Castration of male horses (gelding) is extremely common but is frequently performed under inadequate anaesthesia and pain management, representing a significant preventable welfare harm.
Horse castration welfare varies enormously by country, practitioner training and owner expectations. In countries where general anaesthesia is standard, the procedure can be performed with minimal pain during the surgery itself and good post-operative management. In countries where standing castration under sedation alone is normalised, the level of analgesia is often insufficient for the degree of tissue manipulation involved. Post-operative pain management is frequently inadequate even where the procedure itself was competently anaesthetised. Globally, donkeys and ponies are often castrated without any pain management at all. The welfare improvement required is standardising adequate anaesthesia and post-operative analgesia as non-negotiable requirements rather than optional additions.