2024 Letter to the British Equestrian Federation June 2024
Dear Mr Eyre,
THE WELFARE OF THE HORSE, RIDER, AND HORSE SPORT IS BEDEVILED BY THE BIT:
Thank you for your response of the 31st of May 2024 to our correspondence of the 25th of April when we requested that the British Equestrian Federation support the association’s proposal to the FEI for an Urgent repair/rule change on welfare grounds to allow a bit-free option in all FEI sponsored horse sports. The proposal was accompanied by unequivocal evidence of the need for change. Unfortunately, your response (copied below) leaves our question unanswered, i.e., will you support the proposal?
“At this time, research is being undertaken into the merits or not of both bitted and non-bitted bridles – once that research is concluded, there would need to be consultation with our member bodies and our board to determine our position, based on scientific evidence, as well as any safety concerns from a broad spectrum of resources. As you will appreciate, BEF represents 19 different organisations and therefore full consultation on a matter which could impact many of those, particularly the disciplines that compete under FEI, is required both at a national and international level.”
The WBA’s request that a bit-free option be allowed in all disciplines is supported by a substantial body of evidence published in the last 25 years. Listed at the bottom of this letter is a sample that the BEF can rely upon to make welfare recommendations, support our request for bit-free, and take the necessary action to initiate rule change at a national level. Though there has been ample time, none of the demerits of bit-induced mouth pain, trauma, asphyxia, and emotional distress, have been refuted. Neither we nor our expert advisers are aware of any studies that document benefits of the bit. The Five Domains Model for the assessment of animal welfare reveals that current equine management and practice leaves much to be desired. It is an established fact that the bit causes pain, interferes with a horse’s ability to breathe, and triggers conflict behaviours. The bit is the probable cause of many an accident, some of them fatal.
You state in your response that the BEF cannot commence consultations until “research is concluded.” Though more evidence will undoubtedly be disclosed by further research, the existing evidence already supplies ample grounds for action. Time is of the essence. To retain horse sports’ social licence to operate, remedial action should not be delayed. There is no need for further research to prove that bits are a negative welfare risk to the health and welfare of the horse and rider.
As we have suggested, the transition to new rules could be eased by following the model adopted by the Royal Dutch Equestrian Federation whereby bit-free competition was introduced in stages and on a probationary basis. Another model is that adopted by Pony Clubs in many countries, whereby bit-free competition is allowed on application. Thirdly, equestrian administrations could undertake their responsibility to conduct bit-free trials for testing purposes in their discipline. While not every bit-free bridle design is pain-free, this is a matter for selection when new rules are drawn-up.
One of your own Directors on the Board of the BEF, Roly Owers, MRCVS, OBE and CEO from World Horse Welfare, stated to World Bitless Association “We fully support the option for riders to be able to choose whether to ride with a bitted or a Bit-free bridle in competition. The FEI is very aware of our view that the rules should be amended to allow bit-free bridles in competition.”
The evidence indicates that the bit breaks the lip seal of the exercising horse and is a cause of suffocation. This combined with mouth pain, overtight nosebands, tongue ties, harsh riding etc., constitute serious welfare issues. The mental and physical effects from the inability to breathe are well documented in human medicine. Suffocation is likely to be both painful and distressing for the horse. In the racehorse, bit-induced obstruction of the airway is thought to be the cause of a cascade of problems, i.e., premature exhaustion, “bleeding”, waterlogging of the lungs, stumbling, falls, catastrophic accidents, and sudden death.
We have chosen to make this a public letter so that our request cannot be misinterpreted and so that it becomes a matter of public record that the BEF, the FEI and other international equestrian federations have known of the evidence and been advised of the serious welfare risks to the health of the horse and the safety of the rider. We are aware that rule requests for consideration at the General Assembly are in process and urge BEF to act for the good of the horse. We look forward to hearing from you at your earliest convenience
Kind regards
Johanna
Johanna Richardson Operations Manager World Bitless Association
Email: Welfare@worldbitlessassociation.org
UK Registered Charity number 1155018
Scientific Evidence Sample
Supporting the recognition of bit-induced mouth pain, risk of injury with bit and bit-free, complications with tight nosebands, resulting consequences for physical and mental welfare. Long term effects of pain and distress. Safety risks caused by pain and distress.
Champing at the Bit for Improvements: A Review of Equine Welfare in Equestrian Sports in the United Kingdom. Tim Holmes & Ashleigh F Brown
Mouth Pain in Horses: Physiological Foundations, Behavioural Indices, Welfare Implications, and a Suggested Solution: Mellor DJ
Gaping for relief? Rein tension at onset and end of oral behaviors and head movements in unridden horses. Marie Eisersio, Jenny Yngvesson, Elke Hartmann, Agneta Egenvall
Fluoroscopic study of oral behaviours in response to the presence of a bit and the effects of rein tension. J.M. Manfredi, D. Rosenstein, J.L. Lanovaz, S. Nauwelaerts, H.M. Clayton
Rein tension acceptance in young horses in a voluntary test situation. J.W. Christensen, T.L. Zharkikh, A. Antoine, J. Malmkvist
The effect of double bridles and jaw-clamping crank nosebands on temperature of eyes and facial skin of horses. P. McGreevy, A. Warren-Smith, Y. Guisard
Risk factors for bit-related lesions in Finnish trotting horses. Kati Tuomola, Nina Maki-Kihnia, Anna Valros, Anna Mykkanen, Minna Kujala-Wirth
Bit-related lesions and risk factors in competing trotters and event horses. Tuomola, K.
Bit-related lesions in event horses after a cross-country test. K. Tuomola, N. Mäki-Kihniä, A. Valros, A. Mykkänen, M. Kujala-Wirth
Bit use and its relevance for rider safety, rider satisfaction and horse welfare in equestrian sport. Karen L Luke, Tina McAdie, Amanda K Warren-Smith, Bradley P. Smith
Behavioural assessment of pain in 66 horses, with and without a bit. W.R. Cook, M. Kibler
Equine welfare during exercise: an evaluation of breathing, breathlessness and bridles. D.J. Mellor, N.J. Beausoleil
Equitation and exercise factors affecting dynamic upper respiratory tract function: a review illustrated by case reports: Equitation and exercise factors affecting upper airway collapse. K.J. Allen, N. Terron-Canedo, M.H. Hillyer, S.H. Franklin
The effect of human–horse interactions on equine behaviour, physiology, and welfare: a scoping review. K.J. Kelly, L.A. McDuffee, K. Mears
New insights into horse behaviour, horse welfare and horse-related safety. K. Luke, B.P. Smith, A. Warren-Smith, T. McAdie
Assessment of skin and mucosa at the equine oral commissures to assess pathology from bit wear: the oral commissure assessment protocol (OCA) for analysis and categorisation of
oral commissures. M. Uldahl, L. Bundgaard, J. Dahl, H.M. Clayton
EEWC Opinions of Equestrian Stakeholders on the use of Horses in Sport: Survey Report (November 2022)
The General Report of the World Bitless Association 2020 Survey
The application of learning theory in horse training. A.N. McLean, J.W. Christensen
The 2020 Five Domains Model: including human-animal interactions in assessments of animal welfare. D.J. Mellor, N.J. Beausoleil, K. Littlewood, A. McLean, P. McGreevy, B. Jones, C. Wilkins