Tendon injuries in horses require prolonged rehabilitation to achieve adequate healing, with welfare-focused management balancing rest requirements against the welfare costs of extended box rest.
Tendon rehabilitation presents a welfare tension between the rest required for healing and the costs of extended confinement. Horses on box rest during long rehabilitation periods develop frustration-driven behaviors, musculoskeletal deconditioning, and increased stereotypy risk. Progressive controlled exercise maintains physical and psychological welfare while supporting tendon healing. Rushed return to work before adequate healing causes re-injury and may end athletic careers. Welfare-conscious rehabilitation balances these competing considerations through objective monitoring and appropriately graduated exercise programs.