Passports and Bumph
In just over a year’s time, by 31st December 2003, every horse, pony, mule or donkey will be required to have a ‘passport’. DEFRA admit that this is not about welfare control but is about ‘veterinary surveillance and disease control’. Other government proposals include the licensing of livery yards. This may well force some smaller yards to close as inevitably any licensing system requires pinstriped suited inspectors with their volumes of paper wok that always costs the applicant precious pennies. To bring the UK in line with other countries where the horse is bred as a food animal all equines here will be classified under the umbrella of ‘farm animal legislation’.