Lameness is the most common performance-limiting condition in horses and a major welfare concern in equestrian sport.
Equine lameness welfare is complicated by horses ability to continue working despite significant pain, and by the economic and emotional attachment of owners to performance. Research using objective gait analysis has revealed that lameness rates in sport horses are substantially higher than clinical assessment suggests, and that horses showing subtle lameness score differently on behavioral stress indicators. The pressure to perform — in competition, in training, in recreational riding — creates incentives to overlook or medicate pain that should result in rest. Equine welfare requires a culture change that prioritizes horses communication of discomfort over performance schedules.