by Kimberly K. Egan, MHC President
The most exciting horse industry event from last month was, of course, the 2024 Maryland Horse Forum. Every five years, the Maryland horse industry puts on a day-long open forum to hear from the community on how we want the future of our industry to look. It is a brain-storming session, with professional moderators, and multiple tracks; there are topics of interest for everyone.
Maryland’s Secretary of Agriculture, Kevin Atticks, opened the Forum with a call for the industry to work together. “The Maryland horse industry is one horse industry,” he said. He exhorted us to get out of our silos, to attend each other’s events, and to support each other across our various disciplines. He told us that the future of the horse industry is in our hands.
MHC Board members attended as many sessions as possible. Here is what we found particularly interesting.
Social License to Operate – this topic was timely given the animal welfare issues that arose during the Olympics (which were ongoing at the time) and given the recent spate of high-profile animal abuse cases with American trainers. One takeaway was that we need to do a better job of holding animal abusers accountable, and that peer pressure can be a powerful tool. Another takeaway was that we need better messaging on the benefits of the special relationship between horses and humans. Yet another was that our community is too insular and inaccessible – we use too much industry jargon and need to simplify to open a productive dialogue with the general public.
Quality of Horse Competition Facilities – this discussion was an antiphone between complaints about our competition facilities and pride in how many international competitions those same facilities attract. Some observed we need to do a better job of communicating that we value facilities because no-one will fund facilities that no-one uses. One attendee said that we need to stop criticizing each other and start supporting one another by going to one another’s events, even if the event is not in our discipline of choice. Another said that no-one makes money hosting events, and that competition organizers are lucky to break even.
Unwanted Horses – much of this discussion focused on the over-production of horses, particularly Thoroughbreds, and the burden that places on the non-racing sectors. One attendee suggested that Thoroughbred breeders be required to conduct (and disclose) pre-breeding genetic tests to rule out hereditary problems. Another suggested that Thoroughbred breeders be required to contribute to the cost of supporting their horses after racing. Yet another suggested that the state regulate breeding to reduce the over-population and improve animal welfare.
Trails – much of the session focused on user complaints about trail maintenance, conflicts with other users on multi-use trails, and the lack of a dedicated, paid trail user advocate at the state level. Several attendees offered advice to raise money for trail maintenance, including imposing a user fee such as those paid by baseball teams and other sports group, and finding corporate sponsors to fund trail maintenance. Others suggested working collaboratively with DNR’s Office of Outdoor Recreation. Another suggested a Trails Advisory Committee within DNR to include all stakeholders, not just trail riders, such as mountain bikers, birders, hikers, etc.
Legislative session – a particularly interesting part of the legislative discussion was about starting a statewide accreditation program, with continuing education requirements, for all horse industry professionals. Attendees noted that accreditation would be good for marketing and for improving the quality of horse care and rider instruction. The synergies with the Social License to Operate session were apparent.
The forum’s organizers are drafting a comprehensive report, to include action items and future planning. We very much look forward to reading it!
