Road transport causes significant physiological and psychological stress in horses; understanding and mitigating transport stress is essential for equine welfare.
Transport places horses in a physiologically and psychologically demanding situation: they must balance constantly in a moving vehicle, cannot freely drink or eat, may be isolated from companions, and cannot perform normal flight responses when afraid. These stressors cause elevated heart rate, cortisol, and neutrophil counts that persist for hours after arrival. Repeated exposure to well-managed transport with calm driving, good ventilation, and companion horses significantly reduces the stress response over time.