April 19, 2006 — Horses in the wild never carry anything on their backs, and now a new study has found that when a horse bears the weight of a rider, it adjusts the position of its back and alters its limb movements, all of which could contribute to back pain and injury.

The determination adds to a growing body of evidence that horses used for recreational or sporting purposes are at risk for health problems associated with these activities. Many scientists, such as Patricia de Cocq, who led the recent study, hope the findings will improve conditions for horses in future.

"The goal of this study is to advise horse trainers and saddle fitters on how to prevent injuries," said de Cocq, who is a researcher in the Experimental Zoology Group at Wageningen University in the Netherlands.

For the study, de Cocq placed special infrared light reflective markers on horses that were on treadmills. Infrared cameras used the reflected light to generate 3-D images that focused on horse back vertebrae, joints and limbs as the animals walked with and without loads. The maximum total weight was approximately 165 pounds.

She found that while all weight caused a horse to adjust its back position, the saddle with a rider led to the greatest adjustment.

"During walk, trot and canter, the position of the (horse's) back is more extended in the situation with a saddle and weight," de Cocq told Discovery News. "Although the back is more extended during the complete stride cycle, total movement — expressed as range of motion — stays the same."

The findings were presented at the Society for Experimental Biology's annual meeting in England earlier this month.

The back extension, according to de Cocq, is consistent with probable causes for the condition of "kissing spines," when loads and repeated undulations push parts of the horse's back close together.

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