Equine welfare assessment skills certification course

Abstract

Animal agriculture faces increasing scrutiny regarding animal welfare, yet training resources for those handling neglect cases, emergencies, and livestock-related litigation are limited. Since 2015, the University of Florida's Livestock Education and Certification for Agricultural Law Enforcement and the University of Georgia's Livestock Welfare Assessment Skills programs have filled this need. In response to the demand for equine-specific training expressed in evaluations, the University of Georgia Extension piloted an Equine Welfare Assessment Skills Certification course in 2024. This 3-d program used classroom and hands-on training to educate professionals involved with equine welfare and rescue on best practices, culminating in a certification exam. The course hosted 35 participants from 7 states, with 12 ± 9.6 years of experience, representing veterinarians (3%), rescue owners or employees (42%), state agencies (25%), and others (28%). Attendees were asked to complete a post-retrospective evaluation including Likert-scale items to collect data regarding program impact, with 28 responses and statistical analysis completed in Excel. Participants indicated good (33%) or excellent (63%) overall satisfaction with the program on a 5-point scale, with higher values indicating stronger satisfaction (4.95 ± 0.56). Participants were most satisfied with the guest speakers (70% excellent; 4.63 ± 0.62) and the take-home materials (71% excellent; 4.61 ± 0.67). Participants reported greater levels of knowledge using a 6-point scale, where higher values indicate greater knowledge, after attending the course (5.29 ± 0.70) than before attending (4.29 ± 1.53). This difference was statistically significant using a paired t-test, t(28) = 0.00003, P < 0.05. After attending, participants indicated the program improved their ability to make informed decisions regarding equine welfare (96%), provided them a better understanding of equine welfare (78%), and increased confidence in making equine management decisions (78%). All attendees intended to use the information provided during the program in the future. Future topics requested include trailering, handling untrained horses, fire prevention and facility safety, euthanasia and burial, welfare regulation, volunteer management, and social media management. Participants said, “This was an innovative idea and well done for a first event” and “I am so grateful to have had the opportunity to attend, all the presenters were so kind and passionate not only about equine welfare but also educating others.” Discussion is underway to evaluate hosting this program in other regions of the US and the frequency in which to offer this program in Georgia.