Horses transported for competition, sales, or slaughter experience significant welfare challenges. Evidence-based transport management can substantially reduce stress and injury during transit.
Horse transport welfare encompasses a wide range of contexts from competition horse travel to long-distance journeys for slaughter. Horses face a distinctive respiratory risk during transport: when their heads are restrained in the forward-facing position common in horse lorries, they cannot clear respiratory secretions normally, increasing pneumonia risk — sometimes called "shipping fever." Long slaughter journeys cause cumulative welfare harm through dehydration, feed deprivation, thermal stress, and injury from unstable footing during transit. EU regulations permit horses to be transported for up to 24 hours for slaughter without adequate rest — a duration condemned by veterinary welfare bodies. Research into optimal transport design — including rear-facing orientation and better ventilation — provides evidence for welfare improvements.