The quality and management of pasture has profound effects on equine welfare, affecting nutrition, hoof health, social behavior, and the expression of natural grazing behavior.
Horse welfare in pasture management involves navigating competing risks: too much access to lush grass causes laminitis, a devastating and painful condition; too little turnout causes colic, stereotypies, and psychological distress from restricted movement. The welfare-optimal approach mimics natural grazing patterns — continuous access to low-calorie forage with extensive movement — while managing the modern metabolic mismatches caused by domesticated horse breeds exposed to cultivated grass pastures far richer than ancestral habitat. Track systems that encourage continuous walking while limiting grass intake represent a creative welfare-centered solution. The underlying principle is to enable species-appropriate behavior — movement, foraging, social grazing — while managing the specific welfare risks created by modern management contexts.