Newly Published Equine Guidance; a win for heavy horses!

For the past three years Animal Concern has campaigned for an end to depriving heavy horses of their tails through the practice of tail shaving, providing evidence showing the importance of how horses use their tails and citing the same principles used in the decision to ban the docking of horses’ tails in 1949.

Horses across Scotland now have a chance of not having their tails shaved off for purely cosmetic reasons as the Scottish Government’s newly published equine guidance states; “Equids should not have their tail hair shaved or have the majority of it removed unless there is a clear veterinary or welfare reason.”

Many heavy horse owners in the UK have long clung to the practice of removing the majority of tail hair from Clydesdale and Shire horses in the name of tradition, with foals as young as 6 months old being deprived the use of their tails to better show off the hind end at horse shows.

Executive Director of Animal Concern Elena Edwards said;“The equine working group of the Scottish Animal Welfare Committee considered the evidence condemning the practice of shaving the tail hair off horses and made the right decision to include it in the guidance. Horses have evolved with tails for good reason, from swatting away pests to communicating with each other. To deprive them of this essential part of their body cannot be defended any longer.”

Prior to being banned in 1949, common practice was to dock the tails of heavy horses, severing the dock so tail hair could not grow to length, thus keeping the tail out of the way when being worked with machinery. Found to be inhumane, docking was banned. Animal Concern will continue to seek legislation to ban the practice of tail shaving if guidance does not secure an end to the practice.

The guidance states;

“… there are certain areas of hair, particularly the tail, that should not be removed as this is detrimental to welfare…”

and goes on further to state;

“An equid’s tail is extremely important and useful in terms of communication and maintaining health. Equids use the tail to remove flies from around their bodies, as well as in communication with other equids and handlers.

Animal Concern is aware that there is great resistance with the Clydesdale Horse Society and Shire Horse Society to letting their horses keep their natural tails, noting the lengths to which some went to excuse the practice of tail shaving, and which Animal Concern debunked.

It is a giant step in the right direction, and we will be ensuring that all judges at horse shows are aware that the tradition of depriving heavy horses of their tails for a better look at their hind ends is coming to an end.