ENROL TODAY

An overview and FAQ of getting started in equine business.

In this unit, you’ll gain essential knowledge about equine evolution, breeds, and behaviour — crucial for anyone planning to own or operate an equine business. Understanding how different breeds develop, how their genetics and environment shape their abilities and behaviours, and how to recognise normal vs. abnormal behaviours gives you a competitive edge when managing horses, designing services, or advising clients.

As a business owner, your reputation and success depend on your ability to ensure the safety, welfare, and wellbeing of the horses in your care. You’ll learn how horses establish social hierarchies, how to read body language to predict responses to new environments, and how to spot early signs of stress, discomfort, or behavioural issues — skills that are essential whether you’re running a riding school, agistment property, breeding business, or training facility.

This knowledge also helps you develop effective enrichment strategies to keep horses mentally stimulated and physically healthy — not only improving their welfare but also ensuring clients see your business as a trustworthy and knowledgeable provider. You'll cover how to manage and reduce stereotypical behaviours (like cribbing or weaving) and how to implement and monitor enrichment plans that promote happier, healthier horses.

By grounding your business practices in sound equine knowledge, you can confidently promote your expertise, deliver exceptional care, and stand out in the equine industry. This unit lays the foundation for building a business that prioritises both equine welfare and professional success.

This unit will equip you with the critical health and safety knowledge you’ll need to operate legally, ethically, and safely in the equine industry.

You’ll learn how to understand and uphold your Duty of Care as a business owner, ensuring that staff, clients, and visitors are protected from harm. This includes identifying common workplace hazards, assessing risks, and implementing preventative measures to avoid accidents before they happen. Whether you're running a riding school, agistment property, breeding facility, or training service, understanding liability and legal responsibilities is essential to safeguarding your business.

This unit also covers basic first aid for humans, ensuring that you or your team can respond quickly and confidently to minor injuries or emergencies on-site — a valuable skillset that can instil trust and professionalism with your clients.

Ultimately, a safe workplace protects your horses, your clients, and your business reputation. By understanding and following best practice health and safety procedures, you not only comply with industry expectations, but you also show that your business values professionalism, care, and responsibility, all of which are key to building trust and attracting clients in the competitive equine industry.

Preventative health care is one of the most valuable investments you can make as an equine business owner. This unit will teach you how proactive care — such as routine worming, infection control, dental maintenance, hoof care, and early disease prevention — not only protects your horses from pain, stress, and illness but also safeguards your business’s reputation, time, and financial resources. Healthy horses are the foundation of any successful equine business, whether you’re offering riding lessons, breeding services, or agistment. By implementing regular preventative strategies, you can avoid costly emergency treatments, reduce downtime caused by injuries or illness, and create a safe, professional environment that clients trust. Understanding how to manage both routine care and emergency procedures will empower you to confidently care for your horses and operate a business where horse welfare and profitability go hand in hand.

In any successful equine business, the health and welfare of the horses under your care directly impacts your reputation, operational success, and legal compliance. This unit introduces students to the essential skills of recognising signs of ill health, conducting routine health checks, and safely handling and retraining horses during recovery. Understanding equine first aid, managing proud flesh, and developing good treatment and rehabilitation practices are critical for minimising downtime, preventing long-term health issues, and ensuring horses can return to work safely.

Beyond practical skills, this unit emphasises your ethical and legal responsibilities under animal welfare legislation, including the requirement to provide timely and appropriate veterinary care. Ignoring these obligations can lead to legal penalties and reputational damage, both of which can threaten your business. By mastering equine health management and rehabilitation, you’re not only fulfilling your duty of care but also protecting the long-term sustainability and professional standing of your equine business.

Proper nutrition is the foundation of every horse’s health and performance, and in a professional equine business, understanding and managing your horses' dietary needs is essential for both their wellbeing and your bottom line. This unit equips students with the critical knowledge to determine nutritional requirements, calculate feed quantities, assess feed quality, and implement safe feeding practices in a business environment.

Whether you are managing an agistment centre, riding school, sanctuary, or feed store, understanding the horse’s digestive system, feeding rules, and how nutrition impacts overall health will allow you to make informed decisions that improve animal welfare and reduce preventable health issues. This unit also covers proper feed storage, equipment, and monitoring waste indicators to ensure your feeding programs are cost-effective and safe.

Strong nutritional management doesn’t just benefit the horses — it builds client trust, enhances your business’s reputation, and ensures you are running a facility that prioritises both animal welfare and operational efficiency. By mastering equine nutrition, you’ll be equipped to confidently guide clients, make smart purchasing decisions, and create feeding programs that support healthy, happy horses — a cornerstone of any successful equine business.

Animal welfare is at the core of any responsible equine business. As a business owner, you have a legal and ethical obligation to ensure the horses in your care are treated with respect, compassion, and professionalism. This unit introduces the principles of animal welfare, focusing on both physical and psychological wellbeing—a crucial yet often overlooked aspect of equine management.

You’ll learn about regulations, guidelines, and enforcement laws that protect horses and how to ensure compliance with liability requirements within your business. Understanding best practices in welfare doesn’t just protect the horses—it also protects your reputation, your clients' trust, and the long-term success of your business.

By aligning with Australia’s globally recognised animal welfare standards, this unit will equip you with industry-leading knowledge to operate an equine business that prioritises both ethical responsibility and professional excellence. Whether you’re running a riding school, agistment centre, or breeding operation, ensuring high welfare standards will help you build a sustainable, respected, and successful business.

Effective groundwork and safe transportation are essential skills for any equine business owner, ensuring both horse welfare and handler safety. This unit will teach you how to observe and respond to individual horse behaviours, apply control motions, and establish your role as a confident and effective leader.

Whether you're preparing a horse for training, managing clients' horses, or overseeing a busy equine facility, mastering desensitisation techniques and safe handling practices will help you reduce stress, prevent injuries, and build trust with the horses you work with.

In addition, this unit covers safe transportation procedures, ensuring you understand how to load, unload, and transport horses securely—a crucial skill in competition settings, breeding programs, sales, or emergency situations. By developing these skills, you’ll not only improve your ability to handle horses professionally but also enhance your business’s reputation for safety, reliability, and expert horsemanship.

This unit details the knowledge and skills required to create and operate an equine business and covers the process needed to develop and implement a business plan specific to the equine industry.

Business plans are essential tools for the growth and development of equine businesses and will vary depending on the specific needs of the business within the equine industry. This unit covers the elements and standards needed for the development of a business plan tailored to the equine industry. The business plan should be supported by a strategic plan and a marketing plan specific to the equine business and may also be supported by cash flow forecasts within the context of an equine business.

The basics of marketing

Marketing for Equine Businesses consists of various strategies for communicating with customers. These can include paid advertising, event appearances, public relations campaigns, online traffic, social media, email promotions, and more.

Each of these marketing mediums connects with a different type of customer, reaches a different number of people, and costs a different amount to perform. As a result, each business will need a different mix of tools to create an effective marketing strategy, the marketing mix.

An effective marketing mix leads to the growth of the business, which can happen in one of four ways:

• Getting more customers.

• Getting customers to buy more products.

• Getting customers to buy more expensive products

• Getting customers to buy more profitable products