Epsilon Archive for Student Projects

Abstract

To ensure that animals are treated well and kept in environments fitted for them, Sweden has animal welfare legislation. One of the requirements in the legislation is that horses are kept in spaces that has a ceiling height that measures at least 1,5 * the height at the withers of the horse, but always a minimum of 2,2 m. But a minor derivation can be accepted from these measurements if certain criteria are fulfilled. If the ceiling height is to low the ventilation in the stable can be negatively affected. It can also affect the posture of the horse and may increase the risk of the horse being injured. Horses are prey animals that flee in situations of potential danger. If a horse perceives danger in a stable they may hit the ceiling when trying to flee, if the ceiling height is too low. The horse can also hit the ceiling when swinging its´ head. The competent authorities that control animal welfare in Sweden on regional level are the county administrative boards. As control authorities they perform controls on animal housings. If the housing does not meet up with the legislation standards the county administrative boards can issue injunctions to the responsible person. If this person does not agree with the injunctions it can be appealed.

In this study the aim was to investigate if there were any differences between the different county administrative boards, regarding number of issued injunctions and sizes of deviations in the injunctions, concerning ceiling height in horse stables. Another aim was to investigate the outcome when the injunctions were appealed. The results of this study show that the numbers of issued injunctions differ between the county administrative boards. The size of deviations in the injunctions also differed, between 5,5 cm and 62 cm. There are also differences in policies, towards ceiling height for horses and minor deviation, between the different county administrative boards. Both regarding to how big an acceptable deviation can be and from which required measurements the county administrative boards consider that they can accept deviation from (2,2 m or 1,5 * height at the withers). More over the results show that the county administrative boards´ injunctions held well when appealed. The reasons to why the number of injunctions and sizes of deviations differ between the county administrative boards are discussed. Possible solutions to coordinate the county administrative boards´ policies are also given. The same legislation applies to all counties of Sweden and the horses in all counties have the same need for sufficient ceiling height. It is therefore important that all the county administrative boards have similar policies. Future research is needed to investigate how horses are being affected by a low ceiling and how the county administrative boards differ in other areas that can affect the animal welfare in Sweden.