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Topic:Equestrian
"Equestrian" encompasses the study and practice of horse riding, management, and care. This field covers a wide range of topics, including equine anatomy, physiology, behavior, nutrition, and training techniques. It also addresses the various disciplines within equestrian sports, such as dressage, show jumping, eventing, and endurance riding. Research within this area often focuses on improving horse welfare, enhancing performance, and understanding the human-animal bond in equestrian contexts. This page compiles peer-reviewed research studies and scholarly articles that explore the diverse aspects of equestrian activities and horse management, aiming to provide insights into best practices and advancements in the field.
Changes in Salivary Cortisol Concentration in Horses during Different Types of Exercise. This study aimed to estimate the change of stress level in horses based on cortisol concentration levels in their saliva. A total of 61 horses were divided into the following three groups: i) tourist riding experience (TR, n = 23); ii) resting group (RR, n = 14); and iii) horse-riding education (ER, n = 24). The saliva samples of TR and ER groups were taken using plain cotton Salivettes four times a day: at 07:00 (basal), 11:00 (Exercise 1, after 1-hour exercise in the morning), 14:00 (Exercise 2, after 1-hour exercise in the afternoon), and 16:00 (Exercise 3, after 1-hour exercise in the afte...
The Contribution of Equitation Science to Minimising Horse-Related Risks to Humans. Equitation science is an evidence-based approach to horse training and riding that focuses on a thorough understanding of both equine ethology and learning theory. This combination leads to more effective horse training, but also plays a role in keeping horse riders and trainers safe around horses. Equitation science underpins ethical equitation, and recognises the limits of the horse's cognitive and physical abilities. Equitation is an ancient practice that has benefited from a rich tradition that sees it flourishing in contemporary sporting pursuits. Despite its history, horse-riding is an a...
Introduction to Equine Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation. Physical therapy (physiotherapy, or PT) can be broadly defined as the restoration of movement and function and includes assessment, treatment, and rehabilitation. This review outlines the history, definition, and regulation of PT, followed by the core scientific principles of PT. Because musculoskeletal physiotherapy is the predominant subdiscipline in equine PT, encompassing poor performance, back pain syndromes, other musculoskeletal disorders, and some neuromuscular disorders, the sciences of functional biomechanics, neuromotor control, and the sensorimotor system in the spine, pelvis, and ...
Factors Influencing the Safety Behavior of German Equestrians: Attitudes towards Protective Equipment and Peer Behaviors. Human interactions with horses entail certain risks. Although the acceptance and use of protective gear is increasing, a high number of incidents and very low or inconsistent voluntary use of safety equipment are reported. While past studies have examined factors influencing the use of safety gear, they have explored neither their influence on the overall safety behavior, nor their relative influence in relation to each other. The aim of the present study is to fill this gap. We conducted an online survey with 2572 participants. By means of a subsequent multiple regression analysis, we explore...
Stride-related rein tension patterns in walk and trot in the ridden horse. The use of tack (equipment such as saddles and reins) and especially of bits because of rein tension resulting in pressure in the mouth is questioned because of welfare concerns. We hypothesised that rein tension patterns in walk and trot reflect general gait kinematics, but are also determined by individual horse and rider effects. Six professional riders rode three familiar horses in walk and trot. Horses were equipped with rein tension meters logged by inertial measurement unit technique. Left and right rein tension data were synchronized with the gait. Results: Stride split data (0-100 %) ...
Effect of repeated therapeutic horse riding sessions on the trunk movement of the rider. To assess the rider's movement during walking the horse in repeated therapeutic horse riding sessions and to determine the relationship between movements of the horse's back and the rider's trunk. Methods: A total of 12 healthy females (age: 23.3±2.8 years; height: 167.3±4.2 cm; weight: 59.2±5.3 kg) participated in 10 therapeutic horse riding sessions. Two English Thoroughbreds with similar body constitution (aged 19 and 14 years) were used in the experiment. Nine markers were placed on the rider's body and the horse's back, and four video cameras with a 25 Hz frequency were used. Colle...
A Nordic survey of management practices and owners’ attitudes towards keeping horses in groups. Keeping horses in groups is widely recommended but limited information is available about how this is implemented in practice. The aim of this survey was to describe how horses are kept in the Nordic countries in relation to sex, age, breed, and equestrian discipline and to assess owners' attitudes toward keeping horses in groups. Horse owners in Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Sweden were approached using a web-based questionnaire, which was translated into 4 languages and distributed online via equestrian forums, organizations, and social media. The number of respondents was 3,229, taking care...
Inroads into Equestrian Safety: Rider-Reported Factors Contributing to Horse-Related Accidents and Near Misses on Australian Roads. Horse riding and horse-related interactions are inherently dangerous. When they occur on public roads, the risk profile of equestrian activities is complicated by interactions with other road users. Research has identified speed, proximity, visibility, conspicuity and mutual misunderstanding as factors contributing to accidents and near misses. However, little is known about their significance or incidence in Australia. To explore road safety issues amongst Australian equestrians, we conducted an online survey. More than half of all riders (52%) reported having experienced at least one acciden...
A Critical Review of Horse-Related Risk: A Research Agenda for Safer Mounts, Riders and Equestrian Cultures. While the importance of improving horse-related safety seems self-evident, no comprehensive study into understanding or reducing horse-related risk has been undertaken. In this paper, we discuss four dimensions of horse-related risk: the risk itself, the horse, the rider and the culture in which equestrian activities takes place. We identify how the ways in which risk is constructed in each dimension affects the applicability of four basic risk management options of avoidance, transference, mitigation and acceptance. We find the acceptance and avoidance of horse-related risk is generally high,...
Human Preferences for Conformation Attributes and Head-And-Neck Positions in Horses. Human preferences for certain morphological attributes among domestic animals may be entirely individual or, more generally, may reflect evolutionary pressures that favor certain conformation. Artificial selection for attributes, such as short heads and crested necks of horses, may have functional and welfare implications because there is evidence from other species that skull shape co-varies with behaviour. Crested necks can be accentuated by flexion of the neck, a quality that is often manipulated in photographs vendors use when selling horses. Equine head-and-neck positions acquired through...
Saddles and girths: What is new? Several studies have shown that there is a high prevalence of ill-fitting saddles. Many riders do not have saddle fit professionally assessed on at least an annual basis. Back dimensions can change considerably over the period of a year and therefore saddle fit should be assessed several times yearly, especially if work intensity has been altered. Saddle fit should be evaluated before and after exercise because back dimensions can change during work. Ideally, horses should be ridden in individual purpose-fitted saddles, rather than the same saddle being used on several horses. There remains li...
Subjective analysis of exercise-induced changes in back dimensions of the horse: The influence of saddle-fit, rider skill and work quality. Recommendations concerning saddle-fit are empirical rather than based on scientific information. A saddle needs to fit the horse in motion, but there has been no investigation of whether the thoracolumbar region changes in dimensions in association with exercise. The objectives of this study were to quantify exercise-induced back dimension changes and to describe the association with work quality, saddle-fit and rider skill. Sixty-three sports horses in regular work were assessed prospectively in a non-random, cross-sectional survey. Thoracolumbar dimensions/symmetries were measured at predete...
[Prevention of injuries associated with horseback riding]. Each year 9,900 equestrians present at Accident and Emergency Departments, 40% of them 10-19 year old females. The most common horse-riding injuries are to the head, brain, neck and face, torso and extremities. Because of the relatively larger head, children more often fall on their head. Wearing a helmet gives considerable protection. Despite the common use of a helmet by horseback riders, serious head injury still occurs regularly. Further research into improvement of the protective function of the helmet is indicated. The current safety vest (body protector) does not significantly reduce th...
National Equine Forum: Taking up the reins on equine issues. Gill Harris reports from this year's National Equine Forum, where one of the main themes was the horse industry and government. The forum, held in London on March 5, was attended by more than 200 people with a connection to the equestrian industry. Lord de Mauley, parliamentary undersecretary of state for natural environment and science at Defra, set the course of the proceedings.
A Critical Analysis of the British Horseracing Authority’s Review of the Use of the Whip in Horseracing. There is increasing controversy about the use of the whip as a performance aid in Thoroughbred horseracing and its impact on horse welfare. This paper offers a critical analysis of the British Horseracing Authority's (BHA) 2011 Report Responsible Regulation: A Review of the Use of the Whip in Horseracing. It examines the BHA's process of consultation and use of science and public opinion research through the application of current scientific literature and legal analysis. This analysis suggests that the BHA's findings on the welfare impact and justification for whip use are insufficiently defe...
Differences in rider movement pattern between different degrees of collection at the trot in high-level dressage horses ridden on a treadmill. Collection is a central term in equine dressage, defined as a shortening of the horse's stride length with retained energy and hind limb activity. How collection is induced by the rider has yet not been investigated objectively. The aim of this study was therefore to compare the movement pattern of high-level dressage riders between free trot (loose reins), passage and a range of three speeds in collected trot. Both at higher speed in collected trot and in passage, the rider's pelvis became more caudally rotated and the rider's lumbar back became more flexed. However, in passage there was also...
My Horse Is My Therapist: The Medicalization of Pleasure among Women Equestrians. Pink t-shirts that proclaim "My horse is my therapist" are for sale in a wide variety of horse-sport catalogues. Literature on the healing power of human-nonhuman animal encounters and the practice of a variety of animal-assisted therapy programs, such as hippotherapy and equine-facilitated therapy, show dramatic growth over the last 30 years. Less attention is paid to the role that horse-human interactions may play in more popular accountings of well-being and impairment among a sample of everyday riders. Analysis of 50 lifecycle narratives, collected from accomplished but nonprofessional equ...
Saddle fit and management: An investigation of the association with equine thoracolumbar asymmetries, horse and rider health. No previous studies have investigated interrelationships between saddle fit/management, equine thoracolumbar asymmetries, rider and horse health. Objective: To assess associations between data obtained by clinical assessment and those provided by riders via a questionnaire. Methods: Clinical assessment of a convenience sample of horses and riders compared with a Web-based questionnaire survey (n = 205). Methods: Horse thoracolumbar asymmetries at predetermined sites, the presence of lameness (in hand and/or ridden), saddle slip, saddle fit/management and rider straightness were assessed. Kappa...
