Horses are highly social animals evolved to live in stable herd groups, yet many are kept in individual stabling that denies them normal social contact. Understanding equine social needs is fundamental to providing good welfare.
Social deprivation is among the most significant welfare challenges for horses in modern management systems. Individual stabling with limited visual and tactile contact with conspecifics denies horses the affiliative behaviours that are central to their psychological wellbeing. Isolated horses develop higher rates of stereotypic behaviour such as crib-biting and weaving, which are welfare indicators of frustration and stress. The tension between performance horse management requirements and natural social needs requires creative solutions including companion animals, visual contact between stables, and maximising turnout in compatible groups. Welfare science increasingly demonstrates that horses in appropriate social groups maintain or exceed the performance of isolated individuals while showing substantially better behavioural indicators.