World Horse Welfare

World Horse Welfare is an international charity with over 90 years’ experience of protecting and promoting equine welfare. Our practical approach to influencing policy, welfare standards and education in horse care is based on scientific evidence and our extensive experience with equines used for sport, leisure, work and in production as a source of meat, milk or in pharmaceuticals.

As the largest horse rescue and rehoming charity in the UK and a shaper of equine policy across the globe, World Horse Welfare works with horses, owners, governments, organisations and veterinary science to develop sustainable approaches to improve equine welfare.

Our programmes span across 16 countries in Africa, Latin America and Asia and improve the welfare of working equids through education and sharing of knowledge and skills. The charity has a realistic approach to all that it does and works with others to encourage lasting change specific to the context and based on the needs of the equids in each situation.

Over 100 million working equids fuel national economies and family livelihoods around the world. These equids lead demanding and varied lives and can suffer when there is no access to trained equine care providers, including veterinarians, farriers and saddlers. Our international work helps those who depend on equids for their livelihoods to better care for their most important asset.

In China we are developing partnerships with universities to help enhance the equine-related knowledge and skills of veterinary students through access to international expertise and training. We hope to help enhance the status of veterinarians in China, who in turn will be able to support the welfare of farm animals. As well as sharing our own knowledge we continue to collaborate with key stakeholders to learn more about the roles of equines in China and promote their welfare. We actively encourage welfare to be at the heart of all decisions across those industries that rely on equines.