Show jumping raises welfare concerns about training methods, course design, and the use of sensitising techniques that exploit horses' pain responses to improve jump performance.
Show jumping welfare is challenged by the divide between regulated competition environments and largely unregulated private training. Welfare violations including sensitising techniques are most likely to occur in training, invisible to competition stewards. Transparent training culture, whistleblower protections, and welfare-positive judging criteria that reward harmonious riding over raw performance are needed to address this gap.