The Benefits of Equine Gait Analysis

The diagnosing of lameness and pre purchase examination
From the analysis any differences between limb patterns can be seen, which can then be further investigated. The analysis will identify the horses exact biomechanical movement.

Quantify the effects of treatment
A screening can show the effects that certain treatments have on the horse and comparisons can be shown with a pre treatment screening and a post treatment screening.

Identify areas of improvement in sports performance
All horses move differently and similar to the human athlete, have a favoured way of moving. A greater understanding of the weaker areas allows training to be tapered as a means to improve those areas.

Communications between practitioners and non practitioners
The data obtained from a screening is presented in a way that can be interpreted with all findings presented to the owner/trainer and vet in a report format with detailed explanations of the findings.

Process of referencing and recording historical data
All analysis that is done is stored and archived, therefore should an incident arise in the future the archived data can be sourced and evaluated, especially in the case of horses that have degenerative conditions as the degeneration can easily be accessed and quantified.

Better purchase decisions
From the analysis a prospective horse owner would have a greater understanding of how the horse moves and would be aware of any areas that may cause future concern.

Longer competitive life
By understanding the way in which the horse moves, especially in those horses where there are slight discrepancies, allows training and treatments to be implemented at an earlier stage as opposed to treating the injury when it has progressed.

Remedial farriery
The way the horse is shod will have a subsequent effect on the way the horse moves and loads the limb. With the slow motion recordings, the exact loading of the limb can be seen and any imbalances addressed helping to prevent stresses and strains to the lower limb.

Aid diagnosing
In particular with horses that are lame and the cause is not known, as the data from the screening can identify exact areas where there may be an injury.

Reduces the inherent risk of subjectivity
In all situations the human eye is subject to discrepancies when asked to recall an actual event. The analysis can be used to aid the understanding of the horse owner. Instead of owners being told "your horse is lame" the analysis allows the question to be asked "why is my horse lame" which can be supported with visual and statistical evidence.