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Agreement of the morphometric dimensions determined by traditional and image analysis methods for Arabian and Thoroughbred horses.
Abstract: The aim of this method agreement study was to agree on traditional and digital measuring methods using a smartphone. For this purpose, in total, 48 purebred horses (24 Arabian and 24 Thoroughbred) were used in this study. Lengths of the head, neck, body, back, and rump; heights of the shoulder, withers, rump, and toe; widths of the head, chest, and front chest; and depths of the chest dimensions were taken from the horses to evaluate the agreement of the traditional and digital measuring method results. The results of these two methods were compared by linear regression and Bland-Altman plot analysis. The results of the digital analysis were strongly correlated with the traditional method results for Arabian and Thoroughbred horses ( , ). As a result of the Bland-Altman plot analysis, 95.2 % of the differentiation value points of Arabian horses and 94.9 % of the differentiation value points of Thoroughbred horses were within the 95 % limit-of-agreement (LOA) interval. The values of agreement indices (AIs) for Arabian horses were between 0.92 and 1.00, and the values for Thoroughbred horses were between 0.95 and 0.99. These results indicate great agreement between these two methods. The main limitations of this study are the study population and measurement regions, which are limited to defined regions. This study concludes that, although all dimensions have not been examined, the length, width, height, and depth dimensions of these horses demonstrate excellent accuracy between traditional and digital assessment methods.
Copyright: © 2025 Necmettin Ünal et al.
Publication Date: 2025-04-02 PubMed ID: 42317605PubMed Central: PMC13275030DOI: 10.5194/aab-68-253-2025Google Scholar: Lookup The Equine Research Bank provides access to a large database of publicly available scientific literature. Inclusion in the Research Bank does not imply endorsement of study methods or findings by Mad Barn.
- Journal Article
Summary
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Overview
- This study evaluates the agreement between traditional manual measurements and digital measurements taken via smartphone images for morphometric dimensions in Arabian and Thoroughbred horses.
- The study aims to determine whether digital image analysis provides results comparable to conventional measuring methods, facilitating easier and reliable horse morphometry.
Study Purpose and Design
- The main goal was to assess the agreement between traditional (manual) and digital (smartphone-based) methods of measuring horse body dimensions.
- The study population consisted of 48 purebred horses, equally divided into 24 Arabian and 24 Thoroughbred horses, ensuring a balanced sample from two important breeds.
- Researchers focused specifically on morphometric dimensions relevant to horse conformation and size assessment, which include length, height, width, and depth measurements across various body parts.
Measured Dimensions
- Lengths measured: head, neck, body, back, and rump.
- Heights measured: shoulder, withers, rump, and toe.
- Widths measured: head, chest, and front chest.
- Depth measured: chest depth dimension.
- These dimensions are commonly used indicators of body conformation and overall physical traits of the horses.
Methodology and Statistical Analyses
- Traditional measurements were performed using standard physical tools directly on horses.
- Digital measurements were done by analyzing photographs taken with a smartphone using image processing techniques.
- The comparison between the two methods employed:
- Linear regression analysis to evaluate the correlation strength between both methods’ results.
- Bland-Altman plot analysis to assess agreement by evaluating differences between the two methods and visualizing limits of agreement (LOA).
Results
- The study found a strong correlation between traditional and digital methods for both Arabian and Thoroughbred horses, indicating that both measurement techniques produce closely related results.
- Bland-Altman analysis showed that:
- 95.2% of difference points for Arabian horses fell within the 95% limit of agreement.
- 94.9% of difference points for Thoroughbred horses were within the same limits, indicating good agreement and low bias.
- Agreement Indices (AIs), which quantify how well the two methods agree, ranged:
- From 0.92 to 1.00 for Arabian horses.
- From 0.95 to 0.99 for Thoroughbred horses.
- Values close to 1 signify excellent agreement.
- Overall, these results suggest near-equivalence between traditional and smartphone-based digital methods for the measured morphometric dimensions.
Limitations
- The study population was limited to 48 horses, which although balanced by breed, is relatively small and may not represent all horse populations or breeds.
- Measurements were restricted to specific body regions and dimensions; not all possible morphometric traits were examined.
- The study did not explore variability under different conditions such as movement, environmental lighting, or different smartphone models, possibly affecting digital measurement accuracy.
Conclusions and Implications
- The study concludes that digital image analysis using smartphone photos offers excellent accuracy when compared to traditional methods for measuring length, width, height, and depth dimensions in Arabian and Thoroughbred horses.
- This suggests that smartphone-based morphometric measurements could serve as a practical, less labor-intensive alternative to manual measurements in field or clinical settings.
- Future work might explore a broader range of breeds, additional body measurements, and the impact of various imaging conditions to further validate the digital method’s robustness.
- Such technology has potential application in equine breeding, health monitoring, and conformation evaluation where quick and reliable measurement is needed.
Cite This Article
APA
Ünal N, Paksoy Y, Güngör ÖF.
(2025).
Agreement of the morphometric dimensions determined by traditional and image analysis methods for Arabian and Thoroughbred horses.
Arch Anim Breed, 68(2), 253-261.
https://doi.org/10.5194/aab-68-253-2025 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Department of Animal Breeding and Husbandry, Ankara University Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ankara 06110, Türkiye.
- Necmettin Erbakan University, Eregli Kemal Akman Vocational School, Department of Plant and Animal Production, Konya 42090, Türkiye.
- Department of Veterinary, Vocational School, Bolu Abant Izzet Baysal University, Mudurnu, Bolu 14800, Türkiye.
Conflict of Interest Statement
The contact author has declared that none of the authors has any competing interests.
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