentially cause severe internal damage and in some cases fatally. Accurate identification of the ingested plants is needed to ensure that fatalities do not occur. Perhaps, as part of the BHS “behorseaware” information and signage could be created to highlight potential hazardous plants for horses, so members of the public have some knowledge of dangerous plants.
Jasmine Pook
Furthermore, the literature review conducted by Caloni and Cortinovis, (2015) was completed pre covid, which could mean that it is not reflective of the conditions or plant populations within the UK, so consideration is need as increased poisonous plant species combined with increased tourism/ traffic could potentially lead to increased horse fatality, however, further research would be required to determine if there is a link between these factors (Spalding et al., 2021).
DeleteJazz Pook