Evaluation of consistency of jumping technique in horses between the ages of 6 months and 4 years.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether differences in jumping technique among horses are consistent at various ages.


METHODS
12 Dutch Warmblood horses.


METHODS
Kinematics were recorded during free jumps of horses when they were 6 months old (ie, no jumping experience) and 4 years old (ie, the horses had started their training period to become show jumpers). Mean +/- SD height of the horses was 1.40 +/- 0.04 m at 6 months of age and 1.70 +/- 0.05 m at 4 years of age.


RESULTS
Strong correlations were found between values from 6-month-old foals and 4-year-old horses for variables such as peak vertical acceleration generated by the hind limbs (r, 0.91), peak rate of change of effective energy generated by the hind limbs (r, 0.71), vertical velocity at takeoff (r, 0.65), vertical displacement of the center of gravity during the airborne phase (r, 0.81), and duration of the airborne phase (r, 0.70).


CONCLUSIONS
Although there are substantial anatomic and behavioral changes during the growing period, certain characteristics of jumping technique observed in naïve 4-year-olds are already detectable when those horses are foals.
Santamaría
Susana
S
Department of Equine Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Utrecht University, Yalelaan 12, NL-3584 CM Utrecht, The Netherlands.
Bobbert
Maarten E
ME
Back
Willem
W
Barneveld
Ab
A
van Weeren
P René
PR
D000054:Acceleration; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D001696:Biomechanical Phenomena; D005552:Forelimb / Q000502:physiology; D005684:Gait / Q000502:physiology*; D006614:Hindlimb / Q000502:physiology; D006736:Horses / Q000502:physiology*; D008124:Locomotion / Q000502:physiology*; D008954:Models, Biological; D014741:Video Recording