Veterinary aspects of racing and training horses used for harness racing (trotters and pacers)

Clinical findings and prognosis of interference injuries to the palmar aspect of the forelimbs in Standardbred racehorses: A study on 74 cases

“…At high speed, joint flexion and peak height of the hind hooves increase during the swing phase of the stride , which may increase the risk of hind hooves reaching the palmar aspect of the forelimbs. Despite higher speed being reported previously as a possible risk factor for the occurrence of interference injuries in Standardbred racehorses , we did not observe an association between likelihood of injury and racing speed. Shoeing increases inertia in the distal limb and maximal height of the flight arc of the foot during the swing phase of the stride .…”

“…Interference injuries are believed to stem from incoordination or muscular fatigue . Drivers also ascribe these injuries to unexpected interactions with other animals during racing.…”

Effect of horse sex status on British Eventing competition performance: an observational study between 1998 and 2016

“…As the cross country course is long and involves sections of galloping it is the greatest test of speed and endurance in eventing 22 . In racing, thoroughbred males have been shown to have significantly superior running ability, 18 as have standardbred trotters and pacers 23 24 . It is therefore not surprising that males outperform mares in XCT (Table 2).…”

Dynamic evaluation of toe–heel and medio-lateral load distribution and hoof landing patterns in sound, unshod Standardbred horses with toed-in, toed-out and normal hoof conformation

“…As a limitation of the study, the horses were walked and trotted in-hand over the pressure plate, resulting in a lower trot velocity (velocity 3.37 AE 0.45 m/s) than in a Standardbred race (minimally required velocity, 2 min 30 s for 1.6 k = 10.73 m/s; Coroucé-Malblanc and Hinchcliff, 2014). As the use of our pressure plate system is limited to the research setting described in this study, measurements at higher velocities on the racetrack could not be performed.…”