Behavioural assessment is an essential welfare tool for horses, enabling earlier identification of pain, distress and training-related problems before they become severe.
Behavioural assessment provides welfare information that physical examination alone cannot capture. Horses cannot report pain verbally, but express it through consistent, validated behavioural indicators. The tendency to interpret pain behaviours as disobedience, naughtiness or inadequate training leads to escalation of training intensity that compounds welfare harm. Educating horse owners and trainers in validated behavioural welfare tools is among the highest-leverage welfare interventions available for companion horse welfare.