Alerts
6/1/2009 - AHIC AND HORSE WELFARE
BRIEF:
*AHIC and Horse Welfare*
Over the past few years AHIC has been fully involved representing the national horse industry in the Australian Animal Welfare Strategy (AAWS) project. AHIC has been represented on the two AAWS Sectorial Working Groups that deal with horses.The outcome of this is planned to be nationally consistent legislation and regulation of animal welfare for a wide range of species, including horses. The new national Code of Welfare for Horses is in final draft form and will go out for public comment in the second half of this year. The plan is to have the Standards referenced in all State and Territory legislation so they can be legally enforced if necessary. The legislation will be implemented from some time in 2010.Another important milestone that AHIC has particiated in is the development of the National Standards for the Land Transport of Animals. This consultative process consolidated a broad range of different codes into a single document that covers all the livestock species, including horses. All State and Territory Ministers accepted the final version except for a couple of minor issues in May 2009. This document will form the basis of nationally consistent legislation to be implemented as soon as possible. These Standards cover such areas as duration of travel, time between trips, access to food and water, amount of space allowed in a transport vehicle, and training and responsibilities for people who transport horses.
The June AAWS Report is available at http://www.horsecouncil.org.au/_Upload/Files/AAWS%20June%2009%20Update.pdf