Omneity® Pellets
All-In-One Vitamin & Mineral Pellet
Culling rate of Icelandic horses due to bone spavin.
Abstract: A survival analysis was used to compare the culling rate of Icelandic horses due to the presence of radiographic and clinical signs of bone spavin. A follow-up study of 508 horses from a survey five years earlier was performed. In the original survey 46% of the horses had radiographic signs of bone spavin (RS) and/or lameness after flexion test of the tarsus. The horse owners were interviewed by telephone. The owners were asked if the horses were still used for riding and if not, they were regarded as culled. The owners were then asked when and why the horses were culled. During the 5 years, 98 horses had been culled, 151 had been withdrawn (sold or selected for breeding) and 259 were still used for riding. Hind limb lameness (HLL) was the most common reason for culling (n = 42). The rate of culling was low up to the age of II years, when it rose to 0.05 for horses with RS. The risk ratio for culling was twice as high for horses with RS compared with horses without RS and 5.5 times higher for culling because of HLL. The risk of culling (prognostic value) was highest for the combination of RS with lameness after flexion test, next highest for RS and lowest for lameness after flexion test as the only finding. It was concluded that bone spavin affects the duration of use of Icelandic horses and is the most common cause of culling due to disease of riding horses in the age range of 7-17 years.
Publication Date: 2004-04-13 PubMed ID: 15074629PubMed Central: PMC1831549DOI: 10.1186/1751-0147-44-161Google 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
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.
This research investigates the rate at which Icelandic horses are taken out of service (culled) due to the symptoms of a bone deformity known as bone spavin. According to the study, horses with radiographic signs of bone spavin are twice as likely to be culled as those without, and the probability (risk ratio) of being culled is highest for horses exhibiting radiographic signs combined with lameness after a flexion test.
Study Details
- The study used survival analysis to assess the culling rate of Icelandic horses associated with bone spavin, a common equine joint disease characterized by lameness and deformity of the hock joint.
- The researchers conducted a follow-up on 508 horses that were studied five years prior. To gain information, the owners of these horses were interviewed via phone. If the horses were no longer being used for riding, they were considered as culled.
- Over the five-year period, 98 horses had been culled, 151 had been taken out of the riding pool (either sold or selected for breeding), and 259 were still used for riding. The primary reason for culling was hind limb lameness or HLL (42 occurrences).
Insights and Conclusions
- The act of culling was typically low until the horse reached the age of 11, at which point the rate increased, particularly for horses showing radiographic signs of bone spavin.
- The likelihood of culling was twice as high for horses with these radiographic signs compared to those without. The risk was even greater (5.5 times higher) for culling due to HLL.
- The highest risk of culling was observed in horses exhibiting both radiographic signs of bone spavin and lameness following a flexion test. The risk was somewhat lower for horses showing radiographic signs alone and lowest for horses displaying only lameness after the flexion test.
- The researchers concluded that the presence of bone spavin significantly impacts the usable lifespan of Icelandic horses, making it the most common reason for culling among riding horses aged 7-17 years due to disease.
Cite This Article
APA
Björnsdóttir S, Arnason T, Lord P.
(2004).
Culling rate of Icelandic horses due to bone spavin.
Acta Vet Scand, 44(3-4), 161-169.
https://doi.org/10.1186/1751-0147-44-161 Publication
Researcher Affiliations
- Hólar Agricultural College, Saudárkrókur, Iceland. systa@holar.is
MeSH Terms
- Animals
- Bone Diseases / epidemiology
- Bone Diseases / mortality
- Bone Diseases / veterinary
- Breeding
- Horse Diseases / epidemiology
- Horses
- Iceland / epidemiology
- Lameness, Animal / epidemiology
- Lameness, Animal / mortality
- Surveys and Questionnaires
- Survival Analysis
References
This article includes 14 references
- Björnsdóttir S, Axelsson M, Eksell P, Sigurdsson H, Carlsten J. A radiographic and clinical survey of degenerative joint disease in the distal tarsal joints in Icelandic horses.. Equine Vet J 2000;32:268–272.
- Ducrocq V. An analysis of length of productive life in dairy cattle.. PhD dissertation. Cornell University, Ithaca, NY; 1987.
- Ducrocq V. Extension of survival analysis models to discrete measures of longevity.. INTERBULL Bull 1999;21:41–47.
- Ducrocq V, Sölkner J. The Survival Kit V3.1 User's manual.. Station de Génétique Quantitative et Appliquée. Institut national de la Recherche Agronomique, F-78352 Jouy-en-Josas cedex, France; 1999.
- Gunnarsson E. Smitandi hitasótt í hrossum, rannsóknir á orsökum.. Dyralæknaritid 1998;1:13–17.
- Eksell P, Axelsson M, Broström H, Ronéus B, Häggström J, Carlsten J. Prevalence and risk factors of bone spavin in Icelandic horses in Sweden.. Acta Vet Scand 1998;39(3):339–348.
- Eksell P, Uhlhorn H, Carlsten J. Evaluation of different projections for radiographic detection of tarsal degenerative joint disease in Icelandic horses.. Vet radiol Ultrasound 1999;40:228–232.
- Halldórsdóttir S. Studies on summer eczema in Icelandic horses.. PhD dissertation. Norwegian Collage of Veterinary Medicine, Oslo; 1987.
- Kaplan EL, Meier P. Nonparametric estimation from incomplete observations.. J Am stat Ass 1958;53:457–481.
- Klein JP, Moeschberger M. Survival Analysis.. Springer, New York; 1997.
- Maddala GS. Limited-dependent and quantitative variables in econometrics.. Cambridge Univ. Press, UK; 1983.
- Prentice R, Gloeckler L. Regression analysis of grouped survival data with application to breast cancer data.. Biometrics 1978;34:57–67.
- Ricard A, Fournet-Hanocq F. Analysis of factors affecting length of competitive life of jumping horses.. Gen Sel Evol 1997;29:51–267.
- Wallin L, Strandberg E, Philipsson J, Dalin G. Estimates of longevity and causes of culling and death in Swedish warmblood and coldblood horses.. Livest Prod Sci 2000;63:275–289.
Citations
This article has been cited 3 times.- 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).
- Ríos DL, López C, Carmona JU. Platelet-Rich Gel Supernatants Stimulate the Release of Anti-Inflammatory Proteins on Culture Media of Normal Equine Synovial Membrane Explants. Vet Med Int 2015;2015:547052.
- Strand E, Braathen LC, Hellsten MC, Huse-Olsen L, Bjornsdottir S. Radiographic closure time of appendicular growth plates in the Icelandic horse. Acta Vet Scand 2007 Jul 17;49(1):19.
Use Nutrition Calculator
Check if your horse's diet meets their nutrition requirements with our easy-to-use tool Check your horse's diet with our easy-to-use tool
Talk to a Nutritionist
Discuss your horse's feeding plan with our experts over a free phone consultation Discuss your horse's diet over a phone consultation
Submit Diet Evaluation
Get a customized feeding plan for your horse formulated by our equine nutritionists Get a custom feeding plan formulated by our nutritionists
