Welfare of Equids: Guidance
This guidance is intended to help all those who care for equids ensure that their fundamental health and welfare needs are met. It is issued by the Scottish Ministers under section 38 of the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 with a view to securing the welfare of equids.
Glossary of terms
Term: Allied professionals
Description:
Individuals who work alongside owners and keepers to support equid health, behaviour and welfare, such as veterinary surgeons, farriers, equine dentists, behaviourists, nutritionists and physiotherapists.
Term: Biosecurity
Description:
Procedures or measures designed to protect against the spread of or contact with harmful biological or biochemical substances.
Term: Equid
Description:
A member of the family Equidae, including horses, donkeys, zebras and their hybrids, such as mules and hinnies.
Term: Equine passport
Description:
An official identification document required by law for equids in the UK and EU, containing details such as identity, ownership, and medication status, and used for disease control and food chain safety.
Term: Equid welfare
Description:
The physical and mental state of an equid in relation to the conditions in which it lives and is managed.
Term: Forage
Description:
Plant-based fibre, such as grass, hay, haylage, or browse, that forms the primary component of an equid’s diet and supports digestive health and natural feeding behaviour.
Term: Hybrid
Description:
A cross between a horse and donkey with unique physiological and behavioural characteristics that they inherit from both parents.
Term: Person responsible
Description:
A person as responsible for an animal if they have charge of them on a permanent or temporary basis.
Term: PIO
Description:
Passport Issuing Organisation
Term: Quarantine
Description:
A state, period, or place of isolation in which people or animals that may have been exposed to infectious disease are placed.
Term: ScotEquine card
Description:
A secure, plastic equine identification card containing statutory details.