Survey: Limbs, Not Feet, Main Cause of Lameness

A British survey revealed that lameness is three times more likely to be caused by limb conditions than hoof problems.
Share
Favorite
Close

No account yet? Register

ADVERTISEMENT

We’re all familiar with the old adage “no foot, no horse,” but the results of the latest British National Equine Health Survey (NEHS) suggest that lameness is three times more likely to be caused by conditions in the limb rather than problems in the foot.

The results are consistent with previous NEHS survey findings, showing evidence rather than opinion is now being generated by report, helping owners and experts to understand and improve the health of the country’s 944,000 horses.

Blue Cross, a British animal welfare charity, runs NEHS in May each year, in partnership with the British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA). It is sponsored by SPILLERS and Zoetis and supported by the U.K.’s leading equestrian organizations and charities. This year saw a 35% increase in participation compared to 2014, with survey records returned for almost 15,000 horses, ponies, donkeys, and mules.

The horse’s foot is fundamental to soundness and performance, but NEHS results have shown consistently that limb lameness, as opposed to foot lameness, is in fact the biggest syndrome affecting horses. In the latest survey, conducted in May, 18% of equids were recorded as lame. Of those, 13.5% were recorded as suffering from lameness associated with osteoarthritis, also known as degenerative joint disease (13.9% in 2014 and 14.8% in 2013). Meanwhile foot lameness was recorded in 4.5% of returns, a similar figure to previous years

Create a free account with TheHorse.com to view this content.

TheHorse.com is home to thousands of free articles about horse health care. In order to access some of our exclusive free content, you must be signed into TheHorse.com.

Start your free account today!

Already have an account?
and continue reading.

Share

Written by:

Related Articles

Stay on top of the most recent Horse Health news with

FREE weekly newsletters from TheHorse.com

Sponsored Content

Weekly Poll

sponsored by:

How much time do you usually spend grooming your horse?
439 votes · 439 answers

Readers’ Most Popular

Sign In

Don’t have an account? Register for a FREE account here.

Need to update your account?

You need to be logged in to fill out this form

Create a free account with TheHorse.com!