An Investigation of the Role of Ridden Exercise, Including Application of the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram, in Pre-Purchase Examinations of Sports Horses.

Overview

• This study investigated how evaluating horses during ridden exercise, including using the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE), affects pre-purchase examination decisions and the long-term performance of sports horses.

Background

• Pre-purchase examinations (PPEs) are routine veterinary checks conducted before a horse is purchased.
• Traditional PPEs often do not include ridden exercise assessments, despite evidence that some lameness and gait problems may only appear when the horse is ridden.
• The Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE) is a tool designed to detect signs of pain through observation of gait and behaviour during ridden exercise.

Objectives

• To assess how ridden exercise results influence risk evaluation in horse purchase decisions.
• To determine whether ridden exercise and RHpE scores can predict long-term performance outcomes of the horses.

Methodology

• 25 sports horses underwent PPEs that included ridden exercises to evaluate gait and application of the RHpE.
• RHpE scoring: a scale out of 24 indicating pain-related behaviours; a score ≤4 suggests low pain levels.
• Follow-up information on horse performance was obtained from British Eventing, British Dressage, and British Showjumping organizations.

Findings

• Eight horses were rated as reasonable risks for purchase:
• None showed lameness during ridden exercise.
• All had RHpE scores ≤ 4/24, indicating minimal pain behaviour.
• Six horses met purchaser expectations and advanced to compete at higher levels.
• One horse was lost due to an unrelated accident, and one developed lameness later.
• Three horses had RHpE scores of 3 or 4 and were considered potentially suitable but with reservations:
• None were purchased.
• Only one returned to competition after an 18-month gap.
• The remaining horses were considered high risk based on their RHpE scores and ridden exercise observations:
• 12 horses were ridden and had a median RHpE score of 6/12 (range 4-16), indicating more pain-related behaviours and gait issues.
• Six showed clear lameness during ridden exercise, and six had canter dysfunction.
• Only one continued competing immediately, with three others returning after a delay of six to eighteen months.

Implications

• Including ridden exercise assessments, particularly using the RHpE, provided significant benefits in identifying lameness and gait dysfunction that could impact purchase decisions.
• Horses with low RHpE scores and no observed lameness during ridden exercise tended to perform well long-term and met purchaser expectations.
• High RHpE scores and visible gait problems correlated with poorer performance outcomes and increased risk status.
• These results suggest that ridden exercise evaluations should be routinely included in PPEs to more accurately assess health and performance risk.
• The study was small (25 horses) and conducted over six months, but the detailed long-term follow-up strengthened the findings.