The annual conference Year of the Horse World Horse Welfare highlighted the significance of the world’s most extensive equine surfaces study. The study, entitled "Equine Surfaces White Paper" is the result of a four-year collaboration between eight equine experts from six universities, three equine and racing-specific research and testing centers and two horse charities in Sweden, the UK and United States.
Research on best arena and turf surfaces for horses
The white paper brings together the latest data and published scientific papers on equine arena and turf surfaces, and the effects these have on horses in training and in competition.
The white paper brings together the latest data and published scientific papers on arena and turf surfaces, and the effects these have on horses in training and in competition. Key properties of footing, and the effects of footing on horses’ physiological and biomechanical responses, are described in the white paper, as well as the optimal composition, construction and maintenance of arenas for maximizing equine performance while minimizing injury risk.
Current methods of measuring the physical properties of surfaces, and the essential surface preparation and maintenance techniques, are also discussed in the white paper in terms easily understood by riders, trainers, course designers and arena builders, in order to guide future progress in providing suitable competition and training surfaces for sport horses.
World Horse Welfare Chief Executive, Roly Owers says: "World Horse Welfare was looking to produce some evidence-based guidance on the most suitable riding surfaces with the lowest risk of injury."
"Our charity’s welfare advice line often receives calls from both private horse owners and riding schools asking about the construction, use and maintenance of riding arena surfaces. This detailed study, which we were happy to invest in as part of our support for the responsible use of horses in sport, will offer people a much better picture than has previously been available.”
“The Equine Surfaces White Paper is the biggest international collaboration of its kind, and is vital to understanding how surfaces work in order to reduce injury risks to horses,” said John McEwen, FEI 1st Vice President and Chair of the FEI Veterinary Committee. “Now, thanks to scientific research, and extensive support and partnership between welfare charities and horse sport, we can fully understand how the right surfaces, with the necessary preparation and ongoing maintenance, can extend the working lives of sport horses and produce the best performances.”
The white paper was funded by the FEI, World Horse Welfare, the Swedish Foundation for Equine Research and the British Equestrian Federation, working with lead author Dr Sarah Jane Hobbs - research lead in equine biomechanics at the University of Central Lancashire (GBR) and member of Research and Consultancy in Equine Surfaces (RACES) - and seven equine scientists and researchers in the UK, USA and Sweden.
The highlights of the white paper were presented on the first day of the FEI Sports Forum on 28 April by Lars Roepstorff, Professor of functional anatomy of domestic animals at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. “We now have the latest scientific knowledge on equine surfaces contained in one place, thanks to an intensive global effort over several years,” he said.