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Animals : an open access journal from MDPI2021; 11(6); doi: 10.3390/ani11061820

Application of the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram to Horses Competing at the Hickstead-Rotterdam Grand Prix Challenge and the British Dressage Grand Prix National Championship 2020 and Comparison with World Cup Grand Prix Competitions.

Abstract: The Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE) comprising 24 behaviours was developed to facilitate the identification of musculoskeletal discomfort, with scores of ≥8/24 indicating the presence of pain. The median RHpE score for 147 competitors at World Cup Grand Prix events from 2018 to 2020 was three (interquartile range [IQR] 1-4; range 0-7). The aim of the current study was to apply the RHpE to 38 competitors at the Hickstead-Rotterdam Grand Prix Challenge and 26 competitors at the British Dressage Grand Prix National Championship in 2020. The median RHpE scores were four (IQR 3-6; range 0-8) and six (IQR 4-7; range 1-9), respectively, which were both higher (p = 0.0011 and p = 0.0000) than the World Cup competitors' scores. Ears back ≥ 5 s (p = 0.005), intense stare ≥ 5 s (p = 0.000), repeated tail swishing (p = 0.000), hindlimb toe drag (p = 0.000), repeated tongue-out (p = 0.003) and crooked tail-carriage (p = 0.000) occurred more frequently. These were associated with a higher frequency of lameness, abnormalities of canter, and errors in rein-back, passage and piaffe, canter flying-changes and canter pirouettes compared with World Cup competitors. There was a moderate negative correlation between the dressage judges' scores and the RHpE scores (Spearman's rho -0.66, p = 0.0002) at the British Championship. Performance and welfare may be improved by recognition and appropriate treatment of underlying problems.
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Publication Date: 2021-06-18 PubMed ID: 34207251PubMed Central: PMC8235099DOI: 10.3390/ani11061820Google Scholar: Lookup
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  • Journal Article

Summary

This research summary has been generated with artificial intelligence and may contain errors and omissions. Refer to the original study to confirm details provided. Submit correction.

The research investigates potential indicators of pain in competitive horses using a scoring tool called the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE). Notably, researchers found that horses competing in the Hickstead-Rotterdam Grand Prix Challenge and the British Dressage Grand Prix National Championship in 2020 showed higher signs of discomfort compared to horses from the World Cup Grand Prix events from 2018 to 2020.

Research Context and Methodology

  • The study bases its investigation on the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE), a tool that employs 24 behavioral signs to measure instances of discomfort in horses.
  • An RHpE score of 8 or more out of 24 is considered indicative of pain.
  • The study compared RHpE scores of 147 competitors from World Cup Grand Prix events from 2018-2020 with 38 competitors at the Hickstead-Rotterdam Grand Prix Challenge and 26 competitors at the British Dressage Grand Prix National Championship in 2020.

Findings and Conclusions

  • Medians scores in the Hickstead-Rotterdam Grand Prix and British Dressage Grand Prix were higher than their World Cup counterparts, suggesting a greater instance of discomfort among these groups of horses.
  • The study identified a series of behaviors that occurred more frequently among these high-scoring horses, such as ears maintained back for over 5 seconds, an intense stare that lasted 5 or more seconds, repeated tail swishing, hindlimb toe drag, frequent tongue protruding, and crooked tail-carriage.
  • These behaviors were typically accompanied by lameness, irregularities in the canter, and errors in a range of specific dressage movements.
  • The study also found a moderate negative correlation between dressage judges’ scores and RHpE scores in the British Championship, suggesting that discomfort or pain could potentially negatively impact performance.
  • The researchers suggest that better recognition and treatment of underlying issues could improve both performance and welfare for the horses involved in competition.

Cite This Article

APA
Dyson S, Pollard D. (2021). Application of the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram to Horses Competing at the Hickstead-Rotterdam Grand Prix Challenge and the British Dressage Grand Prix National Championship 2020 and Comparison with World Cup Grand Prix Competitions. Animals (Basel), 11(6). https://doi.org/10.3390/ani11061820

Publication

Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
ISSN: 2076-2615
NlmUniqueID: 101635614
Country: Switzerland
Language: English
Volume: 11
Issue: 6

Researcher Affiliations

Dyson, Sue
  • The Cottage, Church Road, Market Weston, Diss IP22 2NX, UK.
Pollard, Danica
  • The Rodhams, Rodham Road, Christchurch, Wisbech PE14 9NU, UK.

Conflict of Interest Statement

The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Citations

This article has been cited 8 times.
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  2. Boado A, Pollard D, Dyson S. A Retrospective Study of the Evolution of Orthopaedic Injuries in 70 Dressage Horses. Animals (Basel) 2025 Jun 12;15(12).
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  3. Hall C, Kay R. Living the good life? A systematic review of behavioural signs of affective state in the domestic horse (Equus caballus) and factors relating to quality of life. Part 2: Horse-human interactions. Anim Welf 2024;33:e41.
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  4. Dyson S, Pollard D. Determination of Equine Behaviour in Subjectively Non-Lame Ridden Sports Horses and Comparison with Lame Sports Horses Evaluated at Competitions. Animals (Basel) 2024 Jun 20;14(12).
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  5. Scholler D, Wittenberg J, Zablotski Y, May A. Do tight nosebands have an effect on the upper airways of horses?. Vet Med Sci 2024 Jul;10(4):e1478.
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  7. Dyson S, Pollard D. Application of the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram to 150 Horses with Musculoskeletal Pain before and after Diagnostic Anaesthesia. Animals (Basel) 2023 Jun 9;13(12).
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  8. Dyson S, Pollard D. Application of the Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram to Horses Competing in British Eventing 90, 100 and Novice One-Day Events and Comparison with Performance. Animals (Basel) 2022 Feb 25;12(5).
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