Safety in equstrian exhibitions

The world of equestrian exhibitions aims most of its attention on the overall image and glamour, without focusing organizational strains on safety among public, workers and horses, which are nowadays always more important. Preventing accidents on workplaces means protecting safeness and wellness of people and animals. The not easy definition of risks in the equestrian range rises from the extreme variability and arduous foreseeing of working states, from the considerable number of activities which are often simultaneously performed and from the most important element of the different activities, that is the horse. The sphere of these risks concern: Safety and wellness of people: constraint of dangerous animals, buildings and structures authorized by firemen, sound fences and enclosures around rings, trial and competition fields, safety distance from public and horses, moving carriages and equipments, visible signals of routes equipped for horses. Safety and wellness of workers: specific training and information for horse managing employees, equipments and individual protective devices according to regulations, good acquaintance of expositive dynamics. Horses’ physical and psychical safety and wellness: sound and wide stalls so that horses may be stabled in the most comfortable conditions; doors, gangways and transit paths free from dangers, obstacles and unevenness that may wound horses; removal of stress from excessive lighting, ceaseless presence of noisy public, scanty moments of relax through daytime, close presence of more stallions, separation of foal from mare. As conclusion, to reach a real level of optimization of safety in equestrian exhibitions, fairs and expositions it is necessary to develop a warship in the three areas mentioned above so that a good level of protection be reached in a global and commensurate way. Only applying some simple but basic rules, it will be possible to grant a complete and effective safety in the framework of every respectable equestrian show.