Companion Animals

Horse Box Rest Welfare: Mental and Physical

Prolonged box rest causes significant mental and physical welfare costs for horses, requiring active management to maintain wellbeing during recovery.

Key Facts

Box rest is prescribed for musculoskeletal injuries requiring reduced movement during healing
Horses on box rest develop stereotypic behaviours including weaving, crib-biting, and box-walking
Gut motility reduction during box rest increases colic risk, requiring dietary management
Graduated return to work following box rest requires careful rehabilitation to prevent re-injury

Welfare Considerations

Box rest is a welfare trade-off between the need for restricted movement during healing and the significant mental welfare costs of confinement for a naturally active, social species. Active enrichment management, including human interaction, visual stimulation, and appropriate feeding strategies, can mitigate but not eliminate these costs.

What You Can Do

Develop a box rest welfare management plan with your vet and yard manager before prescribing box rest
Provide maximum appropriate stimulation through feeding enrichment, human interaction, and visual access to other horses
Monitor for stereotypic behaviour as an indicator that confinement stress is reaching welfare-significant levels