Timing of Vertical Head, Withers and Pelvis Movements Relative to the Footfalls in Different Equine Gaits and Breeds.
Authors: Rhodin, Smit, Persson-Sjodin, Pfau, Gunnarsson, Björnsdóttir, Zetterberg, Clayton, Hobbs, Serra Bragança, Hernlund
Journal: Animals : an open access journal from MDPI
Summary
# Editorial Summary Understanding how the head, withers and pelvis move vertically during different gaits is fundamental to developing reliable automated lameness detection systems, yet most research has focused narrowly on trotting. Researchers from multiple institutions used inertial measurement unit sensors to track vertical body segment motion across walk, trot, tölt and pace in three distinct breeds—19 Warmbloods, 23 Iberians and 26 Icelandic horses—chosen specifically for their known kinematic differences. In trot and the gaited movements (tölt and pace), the lowest point of pelvic and withers motion synchronised closely with midstance and the beginning of suspension phases in the hindquarters and forequarters respectively, establishing a clear temporal relationship between axial and limb kinematics. Importantly, Icelandic horses demonstrated significantly smaller ranges of vertical motion in the pelvis and withers compared to both other breeds, which has direct implications for practitioners: this reduced motion amplitude likely explains why detecting lameness visually in Icelandic breeds is particularly challenging and suggests that automated detection algorithms calibrated on Warmblood data may perform poorly in gaited horses. These findings provide a breed-specific framework for interpreting normal movement patterns and should inform the development of gait analysis systems that account for breed variation rather than relying on universal parameters.
Read the full abstract on PubMed
Practical Takeaways
- •Lameness detection algorithms must account for breed-specific baseline motion patterns; Icelandic horses' naturally smaller vertical movements could mask subtle lameness signs requiring adjusted thresholds for this breed
- •Understanding the temporal relationship between body segment motion and limb events provides objective reference data for evaluating gait abnormalities in different gaits and breeds
- •Breed selection affects baseline kinematic signatures—practitioners evaluating sport horses should recognize that smaller range of motion in Icelandic horses is normal variation, not necessarily pathological
Key Findings
- •Pelvis and withers lowest/highest positions correlate temporally with midstance and suspension phases in all gaits except walk and pace
- •Icelandic horses demonstrated significantly smaller pelvic and withers range of motion compared to Warmbloods and Iberians across gaits
- •Breed-specific differences in vertical axial body segment motion may complicate lameness detection, particularly in Icelandic horses with naturally reduced motion patterns
- •Novel kinematic data established for tölt and pace gaits in Icelandic horses using inertial measurement unit sensors