We are delighted to provide funds, from the Norman Hayward Fund, to researchers at Bristol University for their investigation into the use of facial expressions as a means to assess pain in horses.

Pain is a complex, dynamic, physiological and emotional phenomenon that leads to suffering and distress in animals. Assessment and identification of pain in horses presents owners and veterinary surgeons with a significant challenge since there are currently no reliable, repeatable pain assessment tools validated for use in this species.

This study will use an innovative and novel approach, kinematic analysis of facial movements, to develop a method of pain assessment in horses.

The BVA Animal Welfare Foundation "Horse Grimace Scale" could be used by owners and veterinary surgeons to identify pain in horses. Improved recognition and treatment of pain will have far reaching welfare benefits for horses.