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Effects of weight and riding on workload and locomotion during treadmill exercise
Author(s) -
OLDRUITENBORGHOOSTERBAAN MARIANNE M. SLOET,
BARNEVELD A.,
SCHAMHARDT H. C.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
equine veterinary journal
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.82
H-Index - 87
eISSN - 2042-3306
pISSN - 0425-1644
DOI - 10.1111/j.2042-3306.1995.tb04963.x
Subject(s) - workload , treadmill , physical medicine and rehabilitation , physical therapy , medicine , computer science , operating system
Summary To answer the question whether an experienced rider or a dead weight influences a horse's workload and/or its locomotion, 9 well trained Dutch Warmblood horses, fully accustomed to treadmill exercise, underwent a submaximal standardised treadmill exercise test under 3 different conditions: unloaded, mounted by an experienced rider of 90 kg and loaded with 90 kg of lead. Heart rate was monitored continuously and plasma lactate concentrations were determined in venous jugular blood samples immediately before and 2 and 10 min after exercise. Temporal and angular stride variables were measured in fore‐ and hindlimbs at the walk (1.7 m/s), trot (4.0 m/s) and canter (7.0 m/s) with a modified CODA‐3 computerised kinematic analysis system. Peak heart rates during exercise, and recovery heart rates thereafter were significantly lower in the unloaded horses compared to the mounted and lead‐loaded horses. Plasma lactate concentrations immediately and 10 min after exercise were also significantly lower in the unloaded horses than in the mounted and lead‐loaded horses. No differences were found in heart rate and plasma lactate concentration between the mounted and lead‐loaded horses. Relative stance duration increased comparing the unloaded to the mounted and the lead‐loaded horses (P<0.05). Small, but significant, differences were also observed in the fetlock extension and the maximal fetlock range of motion; both increased with loading. In conclusion, an experienced rider and a dead weight influence both workload and locomotion in exercising horses. Minimal differences were found between dead lead weight and a rider.