Since early March, Equestrian Canada, our national affiliates and provincial counterparts have been lobbying the federal government for help. We've been repeatedly pushed between ministries of agriculture and heritage, with still no confirmation of where we fit. The ministry of heritage and sport representatives have made it clear that on-farm businesses do not fall within their jurisdiction, and we understand that.
Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada has spent the past weeks engaging with us in trying to find solutions, with no tangible outcomes as yet. We have demonstrated to the representatives within AAFC that our sector cannot meet eligibility requirements and prerequisites for AAFC and agriculture-specific programs or relief dollars. This is because very few equine operations can demonstrate farm income on their income taxes as per the definitions within Canada's Income Tax Act.
Currently there is not one emergency relief program that addresses the costs of maintaining the care and welfare of working horses. These animals have a unique set of skills that take years to develop, and they contribute to a business for many years after.
We know, based on a survey we released at the end of March, that 60% of our businesses were out of resources to maintain the horses' care and welfare a month ago and even more are affected now. Owners are now being forced to cull and euthanize their perfectly healthy and capable working horses. This is not a worst-case scenario; it is already happening. To make things worse, this is the time of year when these businesses earn the bulk of their revenue which covers them for the rest of the year. If this issue is not immediately addressed, owners will continue to offload their horses because they cannot afford to care for them and they will not be able to reopen their businesses again.
We've requested from AAFC a modest amount that would have a paramount impact on the sector and the animals. This ask is based on the projected number of equine farms in Canada that are at risk right now and the median cost of care for these working horses. We estimate the cost to support at-risk working horses in Canada for one month to be $17.2 million. If AAFC were to provide a fund that covered 75%, we project the total cost to AAFC to be $12.9 million per month. This coverage would be a huge help in offsetting the challenges these farms are facing right now.
Our sector has come together to support each other through this crisis, including multiple fundraisers, fostering and adoption programs and supply sharing. We've also developed sector-specific guidelines to prepare for reopening. Some provinces and regions are allowing equine businesses to resume some activity, but this comes with additional costs to meet new biosecurity protocols and the new reality of COVID-19. We're continually monitoring what current programs are and are not working for our sector and provide this feedback to government regularly.
I would like to thank the government for what it has done to help Canadians through this challenging time. I would also like to thank the members of this committee who have met previously with Equestrian Canada and our members and expressed their sympathy and a desire to help us.
We are aware that COVID-19 has been devastating for many Canadian sectors, but our horses and our livelihoods are at stake.