General Imperial Equid Welfare Code

Article 1. Application

This Code applies throughout the Empire of Hrossagrið to every horse, pony, donkey, mule, hinny, zebra hybrid, and other equid, whether privately or publicly owned, permanently resident, temporarily present, imported, exported, feral under human management, bred, kept, trained, handled, ridden, driven, worked, transported, displayed, competed, sold, leased, rescued, rehabilitated, retired, studied, or otherwise brought under human custody or control.

This Code binds owners, keepers, riders, handlers, trainers, breeders, transporters, veterinarians, hoof-care providers, dentists, establishments, schools, universities, research bodies, event organizers, landlords, service bodies, public authorities, corporations, partnerships, associations, and every person who makes or implements a decision materially affecting an equid.

Article 2. Concurrent responsibility

Ownership, custody, possession, management, instruction, employment, contractual allocation, and actual control may create concurrent responsibility. An owner remains responsible for selecting a competent keeper and providing lawful resources. A keeper remains responsible for decisions within that keeper’s control. A superior, employer, director, commander, or organizer is responsible where that person ordered, authorized, knowingly permitted, concealed, or failed to stop a breach within that person’s authority.

No contract, waiver, lease, livery agreement, employment term, consent form, ownership dispute, insolvency, or delegation shall exclude or reduce a duty imposed by this Code.

Article 3. Fundamental welfare duty

Every responsible person shall provide conditions compatible with the individual equid’s physical health, nutrition, locomotion, sleep, comfort, behavioral needs, social needs, sensory needs, psychological welfare, agency, recovery, and species-specific requirements.

Every responsible person shall prevent avoidable pain, injury, illness, hunger, thirst, fear, distress, panic, exhaustion, respiratory restriction, heat or cold stress, sleep deprivation, social deprivation, learned helplessness, and neglect. A duty to prevent foreseeable harm arises before injury or disease becomes severe.

Article 4. Welfare priority

Commercial value, pedigree, registry, breed reputation, sport status, public demand, government function, emergency-adjacent purpose, tourism, tradition, ceremony, education, research, aesthetics, owner preference, staff shortage, lack of space, cost, schedule, prize, audience, or convenience shall not excuse non-compliance.

Where a task cannot be performed within this Code, the task shall be modified, postponed, reassigned, or canceled.

Article 5. Stricter rule

Where another Imperial Code, binding standard, technical schedule, veterinary order, Passport restriction, climate order, route order, court order, or individual welfare direction imposes stricter protection, the stricter rule prevails.

A specialized Code may add stricter duties but shall not weaken this Code unless an express amendment enacted with equal or higher legal authority identifies the exact provision being displaced and states the scientific and welfare basis.

Article 6. Precautionary principle

Where credible evidence indicates a material risk of serious or irreversible welfare harm, uncertainty shall be resolved in favor of the equid until the risk is adequately assessed. Lack of complete scientific certainty shall not justify continuing a practice that presents a reasonably foreseeable substantial risk.

Article 7. Functional interpretation

The actual function, effect, duration, intensity, force, load, restriction, and welfare consequence of conduct or equipment control its legal classification. A person shall not evade this Code by relabeling work as exercise, therapy, familiarization, voluntary movement, education, tradition, ceremony, private use, rescue, rehabilitation, sale preparation, testing, research, sport, or emergency-adjacent service.

Article 8. Definitions

For this Code:

• Active work means ridden work, driving, active traction, load carrying, lunging, repetitive in-hand conditioning, sport, formal training, public display, service duty, or another activity imposing directed physical or psychological demand.
• Assigned time means the entire period during which an equid is required to remain available for work, travel, waiting, standing, display, lesson use, service, or controlled duty, whether or not continuously moving.
• Competent authority means the Imperial equid-welfare authority, a lawfully delegated inspectorate, a court, or another public body expressly authorized by law.
• Direct social contact means the ability to approach, withdraw from, touch, smell, see, and hear at least one compatible equid through group housing or a safe barrier.
• Emergency means an unforeseen and immediate threat to life, serious injury, or public safety that cannot reasonably be managed by a less burdensome lawful alternative.
• Establishment means any business, school, university, yard, livery, breeder, dealer, rescue, sanctuary, transport operator, service body, event, research body, or public facility keeping or using equids.
• Full rest day means a continuous period of at least twenty-four hours containing no riding, driving, lunging, formal training, active traction, sport, public display, transport assignment, or other labor.
• Heavy or later-maturing equid means an equid classified under Article 53 and Schedule 5.
• Light or ordinarily maturing equid means an equid classified under Article 53 and Schedule 5.
• Keeper means a person with day-to-day custody or practical control.
• Responsible person means every person upon whom responsibility is imposed by Articles 1 and 2.
• Turnout means free voluntary movement in an enclosure meeting Schedule 2, without a person directing pace, route, gait, posture, or repetition.
• Veterinary order means a dated written or securely recorded direction issued by a veterinarian who has examined the equid or has sufficient current clinical information, states the reason, duration, restrictions, review date, and least restrictive safe alternative.
• Work means active work and any assigned time that materially limits free movement, feeding, social contact, sleep, or recovery.

Article 9. Measurement and evidence

Where this Code uses bodyweight, height, time, distance, area, force, temperature, humidity, sound, light, or another measurable quantity, the measurement shall be made by calibrated equipment or a method approved in the relevant Schedule. The more protective result controls where two lawful measurements differ beyond the permitted tolerance.

Bodyweight used for load or feed calculations shall have been measured on a calibrated scale within the preceding ninety days, or within thirty days for an equid under six years, pregnant, lactating, recovering, growing rapidly, or changing body condition. A validated weight tape may be used for no more than fourteen days while scale measurement is arranged; a ten-percent safety deduction shall then be applied to the estimated bodyweight for load calculations.

Article 10. Emergency exceptions

An emergency exception is lawful only to the minimum extent and shortest time strictly necessary to prevent greater imminent harm. It shall not authorize cruelty, horse slaughter, deliberate pain, avoidable exhaustion, or continued use after a safe alternative becomes available.

Every establishment shall record an emergency exception within two hours, including the threat, decision-maker, duration, alternatives considered, burden imposed, condition of the equid, and post-event examination. A veterinarian shall examine the equid within six hours after any emergency exception involving injury, collapse, forced exertion, prolonged transport, or material exceedance of a normal limit.

Article 11. Observation frequency

Every equid shall be visually checked at least twice in each twenty-four-hour period, with no interval between checks exceeding twelve hours.

Stabled equids, newly arrived equids, equids wearing rugs continuously, equids under five years, equids over eighteen years, pregnant equids after day 240, lactating equids, isolated equids, and equids receiving medication shall be checked at least three times in each twenty-four-hour period, with no interval exceeding eight hours.

Foals under thirty days, sick, injured, postoperative, colicking, neurologically abnormal, high-risk pregnant, or medically unstable equids shall be checked at least every four hours or more frequently under veterinary direction.

Article 12. Content of checks

A required check shall assess identity, presence, demeanor, appetite, water intake or water-system function, manure and urine, gait, posture, breathing, visible injury, body condition trend, feet, environmental hazards, social access, and signs of pain or distress. A distant head count alone is insufficient.

An establishment shall keep a dated record of every required check, the checker, abnormalities found, and action taken. Private keepers shall record abnormalities, medication, veterinary instructions, and any missed or materially delayed check.

Article 13. Continuous water

Every equid shall have continuous voluntary access to clean, safe, palatable water, except during the shortest period required for a specific veterinary procedure under a veterinary order or while a moving transport vehicle cannot safely carry an open water source. During that transport exception, Article 87 applies and water shall be offered at intervals not exceeding four hours.

Water shall not be withheld to control behavior, reduce urination, reduce manure, improve appearance, facilitate transport, create weight loss, increase obedience, or punish an equid.

Article 14. Water capacity and flow

A premises shall maintain an immediately usable water reserve of not less than ten liters per one hundred kilograms of total equid bodyweight for each twenty-four hours. The reserve shall increase to fifteen liters per one hundred kilograms during lactation, sustained work, Band II or higher heat burden, or where the principal forage is dry.

Each automatic drinker shall deliver at least eight liters per minute for horses and mules and four liters per minute for ponies and donkeys. A trough shall provide at least one drinking position for every five equids, with a minimum accessible edge length of sixty centimeters per drinking position.

Water containers shall be positioned to prevent entrapment, contamination, freezing, bullying, and exclusion. A group enclosure shall provide at least two separated drinking points where more than four equids are present.

Article 15. Water-system checks

Every water system shall be physically tested at least twice daily. During freezing risk, mechanical failure, transport, active work, illness, lactation, or Band II or higher climatic burden, it shall be tested at least every four hours.

A failed system shall be restored or replaced within one hour. Until restoration, water shall be offered in sufficient containers at intervals not exceeding one hour.

Article 16. Forage minimum

Except under a veterinary diet, every equid shall receive forage dry matter equal to not less than one and one-half percent of current bodyweight in each twenty-four hours. The ordinary target shall be two percent of bodyweight. A reduction below one and one-half percent shall require a veterinary and qualified nutrition plan, shall never fall below one and one-quarter percent, and shall be reviewed at least every fourteen days.

Donkeys and obesity-prone equids may receive lower-energy forage, straw, soaked forage, slow-feeding systems, or controlled grazing, but shall not be deprived of fiber or normal feeding time.

Article 17. Maximum forage-free interval

No adult equid shall remain without edible forage or safe grazing for more than four consecutive hours. No foal, young equid under five years, lactating equid, ulcer-prone equid, underweight equid, or equid under veterinary gastrointestinal management shall remain without forage for more than three consecutive hours.

A slow feeder counts only while forage remains physically obtainable. An empty net, inaccessible grass, contaminated forage, or forage monopolized by another equid does not satisfy this Article.

Article 18. Concentrates and dietary change

No single concentrate meal shall exceed four-tenths of one percent of bodyweight. Concentrate meals shall be separated by at least four hours. A material dietary change shall be introduced over not less than seven days, and a change involving more than fifty percent of forage type or concentrate quantity shall be introduced over not less than fourteen days unless a veterinarian directs otherwise.

Feed shall be stored dry, vermin-controlled, labeled, and separated from chemicals, medicines, and toxic material. Moldy, contaminated, fermented, dusty, poisonous, or spoiled feed shall not be offered.

Article 19. Group feeding

A group-fed enclosure shall provide at least one forage or feed station per equid plus one additional station. Stations shall be separated by at least three meters, or by a solid visual barrier long enough to prevent one equid controlling two stations simultaneously.

Subordinate, elderly, disabled, underweight, dentally impaired, or medically managed equids shall be individually monitored and, where necessary, separately fed without losing required social contact.

Article 20. Salt, minerals, and body condition

Every equid shall have access to appropriate salt and minerals under an individual diet plan. Body condition shall be scored on a recognized nine-point equid scale or an approved species-specific equivalent at least monthly in establishments and at least every three months in private care. Equids under five, over eighteen, pregnant, lactating, medically managed, or changing weight shall be scored at least every fourteen days.

A score below four or above seven requires a written corrective plan within seven days. A score below three, above eight, or a change of one full point within thirty days requires veterinary assessment within seventy-two hours.

Article 21. General environmental duty

Every area used by an equid shall be maintained so that the equid can stand, lie, rise, turn, move, feed, drink, rest, avoid conflict, and express normal behavior without unreasonable risk of slipping, collision, entrapment, poisoning, respiratory harm, or injury.

Article 22. Stall dimensions

An individual box stall shall satisfy both of the following:

• clear usable floor area of not less than the greater of four and one-half times the square of the equid’s height at the withers in meters, or two hundred and fifty square centimeters per kilogram of bodyweight; and
• shortest internal dimension of not less than the greater of one and eight-tenths times the equid’s height at the withers, or three meters for an ordinary horse.

The following absolute minimums apply:

• equid under 1.25 meters: 3.0 m × 3.0 m;
• equid 1.25 m to under 1.50 m: 3.05 m × 3.65 m;
• equid 1.50 m to under 1.70 m: 3.65 m × 3.65 m;
• equid 1.70 m and above: 3.65 m × 4.25 m;
• heavy equid over 750 kg: not less than 4.25 m × 4.25 m;
• mare with foal or foaling box: not less than 4.25 m × 4.25 m and not less than one and one-half times the ordinary area required for the mare.

Where the formula and absolute minimum differ, the larger requirement controls.

Article 23. Stall height, doors, and aisles

Clear ceiling or eaves height above the highest point of the equid’s ears in normal posture shall be at least ninety centimeters and total clear height shall never be less than 2.7 meters.

A stall door shall be at least 1.25 meters wide and 2.25 meters high. A door used by an equid over 700 kg shall be at least 1.5 meters wide. Internal aisles shall be at least three meters wide for one-way leading and 3.6 meters wide where equids may pass or turn.

Doors shall open fully, secure in the open position, and permit emergency release without entering the stall.

Article 24. Communal housing

Communal indoor housing shall provide usable bedded lying area of at least:

• ten square meters per adult horse or mule;
• twelve square meters per heavy equid over 700 kg;
• seven square meters per pony or donkey under 1.35 meters;
• fifteen square meters per mare-and-foal unit.

The total indoor area shall include an additional twenty-five percent circulation and avoidance space. Every equid shall be able to lie fully at the same time without blocking an entrance, water point, or another equid’s escape route.

Article 25. Bedding and lying surface

Every housed equid shall have a dry, compressible, non-toxic, low-dust lying bed covering at least seventy percent of the stall floor or the entire designated lying area in communal housing. Bare concrete, bare compacted earth, or rubber matting without absorbent bedding does not satisfy this Article.

Wet bedding, concentrated manure, and urine-soaked material shall be removed at least daily. A full bed reset or equivalent sanitation shall occur at least weekly, or sooner where ammonia, moisture, parasites, or infection require it.

Article 26. Ventilation and air quality

Indoor housing shall maintain:

• ammonia below ten parts per million at equid head height;
• carbon dioxide below two thousand parts per million;
• relative humidity between forty and eighty percent; an excursion outside that range lasting more than four consecutive hours requires recorded mitigation, and humidity below thirty percent or above ninety percent lasting more than two consecutive hours requires relocation or effective environmental correction unless a veterinarian records why relocation creates greater risk;
• no visible persistent dust cloud during feeding or bedding; and
• air movement sufficient to prevent stagnant air without producing a continuous cold draft across a resting equid.

Air quality shall be measured at least quarterly in establishments and whenever respiratory signs, odor, condensation, dust, ventilation failure, or overcrowding is reported.

Article 27. Light and darkness

Housing shall provide not less than eight hours of natural or full-spectrum daylight-equivalent illumination in each twenty-four hours and not less than six consecutive hours of darkness below five lux, except where veterinary observation requires temporary light.

Emergency and inspection lighting shall be available at all times. Continuous bright lighting, flashing decorative light, and lighting directed into the eyes are prohibited.

Article 28. Turnout enclosure dimensions

A daily-turnout enclosure shall provide:

• not less than 600 square meters for one adult equid;
• not less than 1,000 square meters for two adult equids;
• an additional 400 square meters for each additional adult equid;
• at least thirty meters of unobstructed straight-line movement;
• no neck, corridor, or pinch point narrower than four meters where more than one equid is present.

For foals and youngstock groups, the enclosure shall provide not less than 1,000 square meters total and 500 square meters per equid, whichever is greater. A veterinarian may approve a smaller medical pen only under Article 36.

Article 29. Grazing land and stocking

Where grazing is intended to provide the majority of forage without supplementation, usable grazing land shall provide not less than 0.5 hectares per horse or mule and 0.25 hectares per pony or donkey. The keeper shall assess forage availability at least monthly during the growing season and at least every fourteen days during drought, winter, flooding, or heavy use; supplementary forage shall begin before available dry matter falls below the requirement in Article 16.

Smaller land may be used where forage is supplied and the turnout dimensions in Article 28 are met. Overstocking that causes persistent mud, resource exclusion, parasite burden, loss of lying area, toxic plant exposure, or inability to move freely is prohibited regardless of nominal land area.

Article 30. Shelter

Every outdoor-kept equid shall have unrestricted access to natural or constructed shelter from sun, wind, rain, snow, freezing rain, insects, and severe weather.

A constructed group shelter shall provide roofed dry floor area of at least six square meters per adult horse, eight square meters per heavy equid, and four square meters per pony or donkey, with an additional twenty-five percent where the shelter has only one entrance. The entire calculated area shall be simultaneously accessible and usable by every equid counted in the shelter capacity. A shelter for more than two equids shall have at least two entrances, each at least 1.5 meters wide, positioned to prevent trapping.

Donkeys shall have access at all times to a roofed, wind-protected, dry standing and lying area.

Article 31. Fencing

Barbed wire, exposed high-tensile wire, broken mesh, and fencing capable of trapping a hoof or head are prohibited as boundaries for equids.

Minimum finished fence height shall be:

• 1.30 meters for ponies and donkeys;
• 1.50 meters for ordinary horses;
• 1.70 meters for stallions, known jumpers, or equids over 1.70 meters at the withers.

The lowest rail or visible barrier shall be no more than fifty centimeters above ground where foals, ponies, or small donkeys are present. Electric fencing shall be clearly visible, correctly grounded, and shall not be the sole perimeter boundary.

Article 32. Gates and resource placement

A gate used by equids shall be at least 1.5 meters wide for single passage and three meters wide for regular group passage or machinery access. Gates shall open without sharp projections and shall not create a blind corner or trapping pocket.

Water, forage, shelter, shade, and gateways shall be distributed so that no single dominant equid can control all essential resources. Dead ends narrower than six meters are prohibited in group enclosures.

Article 33. Fire and emergency planning

Every establishment shall maintain a written fire, flood, storm, power-failure, water-failure, disease-outbreak, and evacuation plan. Fire alarms shall be tested monthly; extinguishers and electrical installations shall be professionally inspected at least annually.

No equid housing shall be more than thirty meters from an exit usable by the equid. At least one vehicle-access route capable of emergency-equid transport shall remain unobstructed at all times. Evacuation drills shall occur at least twice yearly.

Article 34. Hazard control

Manure shall be removed from stalls daily and from high-use turnout areas at least twice weekly. Toxic plants, dangerous rubbish, exposed machinery, sharp projections, unstable structures, deep mud, standing contaminated water, ice, and entrapment hazards shall be corrected or isolated without delay.

A defect presenting immediate injury risk shall be secured within fifteen minutes of discovery and permanently repaired within twenty-four hours, or the affected area shall remain closed.

Article 35. Daily turnout

Every adult equid shall receive at least twelve hours of turnout in each twenty-four-hour period, including at least one continuous period of eight hours.

Foals, equids under five years, non-working retired equids, pregnant equids, and lactating mares with foals shall receive at least sixteen hours of turnout in each twenty-four-hour period unless a veterinary order requires less.

Turnout may be reduced only by a veterinary order or an officially declared immediate climatic or biosecurity emergency. Reduced turnout shall be replaced by the least restrictive safe free-movement arrangement and reviewed at least every seventy-two hours.

Article 36. Medical confinement

A veterinary order restricting turnout shall state the permitted enclosure size, movement, companionship, duration, and review date. Complete stall confinement shall not exceed seventy-two hours without re-examination or a documented remote review by the treating veterinarian.

Where medically safe, a confined equid shall receive at least four periods of controlled movement or hand grazing per day, each lasting at least ten minutes, and direct social contact through a safe barrier.

Article 37. Maximum stall confinement

Outside a veterinary order, transport, quarantine, or immediate severe-weather emergency, an equid shall not remain in an individual stall for more than ten consecutive hours or fourteen total hours in any twenty-four-hour period.

Brief removal from and return to the same restrictive environment does not reset the confinement clock. Time in a tie stall, stocks, wash rack, treatment bay, trailer, vehicle, horse walker, narrow pen, or any enclosure failing the turnout definition counts as confinement and does not count as turnout.

Article 38. Turnout is not forced exercise

Riding, lunging, leading, horse walkers, treadmills, swimming, mechanical exercise, and formal training do not count toward turnout. A turnout enclosure shall permit the equid to choose whether, where, and how to move.

Article 39. Direct equid companionship

Every equid shall have direct social contact with at least one compatible equid for not less than twelve hours in each twenty-four-hour period. Foals, youngstock under five years, donkeys, and bonded pairs shall have such contact for not less than sixteen hours.

Human contact, mirrors, livestock of another species, recorded sounds, or visual contact alone shall not replace equid companionship except during a temporary emergency under Article 40.

Article 40. Isolation

Isolation from direct equid contact shall not exceed twenty-four hours without a veterinary, quarantine, or safety order. The order shall be reviewed at least every seventy-two hours and shall preserve visual, auditory, and olfactory contact and safe nose contact where biosecurity permits.

A bonded donkey pair shall not be separated except for immediate medical necessity. Where one is hospitalized or transported, arrangements for the companion shall be made unless a veterinarian records why accompaniment would create greater risk.

Article 41. Group management

New group introductions shall use adjacent-contact preparation for at least twenty-four hours, unless the equids are already familiar. The group shall be observed continuously for the first thirty minutes, at least every hour for the next six hours, and at least three times daily for seven days.

An equid repeatedly excluded from water, forage, shelter, lying space, or social contact shall be moved to a compatible arrangement within twelve hours.

Article 42. Sleep

Every equid shall have a secure, dry, comfortable lying area and at least six consecutive hours each night during which no work, transport, routine disturbance, bright light, feeding conflict, or scheduled management prevents sleep. Necessary medical or welfare checks may occur quietly during that period but shall be limited to the shortest observation required and shall not include avoidable lighting, handling, or relocation.

Failure to observe any recumbent rest for seventy-two hours, repeated collapse, knee or fetlock injuries consistent with sleep deprivation, or persistent inability to lie down requires veterinary assessment within twelve hours.

Article 43. Tethering and tying

Permanent tethering and routine overnight tethering are prohibited. Ordinary close tying or cross-tying shall not exceed thirty consecutive minutes and shall remain continuously supervised. Grooming or treatment requiring longer restraint shall include release or repositioning at least every thirty minutes and shall not exceed two hours without a veterinary or emergency reason.

A tied equid shall be able to stand square, lower the head to at least knee level, and release under dangerous load. Tying by a bit, rein, chain across soft tissue, or directly to a rigid unbreakable point without an approved release is prohibited.

Article 44. Prompt care

A sick, injured, distressed, feverish, colicking, lame, neurologically abnormal, respiratory-compromised, dehydrated, non-eating, non-drinking, bleeding, or non-recovering equid shall receive prompt appropriate care.

A veterinarian shall be contacted within fifteen minutes of recognition of collapse, uncontrolled bleeding, suspected fracture, severe colic, persistent choking, respiratory distress, neurological signs, inability to rise, catastrophic injury, severe eye injury, foaling emergency, or rapidly worsening condition. Where communication failure prevents contact, attempts shall continue and the nearest available emergency authority shall be contacted within thirty minutes. For other material abnormalities, veterinary advice shall be obtained within twelve hours if the condition does not resolve sooner.

Article 45. Prohibition on continuing activity

No person shall continue work, training, transport, display, breeding use, sale presentation, or competition where doing so may worsen illness, injury, pain, fear, exhaustion, or distress.

A welfare stop by a rider, handler, worker, veterinarian, official, student, or inspector takes immediate effect. No person shall retaliate against a good-faith welfare stop.

Article 46. Veterinary examinations

Every equid shall receive a comprehensive veterinary examination at least once every twelve months.

The interval shall be six months for:

• working equids;
• breeding stallions and broodmares;
• equids under six or over eighteen years;
• equids with chronic disease, repeated lameness, prior collapse, or ongoing medication;
• equids in riding schools, rental, tourist, service, competition, research, rescue, or sanctuary establishments.

An equid returning after surgery, serious injury, collapse, Band IV or V climatic exposure, or more than sixty days of medical layoff shall receive written clearance before active work.

Article 47. Hoof inspection and professional care

Feet shall be visually inspected and picked out at least once daily, and before and after active work.

Professional trimming or shoeing shall occur at intervals not exceeding:

• six weeks for working equids and equids wearing shoes;
• eight weeks for unshod adult equids not in work;
• four weeks for foals with corrective needs or an equid under an active therapeutic plan.

A shorter interval ordered by a hoof-care professional or veterinarian controls. No equid shall work with painful imbalance, loose or harmful shoes, damaged boots, penetrating debris, significant thrush, infection, abscess, unsafe traction, or hoof pain.

Article 48. Dental care

A dental examination by a veterinarian or lawfully qualified equid dental practitioner shall occur:

• every six months for equids under five years or over fifteen years;
• every twelve months for equids aged five through fifteen;
• within fourteen days of quidding, unexplained weight loss, oral pain, foul odor, facial swelling, difficulty chewing, bitless-headgear discomfort, or recurrent choke.

Sedation and invasive dental procedures shall be performed only by a veterinarian or under the legal authority and supervision prescribed by professional law.

Article 49. Vaccination and disease control

Every establishment shall maintain a veterinarian-approved vaccination and biosecurity plan reviewed annually. Newly arrived equids shall undergo a minimum fourteen-day quarantine, extended where disease risk or testing requires.

Quarantine shall use separate equipment, waste handling, hand hygiene, and airspace where appropriate while preserving lawful social contact at a safe distance.

Article 50. Parasite control

Parasite control shall be based on veterinary risk assessment and diagnostic evidence. Establishments shall perform fecal egg-count monitoring at least three times yearly and treatment-efficacy testing at least once yearly where anthelmintics are used.

Routine repeated treatment without regard to resistance, bodyweight, product interval, or diagnostic plan is prohibited.

Article 51. Medication

Necessary maintenance or therapeutic medication is not by itself a welfare violation. Medication shall never be used to conceal pain, lameness, respiratory compromise, anxiety, fatigue, injury, poor recovery, or inability to cope.

Medication records shall state substance, dose, route, purpose, prescriber, administrator, date and time, start and end dates, withdrawal period, adverse effects, review date, and activity restriction. Records shall be made before administration where practicable and otherwise within one hour.

Article 52. Pain relief and rehabilitation

Appropriate pain relief shall not be withheld to preserve competition eligibility, diagnostic appearance, sale value, breeding use, or insurance position.

A rehabilitation plan lasting more than fourteen days shall state diagnosis or working diagnosis, permitted activity, prohibited activity, session duration, surface, progression criteria, regression criteria, reassessment date, and responsible professionals. It shall be reviewed at least every fourteen days.

Therapy, rehabilitation, or veterinary recommendation shall not transform prohibited restraint, forced exhaustion, fear-based training, or unsuitable work into lawful conduct.

Article 53. Maturity classification

Each equid shall be classified no later than thirty months of age as stated below. An older equid entering Imperial jurisdiction without a valid classification shall be classified before any active work and no later than thirty days after entry:

• Category L — light or ordinarily maturing; or
• Category H — heavy or later-maturing.

Category H includes any equid with projected mature bodyweight above 650 kg, any heavy draft or substantial draft-cross type, and any equid classified as later-maturing by a veterinarian. Where classification is uncertain, Category H applies. The classification, evidence, projected mature weight, and veterinarian shall be recorded in the Passport. A Category H classification shall not be changed to Category L after thirty-six months except following independent veterinary examination, documented growth evidence, and approval by the competent authority. Ownership transfer, breed relabeling, temporary weight loss, or change of intended use does not change classification.

Article 54. Earliest load-bearing age

A Category L equid shall not begin ordinary ridden load, occupied driving, active traction, load-bearing pack work, or comparable weight-bearing training before forty-eight completed months of age.

A Category H equid shall not begin those activities before sixty completed months of age.

Scientific evidence cited for this Article and Schedule 5:

• [Cogger et al. 2008] — Incidence rate of musculoskeletal injuries and determinants of time to recovery in young Australian Thoroughbred racehorses. In 248 young racehorses with 428 recorded injuries, two-year-olds were 2.99 times more likely than three-year-olds to sustain a musculoskeletal injury; the authors could not determine whether the difference arose from age, commencement of training, or both.
• [Bailey et al. 1999] — Impact of injuries and disease on a cohort of two- and three-year-old thoroughbreds in training. Among two-year-olds that entered training, 42% developed shin soreness and 25% had fetlock problems; lameness was the principal cause of lost training time.
• [Ciamillo et al. 2026] — Effect of high-speed exercise on subchondral bone in the metacarpo-/metatarsophalangeal joints of 2-year-old Thoroughbred racehorses in their first year of training. In a cohort of 41 two-year-olds, increasing accumulated high-speed work was associated with increased subchondral bone sclerosis and pathology. The study’s stated limitations included attrition over time and lack of control over training and husbandry.

These studies support the precautionary treatment of very young equids and high-speed training risk; they do not by themselves establish the exact forty-eight- or sixty-month statutory thresholds, which are protective policy limits adopted under Article 6.

Reaching the minimum birthday does not establish fitness. The equid shall also pass a veterinary soundness examination within thirty days, demonstrate calm lawful handling, and complete the progressive preparation in Schedule 5.

Article 55. Early habituation is required

Young equids shall receive humane, progressive habituation to touch, grooming, hoof handling, veterinary handling, blankets, saddle pads, lawful headgear, girths without compression, safe lines, objects beside and behind the body, harmless movement and sound, loading environments, and future equipment.

Habituation shall use negligible or age-limited load, voluntary approach where practicable, positive reinforcement, immediate release, and sessions within Schedule 5. It shall not become disguised riding, active traction, repetitive circling, forced conditioning, flooding, or exhaustion.

Article 56. Age-band equipment limits

Before six months, any soft item placed on the body shall weigh no more than the lesser of one-quarter of one percent of bodyweight or one kilogram and remain for no more than five minutes per session.

From six to under twelve months, total habituation equipment shall not exceed the lesser of one-half of one percent of bodyweight or two kilograms and ten minutes per session.

From twelve to under twenty-four months, total equipment shall not exceed the lesser of one percent of bodyweight or four kilograms and fifteen minutes per session.

From twenty-four to under thirty-six months, total equipment shall not exceed the lesser of one and one-half percent of bodyweight or eight kilograms and twenty minutes per session.

From thirty-six months until the lawful load-bearing age, total equipment shall not exceed the lesser of two percent of bodyweight or twelve kilograms and thirty minutes per session.

No age-band session shall occur more than four days per week or on more than two consecutive days.

Article 57. Objects and light dragging behind

A young equid may be familiarized with a soft, non-entangling object moving or lightly dragging behind only where:

• the equid has first accepted the object while stationary and beside the body;
• no object is attached directly to the tail, legs, bitless headgear, or body;
• a handler controls an immediate-release line;
• the object or control line releases completely under a longitudinal load not exceeding two kilograms and is never tied to the equid;
• the object mass does not exceed the lesser of one-half of one percent of bodyweight or two kilograms before twenty-four months, or the lesser of one percent of bodyweight or five kilograms thereafter;
• measured horizontal resistance does not exceed one-half of one percent of bodyweight before thirty-six months or one percent thereafter;
• the active dragging period does not exceed five minutes;
• the surface is level, quiet, and non-slip; and
• no vehicle, occupied load, shafts, or rigid draft connection is used before the lawful load-bearing age.

Article 58. Circles, lunging, and repetitive movement

No equid under twenty-four months shall be lunged or worked repetitively on a circle.

From twenty-four to under thirty-six months, directed circular work shall be at walk only, on a diameter of at least twenty-five meters, for no more than five minutes total per session and no more than twice weekly.

From thirty-six months to the lawful load-bearing age, the diameter shall be at least twenty meters, total circular work shall not exceed ten minutes, directed trot shall not exceed two minutes total, and directed canter is prohibited. Free voluntary movement in a large enclosure is not circular work.

Article 59. First year of ridden work

During the first eight weeks after lawful ridden work begins:

• total rider and equipment weight shall not exceed ten percent of bodyweight;
• mounted time shall not exceed fifteen minutes per session;
• sessions shall occur no more than three days weekly;
• no jumping, sustained canter, collection, steep gradients, or circles under twenty meters are permitted.

During months three through six:

• total carried load shall not exceed twelve percent;
• mounted time shall not exceed thirty minutes;
• sessions shall occur no more than four days weekly;
• ground poles or raised poles shall not exceed fifteen centimeters; mounted jumping is prohibited;
• continuous trot shall not exceed ten minutes and total canter shall not exceed five minutes.

During months seven through twelve:

• total carried load shall not exceed twelve percent;
• mounted time shall not exceed forty-five minutes;
• sessions shall occur no more than five days weekly;
• ground poles or raised poles shall not exceed twenty centimeters; mounted jumping is prohibited until sixty completed months for Category L and seventy-two completed months for Category H;
• no high-intensity conditioning on consecutive days is permitted.

Full ordinary workload shall not begin until twelve months of documented progressive ridden preparation have been completed.

Article 60. First year of driving and traction

During the first three months after lawful active traction begins, sustained draft force shall not exceed five percent of bodyweight and peak draft force shall not exceed eight percent. Active traction shall not exceed fifteen minutes per session or three sessions weekly.

During months four through six, sustained force shall not exceed seven and one-half percent and peak force shall not exceed ten percent. Active traction shall not exceed thirty minutes per session or four sessions weekly.

During months seven through twelve, sustained force shall not exceed ten percent and peak force shall not exceed fifteen percent, subject to the Carriage Code. Active traction shall not exceed forty-five minutes per session or five sessions weekly.

No occupied passenger service, freight service, emergency service, or commercial route work is permitted during the first six months of active traction.

Article 61. Training principles

Training shall be planned, progressive, comprehensible, proportionate, and appropriate to age, fitness, confidence, prior learning, and health. Positive reinforcement shall be the primary training method.

Pressure, interruption, correction, or boundary-setting is lawful only where it is non-painful, minimally aversive, immediately related to behavior, clearly releasable, promptly released or ceased, and does not cause panic, defensive desperation, injury, shutdown, or learned helplessness.

Article 62. Prohibited training conduct

Pain, intimidation, beating, striking, jerking, trapping, deliberate startle, flooding, exhaustion, deprivation, relentless repetition, forced posture, forced hyperflexion, punishment for pain-related or fear-related behavior, and suppression of warning behavior are prohibited.

An equid shall not be tied, chased, spun, lunged, driven, or otherwise worked until resistance ceases through fatigue or psychological shutdown. Immobility caused by fear shall not be represented as calmness.

For the purposes of this Article, hyperflexion, also called rollkur or sustained riding behind the vertical, means holding or forcing the equid’s head and neck in a markedly flexed position with the nasal plane behind the vertical, whether produced by the hand, the rein, bodyweight, tack, an auxiliary rein, or any other means.

Sustained or forced hyperflexion is prohibited in training, schooling, warm-up, competition, public display, and every other context. It is prohibited whether or not any device is used, and the absence of a device shall not make hand-induced hyperflexion lawful.

A brief, voluntary, low, forward-and-down stretch offered by the equid and not held against resistance is not prohibited hyperflexion. Forcing, fixing, or maintaining a behind-the-vertical position, or repeatedly returning the equid to it against resistance, is prohibited regardless of any claimed duration.

Scientific evidence cited for this Article:

• [König von Borstel et al. 2024] — Hyperflexing the horse’s neck: a systematic review and meta-analysis. The review analyzed 58 peer-reviewed studies. Among 36 studies assessing welfare effects, 75% raised welfare concerns regarding horses worked with the nasal plane behind the vertical; the authors also reported that 65% of studies assessing performance failed to find performance benefits. The review concluded that, on balance, the welfare costs of hyperflexed head-neck postures exceed the potential benefits.

Article 63. Behavioral change

Sudden refusal, aggression, avoidance, head shyness, girth reaction, bucking, rearing, bolting, stumbling, shutdown, altered posture, or loss of performance shall trigger immediate assessment of pain, equipment, environment, workload, training clarity, and fear.

Punitive escalation is prohibited until material physical and environmental causes have been reasonably excluded and the task has been reduced to a comprehensible level.

Article 64. Handling and restraint

Routine handling shall use the least restrictive effective method. A restraint used for treatment or immediate safety shall be applied by a competent person, monitored continuously, and removed as soon as the necessity ends.

A non-veterinary physical restraint shall not remain continuously applied for more than fifteen minutes without a five-minute release and reassessment. Chemical restraint shall be prescribed by a veterinarian. Repeated need for restraint shall trigger a retraining and medical plan within seven days.

Article 65. Fitness for activity

No equid shall work while lame, ill, injured, exhausted, dehydrated, distressed, unable to recover normally, under an incompatible medication restriction, or otherwise unfit.

Reluctance, repeated refusal, abnormal breathing, delayed recovery, altered gait, repeated stumbling, panic, shutdown, or unusual behavior shall cause an immediate stop and assessment.

Article 66. Total carried load

Total carried load includes rider, saddle, pads, bags, equipment, clothing assigned to the equid, and every item borne by the equid.

Ordinary total carried load shall not exceed fifteen percent of measured bodyweight.

The limit is twelve percent for:

• an equid in its first year of ridden work;
• an equid under six years;
• an equid over eighteen years;
• an equid recovering from injury or layoff;
• sustained work exceeding sixty minutes;
• jumping, high-impact work, steep gradients, unstable footing, or Band II climatic burden;
• an equid with a veterinary, saddle-fit, or conformation restriction.

A certified exception up to seventeen and one-half percent may be granted only for an equid aged six through fifteen, body-condition score four through six, sound, fit, correctly saddled, ridden by a demonstrably balanced rider, and used for no more than sixty minutes of low-impact walk-and-trot work. Certification requires a current veterinarian’s fitness finding, a qualified saddle fitter’s written fit assessment, and an independent licensed riding assessor’s observation under the proposed load and task. No interested owner, seller, employer, trainer, or rider may self-certify. The exception shall be renewed every six months and is prohibited in riding-school, rental, tourist, novice, jumping, endurance, speed, or service use.

A total carried load above seventeen and one-half percent is prohibited except for the shortest movement strictly necessary to rescue a person from immediate danger.

Article 67. Rider and task matching

An establishment shall record rider bodyweight including clothing and assigned equipment before first allocation and at least every ninety days thereafter. A rider shall be reassessed after a material weight change or equipment change.

Equid size, strength, back condition, conformation, fitness, training, saddle fit, rider balance, rider skill, task, duration, speed, surface, and climate shall be considered together. Compliance with the percentage alone does not establish suitability.

Article 68. General work limits

Unless a stricter specialized Code or individual restriction applies:

• active work shall not exceed four hours in any twenty-four hours;
• assigned time shall not exceed six hours;
• a continuous active-work block shall not exceed sixty minutes;
• each active-work block shall be followed by at least twenty minutes of genuine tack-free recovery with water, forage where due, free head and neck movement, and relief from crowd, traffic, vehicle assignment, or formal duty;
• no more than two active-work blocks may occur without at least sixty minutes of turnout or quiet social rest;
• at least two full rest days shall occur in each rolling seven-day period.

Changing rider, handler, employer, activity, tack, location, or legal label does not reset a clock.

Article 69. Warm-up, recovery, and monitoring

Active work exceeding fifteen minutes shall include at least ten minutes of progressive low-intensity warm-up and at least ten minutes of cool-down.

Heart rate, respiratory rate, gait, demeanor, sweating, hydration, and recovery shall be assessed immediately after a material work block and again after twenty minutes. Unless a stricter individual range is certified, recovery at twenty minutes requires heart rate not exceeding sixty beats per minute, respiratory rate not exceeding twenty breaths per minute, no abnormal gait, no respiratory distress, and both rates no more than twenty percent above the recorded pre-work baseline. Failure to meet every applicable criterion requires cessation of further work and veterinary or qualified fitness reassessment before another material work block.

Article 70. Riding schools and repetitive lesson use

A riding-school equid shall not perform more than three hours of ridden lessons in one day, more than two consecutive lessons, or more than five lesson days in a rolling seven-day period.

After two consecutive lessons, the equid shall receive at least sixty minutes of tack-free turnout or quiet social rest. A novice lesson block shall not exceed forty-five minutes of mounted time. Jumping shall not be scheduled in more than one lesson per day for the same equid.

Article 71. Sport and competition

No entry fee, qualification, selection, prize, audience, broadcast, ownership interest, or official instruction shall override a welfare stop.

Visible blood, lameness, respiratory distress, collapse, neurological abnormality, tack injury, one dangerous refusal creating an immediate collision or fall risk, three refusals of the same obstacle or task, or inability to recover requires immediate withdrawal from that task and assessment before any other work. Concealing a sign by washing, dyeing, medication, equipment, cosmetic product, or delaying inspection is an aggravated offense.

Article 72. Surfaces and climate

No active work shall occur on a surface presenting unmanageable slipping, deep mud, hidden holes, sharp stone, unstable ice, excessive hardness, dangerous heat, rail grooves, or another material limb or traction hazard.

All work, turnout, transport, housing, and events shall comply with the Imperial Equine Climatic Burden Standard. The General Code does not authorize activity suspended by that Standard.

Article 73. Full rest day

A full rest day permits ordinary care, turnout, compatible social activity, and voluntary low-demand movement. It prohibits riding, driving, lunging, formal groundwork, sport, public display, transport assignment, active traction, mechanical exercise, and structured conditioning.

Article 74. Equipment and bodily welfare

All tack, restraint, harness, training, marker, and light equipment shall comply with the Imperial Tack, Restraint, and Welfare Code and the Imperial Tack Measurement Schedule.

Grooming, clipping, washing, decoration, and preparation shall not cause pain, fear, skin injury, respiratory exposure, sensory impairment, overheating, chilling, movement restriction, or loss of communication. Tail docking, tail nicking, tail blocking, soring, firing, blistering, gingering, caustic irritation, nerve cutting to conceal pain, and painful cosmetic branding are prohibited.

Whiskers, eyelashes, and sensory hairs shall not be removed except where a veterinarian records a specific treatment necessity. Identification shall use the least painful reliable method available.

Article 75. Breeding fitness

No equid shall be bred where pregnancy, mating, semen collection, foaling, lactation, or reproduction is likely to create disproportionate welfare risk because of age, size incompatibility, hereditary disease, serious conformational defect, poor health, poor body condition, respiratory restriction, neurological disease, prior obstetric history, or inadequate care.

Both prospective parents shall receive a veterinary breeding examination within ninety days before first breeding of the season.

Article 76. Minimum breeding age

A Category L mare shall not be inseminated or covered before forty-nine completed months and shall not be bred where the expected foaling date falls before sixty completed months.

A Category H mare shall not be inseminated or covered before sixty-one completed months and shall not be bred where the expected foaling date falls before seventy-two completed months.

A stallion shall not be used for natural service or routine semen collection before forty-eight completed months. Limited non-breeding reproductive examination may occur earlier under veterinary direction.

Article 77. Genetic and size safeguards

Known carriers shall not be paired where the mating can produce a lethal, severely disabling, or materially suffering genotype. Genetic testing shall be performed where a validated test exists and breed or ancestry creates a material risk.

The projected birth-size and pelvic-size relationship shall be assessed. A mare shall not be bred to a sire where a veterinarian considers foal size, conformation, or prior obstetric history to create an unreasonable dystocia risk.

Article 78. Pregnancy workload

Pregnancy shall be confirmed and recorded as soon as reasonably practicable. No pregnant equid shall perform active traction, carriage work, high-impact sport, jumping above thirty centimeters, sustained speed work, or work exceeding forty-five minutes.

After day 210, no jumping, active traction, speed work, crowded public display, or transport exceeding four hours is permitted.

After day 270, no ridden work, driving work, formal training, competition, public display, or non-essential transport is permitted.

After day 300, transport is permitted only for direct veterinary or welfare necessity under a veterinary plan.

Article 79. Foaling and postpartum

A foaling area shall meet Article 22, be cleaned and prepared before expected foaling, and be observable without continuous intrusive disturbance.

A high-risk mare shall be monitored under the veterinary plan. Failure of active labor to progress for twenty minutes, appearance of an abnormal presentation, uncontrolled bleeding, collapse, retained placenta beyond three hours, or a foal failing to breathe, stand within two hours, or nurse within three hours requires immediate veterinary contact.

No mare shall return to formal training or work within ninety days after foaling. After ninety days, return requires veterinary clearance and shall not separate the mare from a dependent foal for more than two hours at a time before weaning.

Article 80. Reproductive frequency

No mare shall produce more than three live foals in three consecutive years without a subsequent period of at least twelve months in which she is not pregnant.

A mare shall not be rebred while body-condition score is below five, while postpartum disease remains unresolved, or where the preceding pregnancy or foaling caused material complications until a veterinarian certifies recovery.

Article 81. Foal care

A foal shall receive veterinary neonatal assessment within twenty-four hours of birth, or sooner where abnormal. Passive-transfer testing shall occur within twenty-four hours where risk, inadequate nursing, illness, or veterinary protocol requires.

Foals shall have daily turnout meeting Article 35, direct contact with the dam or appropriate guardian, and regular contact with other compatible equids. Forced exercise, isolated confinement, sales conditioning, and fear-based handling are prohibited.

Article 82. Weaning

A foal shall not be weaned before six completed months except where continued nursing creates a documented veterinary danger to mare or foal.

Weaning shall be gradual over at least fourteen days, shall preserve contact with familiar equids, and shall not result in solitary confinement. At least one familiar calm adult or peer companion shall remain with the foal throughout weaning.

Article 83. Lifetime reproductive limit

A mare shall not be subjected to more than eight completed pregnancies or six live foals without an independent veterinary welfare review. Continued breeding after that threshold requires annual independent certification that reproductive use remains in the mare’s interests and shall never exceed ten completed pregnancies.

Article 84. Fitness to travel

No equid shall be loaded or transported where illness, injury, lameness, weakness, severe fear, inability to bear weight, pregnancy stage, recent foaling, climatic burden, vehicle condition, journey duration, or lack of recovery makes transport unsafe.

Direct emergency movement for treatment is permitted under veterinary or competent-authority direction using the least harmful available method.

Article 85. Vehicle space

Usable floor area shall be at least thirty-five square centimeters per kilogram of bodyweight for an individually partitioned adult equid and forty square centimeters per kilogram for a mare with foal, loose group, or equid requiring additional balance space.

Clear internal height shall exceed the highest point of the equid’s ears in normal posture by at least seventy-five centimeters. Each individual bay shall measure at least the equid’s body length plus thirty centimeters from breast barrier to rear barrier and at least the equid’s maximum shoulder width plus forty centimeters in width, unless a veterinarian certifies a different support configuration as necessary for safe medical transport. A partition shall allow a natural stance and head movement without permitting a fall beneath or over it.

Article 86. Ramps and flooring

A loading ramp shall not exceed twenty degrees from horizontal, shall have secure side barriers at least 1.3 meters high, and shall have non-slip battens or equivalent traction at intervals not exceeding twenty-five centimeters.

The floor shall be non-slip, load-rated, free from holes and sharp edges, and covered with sufficient bedding or matting to absorb urine and provide grip.

Article 87. Journey duration and checks

Ordinary transport shall end after six hours of vehicle movement in one day. A single direct journey may continue beyond six hours to an absolute maximum of eight hours only where the route, weather, vehicle, driver, destination, and individual equid were pre-approved and stopping at six hours would not provide a safer lawful unloading location.

The vehicle shall stop for inspection at least every two hours. Water shall be offered at intervals not exceeding four hours and forage shall remain available except where safe vehicle design or a veterinary reason prevents it.

Upon completion of six hours of ordinary movement, or immediately upon reaching the destination under an approved journey exceeding six hours, the equid shall be unloaded and shall receive at least eight consecutive hours of rest before any further transport. The extended journey shall contain no second transport leg after the first safe destination is reached. Foals, pregnant equids after day 210, equids over eighteen, and recovering equids shall not travel more than four hours in one day without veterinary approval.

Article 88. Loading and unloading

Loading education shall be progressive and humane. Beating, electric prods, ear twisting, tail twisting, choking, dragging, lifting by the head, deliberate terror, and exhaustion are prohibited.

A loading attempt lasting more than twenty minutes shall stop for at least thirty minutes and be reassessed. More than three failed attempts in twenty-four hours require a new plan and, where fear or pain is significant, professional or veterinary assessment.

Article 89. Transport recovery

An equid shall receive at least one hour of quiet recovery with water, forage, social contact, and free head movement after a journey exceeding two hours before work, sale presentation, competition, breeding, or formal training.

After a journey exceeding six hours, no active work is permitted until the following day and not less than twelve hours after unloading.

Article 90. Transport records

Commercial, service, breeding, event, rescue, and long-distance transport shall record equid identity, vehicle, driver, route, departure, arrival, stops, water, forage, checks, climate, incidents, medication, and fitness assessments. Records shall be completed contemporaneously and retained under Article 112.

Article 91. Disclosure

A seller, lessor, lender, trainer, agent, rescue, or operator shall disclose every known material health, behavioral, medication, soundness, reproductive, work, legal, and welfare restriction relevant to the proposed use.

Sedation, fatigue, pain relief, dehydration, feed restriction, harsh exercise, cosmetic concealment, hidden equipment, or strategic timing shall not be used to misrepresent temperament, soundness, training, age, fertility, or fitness.

Article 92. Suitability and prohibited recipients

Before sale, adoption, lease, loan, or surrender, the transferor shall take reasonable steps to verify identity, premises, intended use, competence, resources, and any welfare disqualification of the recipient.

No equid shall be transferred to a person prohibited from equid ownership, a slaughter channel, an unlicensed dealer where licensing is required, or a person whose disclosed intended use would breach this Code.

Article 93. Record continuity

The Passport, ownership record, current medication, veterinary restrictions, work history, breeding history, and welfare orders shall accompany the equid at transfer. Original records shall not be withheld because of a payment dispute.

A transfer shall be entered in the central record within seventy-two hours. Welfare duties continue during disputes and until lawful custody is actually transferred.

Article 94. Abandonment and inability to provide care

Abandonment is prohibited. A person unable to provide compliant care shall seek assistance, lawful temporary custody, surrender, or rehoming before welfare fails.

Financial difficulty is not a defense to neglect, but prompt voluntary disclosure and lawful surrender before serious harm may be considered in enforcement.

Article 95. Establishment staffing

An establishment shall have at least one competent responsible adult physically on site for every twenty adult equids during ordinary daytime care and one physically on site for every ten equids during public lessons, loading, event movement, emergency evacuation, or group handling.

At least one staff member trained in equid first aid shall be on site whenever equids, students, clients, or the public are present. Where a foal under thirty days, high-risk pregnant mare, postoperative equid, medically unstable equid, or equid requiring checks at intervals of four hours or less is present, at least one competent person shall be physically on site for every five such equids. Where no person is physically on site overnight, a continuously monitored alarm-and-response system shall secure attendance by a competent person within fifteen minutes. Remote-only overnight oversight is prohibited where more than ten equids are housed or any equid is medically unstable, within thirty days of foaling, or subject to checks more frequent than eight hours.

Article 96. Staff competence and supervision

A person shall not perform a task without instruction, competence, and supervision proportionate to the risk. Students and trainees shall not independently administer medication, perform invasive procedures, start young equids, handle dangerous equids, or make return-to-work decisions.

Every establishment shall provide annual training in welfare law, pain recognition, emergency response, fire evacuation, safe handling, biosecurity, and record keeping.

Article 97. Capacity and overcrowding

An establishment shall not keep more equids than its lawful turnout, housing, water, feeding, staffing, quarantine, transport, and emergency capacity. Capacity shall be calculated using the most restrictive resource.

Temporary excess occupancy shall not exceed seventy-two hours and requires notification to the competent authority, written mitigation, and proof that every equid continues to meet all numerical standards. A temporary excess period shall not be repeated within ninety days or reset by moving equids between premises under common ownership, management, financing, or control, unless the competent authority issues a disaster order.

Article 98. Education

Live-equid teaching shall have a defined educational objective, competent supervision, the least burdensome method, and a limit on repetitions.

No equid shall undergo the same student-performed potentially painful, stressful, or fatiguing procedure more than twice in one day or more than four times in seven days. A procedure may be repeated beyond that only where medically necessary for the equid rather than for practice.

Article 99. Research

Research involving equids shall require independent ethical approval, necessity, scientific validity, harm minimization, replacement where a non-animal method can answer the question, reduction in numbers, refinement of procedures, and predefined humane endpoints.

Severe unrelieved pain, forced exhaustion, learned helplessness, deliberate catastrophic injury, lethal testing for non-therapeutic purposes, and research whose primary purpose is to improve prohibited training or slaughter are prohibited.

Article 100. Whistleblower protection

No employer, owner, school, service body, or authority shall dismiss, penalize, threaten, blacklist, reduce hours, remove education, or otherwise retaliate against a person who in good faith reports a welfare concern, refuses an unlawful instruction, preserves evidence, or makes a welfare stop.

A retaliation complaint shall receive preliminary review within seventy-two hours.

Article 101. Retirement

Work shall be reduced or ended when soundness, comfort, confidence, recovery, respiratory capacity, sensory ability, chronic disease, or quality of life no longer supports it. An equid shall not remain working merely because it can still be compelled.

Retirement shall preserve lawful feed, water, turnout, companionship, hoof care, dental care, veterinary care, pain control, shelter, and mental welfare. Transfer or retirement shall not be used to evade treatment, inspection, or cost.

Article 102. Older and vulnerable equids

An equid over eighteen years shall receive veterinary and dental examination at least every six months, body-condition assessment at least monthly, and weight measurement at least every ninety days.

A chronic-pain, disabled, neurologically affected, blind, severely arthritic, or terminal equid shall have a written quality-of-life plan reviewed at least every thirty days and immediately after material deterioration.

Article 103. Quality-of-life assessment

A quality-of-life assessment shall score pain, appetite, hydration, mobility, ability to rise, breathing, sleep, social interaction, interest, hygiene, weather tolerance, and treatment burden under Schedule 10. Crisis frequency and the proportion of good days shall be recorded separately.

A total score of eight or more, any domain scored two for more than forty-eight hours, more than two acute crises in thirty days, or fewer than four good days in seven requires veterinary reassessment within twenty-four hours. A total score of twelve or more, two or more domains scored two, inability to rise, uncontrolled respiratory distress, or severe unrelievable pain requires immediate veterinary decision on treatment, palliative care, or euthanasia.

Article 104. Humane euthanasia

Humane veterinary euthanasia means intentional ending of life solely to prevent or end suffering that cannot be acceptably relieved, or to address a catastrophic injury or condition where survival would be inhumane.

It shall be performed by a veterinarian or another person expressly authorized, trained, equipped, and acting under law. The method shall cause immediate unconsciousness followed by death without return to consciousness. Death shall be confirmed before the body is moved or left unattended.

Article 105. Emergency euthanasia

Where an equid is catastrophically injured and delay would prolong severe suffering, an authorized person may perform emergency euthanasia without owner consent after reasonable effort to contact the owner, provided the decision and method are documented and independently reviewed within seventy-two hours.

Article 106. Slaughter prohibition

Horse slaughter is prohibited. For this Article, horse slaughter means intentionally killing an equid, arranging or directing its killing, or causing it to be killed for human food, animal feed, commercial meat, commercial carcass value, or entry into a slaughter supply chain.

It is also prohibited knowingly to buy, sell, broker, advertise, hold, collect, finance, transport, export, import, transfer, or deliver an equid for slaughter.

No equid meat, edible equid tissue, equid-derived meat product, or food or feed product containing equid meat may be imported, exported, manufactured, processed, sold, offered, served, purchased, supplied, or knowingly possessed within the Empire for human or animal consumption. This prohibition does not apply to veterinary, pathological, scientific, museum, forensic, or educational tissue held solely for a lawful non-food purpose, or to lawful disposal after death.

A lawfully euthanized equid shall not enter a human or animal food chain. Lawful euthanasia, necropsy, veterinary tissue sampling, and lawful disposal after death are not slaughter.

Article 107. Highest-grade equid-slaughter offense

A person who, with knowledge and intent, personally commits horse slaughter, directs or controls an equid-slaughter enterprise, finances such an enterprise, or knowingly supplies or transports an equid for imminent slaughter commits the highest-grade equid-slaughter offense under the Imperial Criminal Code. The offense is non-capital and is never punishable by death.

Liability for the highest-grade offense requires proof beyond reasonable doubt of identity, intent, knowledge of the slaughter purpose, and a substantial causal role. Negligence, mistake, ordinary veterinary euthanasia, lawful emergency killing to end unrelievable suffering, administrative non-compliance without slaughter intent, or a merely ministerial role lacking slaughter intent does not constitute this highest-grade offense, although another offense may apply. Conduct committed without criminal capacity or under immediate coercion cannot incur this liability. A person under eighteen is governed by separate youth-justice law and cannot receive an adult sentence.

No conviction under this Article shall be imposed without independent defense counsel, full disclosure, corroborated evidence, a reasoned judgment, automatic appellate review, and final review by the highest competent court. No conviction under this Article may rest solely upon uncorroborated accomplice testimony, incentivised-witness testimony, anonymous evidence, or a confession unsupported by independent material evidence. Corporate entities, owners, directors, commanders, and organizers remain subject to dissolution, forfeiture, permanent disqualification, imprisonment, and individual liability according to their proven acts and intent.

Article 108. Carcass and identification controls

Every equid death shall be recorded in the Passport and central register within twenty-four hours. Identity shall be verified before disposal. The cause and manner of death shall be certified by a veterinarian where death was unexpected, suspicious, associated with work, transport, treatment, public use, or alleged unlawful conduct.

A carcass shall not be sold, transferred, rendered, exported, or disposed of through a slaughter channel. Suspicious deaths shall be preserved for examination and reported immediately.

Article 109. Required establishment records

Every establishment shall maintain accurate records of identity, ownership, custody, daily checks, turnout, social group, feed, water failures, bodyweight, body condition, veterinary care, medication, hoof care, dental care, vaccination, disease control, work, rider load, incidents, transport, breeding, foaling, transfers, restrictions, retirement, euthanasia, and death.

Records shall be made contemporaneously and no later than the end of the responsible person’s shift.

Article 110. Private-owner records

A private owner shall retain identity, ownership, veterinary, medication, hoof, dental, vaccination, breeding, transfer, serious incident, restriction, and death records. The competent authority may require additional records after a welfare concern or order.

Article 111. Record integrity

Original entries shall not be erased. A correction shall preserve the original, state the corrected information, identify the person, date and time, and reason. Electronic systems shall retain an audit trail.

Duplicate, hidden, backdated, falsified, selectively destroyed, or misleading records are prohibited.

Article 112. Retention

Establishment records shall be retained for at least ten years. Passport and central identity records shall be retained for the life of the equid and ten years after death.

Records connected with a serious incident, prosecution, suspension, injury, disappearance, slaughter investigation, or death shall be preserved until all proceedings, appeals, and review periods are complete, even where longer.

Article 113. Welfare reports

Every credible welfare report shall receive a recorded triage decision within twenty-four hours. An immediate-risk report shall be assessed within two hours. Where imminent serious harm is credible, physical attendance shall occur within four hours, or within eight hours in a legally designated remote area, with interim police, veterinary, or local-authority action initiated within two hours. Any failure to initiate interim action or meet the attendance deadline shall be recorded with the specific operational reason and reviewed by a supervisor within twenty-four hours.

A report initiates investigation or documented closure; it does not establish guilt. Good-faith reporters and witnesses shall be protected. Knowingly fabricated evidence or malicious false reporting is an offense, but inability to prove a concern is not evidence of malice.

Article 114. Inspection powers

The competent authority may inspect equids, housing, turnout, feed, water, records, tack, vehicles, transport, work sites, breeding facilities, medication, carcasses, and recovery areas; take measurements; copy records; photograph or record conditions; obtain veterinary examination; and secure evidence.

Where there is reasonable belief of immediate serious harm, entry and protective action may occur without prior notice, subject to judicial review. Entry into a private dwelling requires consent or judicial warrant unless an inspector reasonably believes an equid faces imminent serious harm and delay to obtain a warrant would materially increase that harm.

Article 115. Obstruction

It is an offense to refuse lawful access, conceal or move an equid to avoid inspection, substitute another equid or item, destroy or alter records, tamper with equipment or a scene, intimidate staff or witnesses, refuse lawful measurement, interfere with sampling, or obstruct veterinary examination.

Article 116. Interim orders

The competent authority may order immediate cessation of work, veterinary examination, treatment, water, feed, shelter, turnout, social contact, bedding, route change, transport restriction, breeding restriction, equipment seizure, record preservation, temporary custody, license suspension, or removal from an unsafe keeper.

An urgent order takes immediate effect and shall state reasons, evidence, duration, review date, and appeal route. Review shall occur within seven days unless a court has already confirmed the order.

Article 117. Evidentiary standards

Administrative welfare orders may be made on the balance of probabilities where necessary and proportionate. Criminal conviction requires proof beyond reasonable doubt. A conviction under Article 107 additionally requires the safeguards stated in that Article.

No adverse decision shall rest solely on an anonymous allegation where corroborating evidence could reasonably be obtained, but anonymity does not prevent emergency investigation.

Article 118. Independent review and conflicts

An inspector, veterinarian, expert, judge, or decision-maker with a financial, employment, family, organisational, competitive, or personal conflict shall disclose it and withdraw unless immediate action is required to prevent harm.

Serious injury, death in custody, alleged official misconduct, alleged slaughter, and permanent seizure shall receive independent review.

Article 119. Appeals

A refusal, restriction, suspension, seizure, disqualification, or welfare order may be appealed to an independent tribunal. An appeal shall be filed within twenty-one days unless the tribunal accepts a later filing for good reason.

An appeal does not stay an immediate welfare or public-safety measure unless the tribunal expressly orders a stay after considering risk to the equid.

Article 120. General offenses

Offenses include neglect, deprivation, unlawful confinement, unlawful isolation, working an unfit equid, prohibited training, concealment of pain or medication, unsafe breeding, sleep deprivation, transport breach, record falsification, obstruction, retaliation, repeated non-compliance, and breach of a welfare order.

Article 121. Aggravating factors

Aggravating factors include deliberate cruelty, repeated conduct, multiple equids, vulnerable equids, commercial gain, concealment, retaliation, abuse by a professional or authority, violation of a prior order, severe pain, permanent injury, death, and use of public office or institutional power.

Article 122. Penalties

Subject to Article 107 and the Imperial Criminal Code, penalties may include correction orders, mandatory education, monitoring, fines proportionate to turnover, compensation, cost recovery, license suspension or revocation, professional discipline, closure, corporate dissolution, prohibition from equid ownership or work, seizure, forfeiture, rehoming, imprisonment, including life imprisonment for the highest-grade intentional slaughter offense where criminal law so provides, and entry on the animal-welfare offenders register.

A corporation may be fined up to twenty percent of annual gross revenue for a serious offense and up to forty percent for an aggravated or repeated offense, in addition to individual liability.

Article 123. No owner-consent defense

Owner consent, rider consent, participant consent, customer demand, professional custom, signed waiver, or contractual allocation shall not legalize harm to an equid.

Article 124. Financial and operational failure

A shortage of money, staff, land, transport, feed, water, or emergency capacity creates a duty to obtain assistance, reduce numbers or activity, surrender custody, or cease operation before welfare fails.

Article 125. Imported and visiting equids

Every imported, visiting, transit, diplomatic, military, competition, breeding, or temporarily present equid receives the full protection of this Code from entry into Imperial jurisdiction.

Article 126. Regulations and schedules

The attached Schedules form part of this Code. The competent authority may issue stricter technical regulations, approved measurement methods, and official forms. A regulation shall not reduce a numerical protection in this Code without legislative amendment.

Article 127. Transitional compliance

Existing establishments shall comply immediately with duties concerning water, feed, treatment, pain, work, training, social contact, slaughter, records, and emergency protection.

Structural requirements concerning stall area, doors, aisles, fixed shelter, and permanent fencing shall be complied with within twelve months of commencement. No new construction, purchase, lease, renovation, license, or capacity increase may rely on the transitional period.

Article 128. Severability

If a court finds a provision invalid, the remaining provisions continue in force. The invalid provision shall be interpreted or amended as narrowly as necessary while preserving the greatest lawful equid-welfare protection.

Article 129. Finality

This Code is the general and binding equid-welfare law of the Empire of Hrossagrið. Every technical schedule, specialized Code, institution, establishment, and public authority shall be interpreted consistently with its purpose.

1. Time shall be measured continuously. Moving an equid briefly, changing equipment, changing rider, or interrupting activity for less than the stated qualifying rest does not reset a limit.
2. Area means clear usable area excluding feeders, posts, sharp corners, storage, inaccessible mud, waterlogged ground, and space blocked by equipment.
3. Bodyweight shall be measured under Article 9.
4. Height at withers shall be measured on level ground without shoes being artificially increased for measurement.
5. Draft force shall be measured at the point where force transfers from the equid’s harness to the vehicle or object, using a calibrated in-line dynamometer recording at not less than ten samples per second.
6. A stated maximum includes measurement tolerance. Equipment uncertainty shall not be used to exceed a limit.
7. Records shall use Imperial standard metric units. An additional local or traditional unit may be displayed but shall not control.

1. Minimum turnout: twelve hours adult; sixteen hours foal, under-five, pregnant, lactating, or retired.
2. Minimum direct equid contact: twelve hours adult; sixteen hours foal, under-five, donkey, or bonded pair.
3. Minimum turnout area: 600 m² one adult; 1,000 m² two; plus 400 m² each additional.
4. Minimum straight run: thirty meters.
5. A medical pen shall never be smaller than twice the equid’s body length by twice its body length unless recumbency or limb protection requires less under direct veterinary order.
6. A turnout day is non-compliant where unsafe mud, ice, flooding, toxic plants, bullying, or resource exclusion prevents normal use for more than one hour.
7. A compatible companion shall not be counted where a solid barrier prevents touch or where aggression prevents voluntary approach.

1. Stall minimums are stated in Article 22.
2. Door width: 1.25 m ordinary; 1.50 m over 700 kg.
3. Door height: 2.25 m minimum.
4. Clear height: 2.70 m minimum and 0.90 m above ears.
5. Aisles: 3.0 m one-way; 3.6 m passing.
6. Communal lying area: 10 m² adult horse; 12 m² heavy; 7 m² small pony/donkey; 15 m² mare-and-foal; plus 25% circulation.
7. Shelter: 6 m² adult horse; 8 m² heavy; 4 m² pony/donkey.
8. Ammonia: below 10 ppm. Carbon dioxide: below 2,000 ppm.
9. Darkness: at least six consecutive hours below 5 lux.
10. Bedding: at least 70% of stall floor.

1. Daily checks: two; three for vulnerable categories; every four hours for unstable categories.
2. Water-system tests: twice daily; every four hours during elevated risk.
3. Hooves: daily and before/after work.
4. Hoof professional: six weeks working/shod; eight weeks unshod non-working; four weeks corrective foal or therapeutic.
5. Dental: six months under five or over fifteen; twelve months age five through fifteen.
6. Veterinary: twelve months ordinary; six months working, breeding, under six, over eighteen, chronic, school, rental, service, research, rescue, or sanctuary.
7. Body condition: monthly establishment; three-monthly private; fourteen days vulnerable.
8. Bodyweight: ninety days ordinary load calculations; thirty days growing, pregnant, lactating, recovering, or changing.
9. Vaccination plan: annual review.
10. Fecal egg count: at least three times yearly; efficacy test yearly when treatment is used.

Birth to under 6 months:

• soft non-restrictive items only;
• maximum the lesser of 0.25% bodyweight or 1 kg;
• maximum 5 minutes;
• maximum 3 sessions weekly.

6 to under 12 months:

• blankets, pads, lawful headgear, safe lines, object habituation;
• maximum the lesser of 0.5% bodyweight or 2 kg;
• maximum 10 minutes;
• maximum 3 sessions weekly.

12 to under 24 months:

• unweighted tack familiarization, short leading and object work;
• maximum the lesser of 1% bodyweight or 4 kg;
• maximum 15 minutes;
• maximum 4 sessions weekly;
• no lunging or repetitive circles.

24 to under 36 months:

• ground-driving foundations at walk, very light object familiarization;
• maximum the lesser of 1.5% bodyweight or 8 kg;
• maximum 20 minutes;
• maximum 4 sessions weekly;
• circle diameter at least 25 m; maximum 5 minutes; twice weekly.

36 months to lawful load-bearing age:

• complete unweighted tack, safe long lines, shaft-like objects not connected to a vehicle, light dragging under Article 57;
• maximum the lesser of 2% bodyweight or 12 kg;
• maximum 30 minutes;
• maximum 4 sessions weekly;
• circle diameter at least 20 m; maximum 10 minutes; directed trot maximum 2 minutes; no directed canter.

Category L load-bearing age: 48 months.

Category H load-bearing age: 60 months.

Uncertain classification defaults to Category H.

1. Ordinary total carried load: maximum 15% bodyweight.
2. Protective limit: maximum 12% for first-year, under-six, over-eighteen, recovering, prolonged, high-impact, gradient, poor footing, or Band II work.
3. Certified exception: maximum 17.5%, low-impact only, age six through fifteen, no school/rental/tourist/novice/jumping/endurance/speed/service use.
4. Active work: maximum 4 hours daily.
5. Assigned time: maximum 6 hours daily.
6. Work block: maximum 60 minutes.
7. Recovery after block: minimum 20 minutes.
8. Full rest days: minimum 2 per rolling 7 days.
9. Riding-school ridden lessons: maximum 3 hours daily, 2 consecutive lessons, 5 lesson days per 7 days.
10. Warm-up and cool-down: minimum 10 minutes each where work exceeds 15 minutes.

1. Category L mare first insemination or covering: 49 months; earliest expected foaling: 60 months.
2. Category H mare first insemination or covering: 61 months; earliest expected foaling: 72 months.
3. Stallion routine breeding: 48 months.
4. Veterinary breeding examination: within 90 days before first breeding of season.
5. Pregnancy restrictions: increased at days 210, 270, and 300.
6. Mare postpartum no formal work: 90 days.
7. Retained placenta: veterinary emergency at 3 hours.
8. Foal should stand within 2 hours and nurse within 3 hours; failure requires veterinary contact.
9. Weaning: minimum 6 months, gradual over at least 14 days, never solitary.
10. Maximum 3 live foals in 3 consecutive years before 12-month non-pregnant rest.
11. Independent review after 8 pregnancies or 6 live foals; absolute maximum 10 pregnancies.

1. Floor area: 35 cm²/kg individually partitioned; 40 cm²/kg mare-and-foal, loose group, or special balance need.
2. Head clearance: 75 cm above ears.
3. Ramp: maximum 20°; side barrier 1.3 m; traction intervals maximum 25 cm.
4. Stop and inspect: every 2 hours.
5. Water: every 4 hours.
6. Ordinary daily movement: maximum 6 hours.
7. Single direct pre-approved exception: more than 6 hours but never more than 8 hours, only to the first safe destination.
8. After 6 ordinary hours or upon completion of an approved extended journey: unload for at least 8 consecutive hours before any further transport.
9. Vulnerable-equid daily limit: 4 hours without veterinary approval.
10. Recovery after journey over 2 hours: at least 1 hour.
11. No work until next day after journey over 6 hours.

1. Immediate-risk report triage: 2 hours.
2. Ordinary report triage: 24 hours.
3. Urgent order review: 7 days.
4. Appeal period: 21 days.
5. Establishment record retention: 10 years.
6. Passport and identity record: life plus 10 years.
7. Conflict disclosure is mandatory.
8. Administrative standard: balance of probabilities.
9. Criminal standard: beyond reasonable doubt.
10. Proceedings under Article 107 require the additional safeguards stated in that Article.

1. Each of the twelve domains in Article 103 shall be scored:

• 0 — normal or satisfactorily controlled, with no material welfare impairment;
• 1 — impaired but acceptably controlled with current care, requiring monitoring or adjustment;
• 2 — severely impaired, uncontrolled, persistently distressing, or incompatible with ordinary comfort.

1. The maximum total score is twenty-four. Scoring shall be performed by the keeper at least weekly under an active quality-of-life plan and by a veterinarian at each required reassessment.
2. A good day means a day on which no domain is scored two, the equid eats and drinks voluntarily, can rise and move to essential resources, and shows voluntary interest in at least one social or environmental activity.
3. An acute crisis means an episode requiring emergency veterinary contact, rescue from inability to rise, uncontrolled pain, respiratory distress, severe colic, collapse, or another event creating immediate risk of severe suffering.
4. A score shall not be reduced because medication suppresses visible signs without restoring comfort or function.
5. Where different assessors disagree, the higher domain score applies until veterinary review.