Effects Of Gait When Working A Horse On Circles

Research into the effects of gait when a horse circles shows that speed affects the forces on joints, tendons, ligaments and hooves.

Work on a circle, both at liberty and under saddle, is an important part of training for horses in most disciplines. But gait affects the concussive forces on joints, tendons, ligaments and hooves when a horse travels in circles.

Now, a Michigan State University study suggests that when it comes to the force and pressure on a horse’s hooves, their gait of travel matters.

For the study, pressure- mapping Tekscan sensors were secured under the front shoes of nine horses. “Our Tekscan sensors can measure two things,” says Alyssa Logan (BS, MS, PhD Candidate). “How much force is applied, and over what area the force is applied. The [computer] program can then calculate the pressure from the force and area.”

A study on the effects of gait when a horse circles focused on the amount of force and pressure on his hooves.

The resulting data showed that during all types of work, the walk resulted in greater average hoof pressure than the trot or canter. When analyzing only the walk, the researchers found greater loading of the hooves when the horses moved on a straight line than when they circled. On average, a larger area of each horse’s outside front limb was loaded when they circled at a canter, compared to when they circled at a walk or trot.

With the sensors in place and calibrated, the researchers led each horse in a straight line at the walk and trot, then worked them in a round pen in a 32-foot diameter and a 49-foot diameter circle. Data was collected for a series of 10 steps, three separate times, in each set of conditions.

“This study found that ‘gait’ impacted our outputs (force, area, pressure) more than the exercise type (straight, small circle, large circle),” says Logan. “We did not control speed at all; we encouraged each horse to travel at the specific gait we requested and then let them travel at a speed they were comfortable with.”