Nutritional management is fundamental to equine welfare, with obesity and laminitis representing major preventable welfare problems.
Laminitis causes severe and potentially chronic pain affecting multiple feet simultaneously. Horses with laminitis may be unable to walk normally for weeks or months. The condition is strongly associated with excessive caloric intake and hormonal disorders, making it largely preventable through appropriate nutrition management. Yet veterinary surveys consistently find overweight horses as one of the most common welfare concerns in companion animals. Education about body condition scoring and seasonal grazing management prevents most laminitis cases.