Researchers challenge common belief over shoeing dressage horses

A British study flora that the functioning of a dressage Equus caballus is unlikely to endure affected yesteryear beingness either shod or unshod.

The finding is inward contrast to the widely held belief that shoeing improves gait quality.

Warwickshire College researchers Richard Mott in addition to Julie Ellis, who presented their findings at the recent International Society for Equitation Science Conference inward Denmark, said electrical current literature showed that shoeing improved gait quality, only at the conduct chances of increasing concussion to the limbs.

“To brand an informed determination on whether to shoe or not, it is of import to quantify if the create goodness is worth the risk,” the brace reported to delegates.

They said their study was the laid out to compare the kinematics of horses that had been conditioned to beingness either shod or unshod for at to the lowest degree the previous 12 months, thereby looking at the practical implications for performance.

The highly meaning increases inward articulation flexion associated amongst beingness shod seen inward previous studies using non-conditioned horses could non endure replicated, they said.

Twenty adult Irish Gaelic Sport Horses used for a attain of activities from full general riding upward to novice dressage were used inward their study. Half were shod in addition to the other one-half unshod.

Each was recorded using a high-speed video photographic television camera inward trot inward manus on a non-waxed fibre/sand arena. They were so compared using the Kinovea gait analysis software package.

The differences betwixt the 2 weather condition were assessed against 5 previously determined kinematic criteria for gait character – footstep duration, fetlock extension, scapular rotation, elbow flexion in addition to carpal flexion.

Additional footstep parameters of speed, footstep length, maximum hoof vertical displacement in addition to swing duration were equally good compared using the software.

They flora that although in that location was a full general tendency towards greater articulation flexion inward the shod horses, the solely highly meaning differences were carpal flexion in addition to maximum hoof vertical displacement.

The cardinal dressage performance-related indicators of footstep duration, fetlock extension, scapular rotation in addition to elbow flexion showed no meaning differences according to pes treatment.

Stride length was significantly reduced amongst the shod sample.

It was postulated that horses larn habituated to the additional weight of shoes which, over time, reduces the initial effects that previous studies accept recorded inside 1-3 days of beingness shod for the laid out time.

“Having worn shoes for at to the lowest degree 12 months, shod horses did non display a meaning deviation inward iv of the 5 kinematic variables that correlate best amongst dressage marks in addition to were thence viewed equally non having a competitive payoff when compared to their unshod counterparts,” they told delegates.

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