All About World Horse Welfare

We are a charity that works to improve equine welfare by strengthening the horse-human relationship. We strive to help all horses including horses in need, horses in sport and leisure, and horses used for work and production.  

We work across the UK with horses, horse owners, other charities, academia, equine vets, horse sport bodies, law enforcement agencies and government to improve welfare standards. Through this work we help horses in all kinds of ways - from providing practical, hands-on care, to supporting horse owners with expert advice, and influencing policy decision makers.

As Britain’s leading horse rescue and rehoming charity, our four rescue and rehoming centres care for more than 300 horses, ponies and donkeys at any one time. Here, horses in need receive urgent and specialist care alongside tailor-made rehabilitation programmes. Once they have completed their rehabilitation, we aim to find every single horse a safe, loving new home through our rehoming scheme – the largest of its kind in the UK. Today, around 2,200 of our rehomed horses are enjoying a second chance in life as valuable companions, competition horses, and everything in-between.

Across Britain, our dedicated team of 17 field officers makes over 2,500 initial and follow-up visits to welfare concerns reported by the public every year.

Our work and influence extends much further than the UK. Across the world, we improve the lives of working horses, donkeys and mules who help sustain the livelihoods of their owners. We listen to horse owners to have a greater understanding of the challenges they face, and then work collaboratively with them to deliver long-term, self-sustaining solutions.

Throughout Africa, Latin America, Asia and Europe we work with carefully selected in-country partners who deliver skills training programmes in equid-owning communities, sharing knowledge and offering support.

As well as working with people, we work with governments, NGOs, educational institutions, and the private sector, to raise awareness of the vital role that more than 100 million equids play in sustaining livelihoods across the planet. We advocate for these animals and ensure they are included in policies and decisions on key issues such as climate change, women’s equality, and food and water security.