24/06/2025
https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GnzZTTYzs/?mibextid=wwXIfr
Recently, I sat with a University professor managing a small research program involving equine behaviour, welfare and management and several of her masters and PhD candidates to discuss the state of the horse industry as a whole.
It was a rich, layered conversation, one that’s still sitting with me days later.
I’ve always believed that education is the key to change.
That if we could just share evidence-based information, raise awareness, and teach better practices, we could shift the paradigm.
That once people know better, they’ll do better.
But during this conversation, a difficult question circulated: Maybe education alone isn’t enough?
Because the reality is, people don’t always change just because they’ve been given better information. Sometimes, they knowingly ignore what they’ve learned.
Not because they don’t care. But because implementing knowledge is hard.
It requires looking in the mirror and admitting:
“Maybe I was wrong”
“Maybe I missed the signs”
“Maybe there’s a better way and I haven’t been doing it”
That’s uncomfortable. It’s vulnerable.
So instead of making changes, many people stay stuck in cognitive dissonance. Rather than changing behaviour, the mind often tries to resolve this discomfort by justifying or denying the evidence.
“He’s just being difficult”
“It worked for my last horse”
“This is how we’ve always done it”
And so, despite the abundance of credible information, the suffering continues.
Our industry has deep-rooted problems.
Affording the care horses truly need can be overwhelming. The cost of adequate nutrition, bodywork, appropriate tack, responsible training, and appropriate living environments is high. As we raise standards, we also risk making the sport less accessible, particularly for newcomers. So people compromise. They rationalize. They do what they can afford or what feels easiest or most familiar.
So if education isn't enough … What is?
This question keeps me up at night.
Don’t get me wrong, we’ve seen incredible change through education. In our student community, in our graduates, in our clients and followers on social media, there are countless people who have welcomed the information and implemented it with courage.
They’ve done the hard work. They’ve looked in the mirror. They’ve stepped out of their comfort zones. And they’ve made things better for their horses.
But for those who resist, who know better but don’t do better, what will it take?
Maybe it’s not just education we need.
But where do we start?
Do we start by making space for discomfort and showing people they’re not alone in it?
By highlighting the why, not just the how, because transformation is always rooted in purpose, not pressure?
To those who’ve leaned in: we see you. We’re proud of you.
To those who are still resisting: we’re not giving up on you either.
For now, I don’t have the answers.
But I do know this: Change doesn’t start with perfection. It starts with awareness.
And the willingness to keep asking the hard questions.
