The Brooke, a global working equid welfare charity, is set to share results from a test program using radio broadcasting to change welfare practices, as part of a holistic approach to improve working equine welfare. The group will present its findings at the 7th International Colloquium on Working Equids, taking place July 1-3 in Surrey, England.

There are over 4.7 million working horses, donkeys, and mules in Pakistan, transporting people and goods, and working in brick kilns and on farms. The Brooke works in urban and rural communities in three regions of Jacobabad to provide emergency health services for these working equines, and to work with communities to improve the way the animals are treated. Major welfare issues include work-related injuries, slit nostrils (a traditional practice widely used by local people as they believe this helps their animals to breathe better), and dehydration, among others.

The Brooke conducted a face-to-face questionnaire with 193 owners of working equine animals in the area around Jacobabad. Owners were asked about their knowledge and practices relating to their animals’ water requirements, wound management, and nostril-slitting. Soon after this, the Brooke created radio messages in the local language discussing these three practices. These were transmitted daily on FM radio between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. from Dec. 16, 2011 until Jan. 14, 2012.

Once the transmission phase was completed, the original questionnaire was repeated. Findings in relation to knowledge and reported practices were compared before and after transmission