LAMENESS IN THREE-YEAR-OLD STANDARDBRED TROTTERS - INFLUENCE OF PARAMETERS DETERMINED BEFORE THREE YEARS OF AGE

摘要

The aim of the study was to use available information about a group of Standardbred trotters collected during the first three years of life to predict the risk of lameness in these horses when they reach three years of age, In a previous study on the same population, a sire index defined as the frequency of lameness within each progeny group and presence of radiographic changes other than palmar/plantar bony fragments in the metacarpo- and metatarsophalangeal joints, were found to be significant predictors of the likelihood of developing lameness. The additional variables used in the present study were training and feeding of the horses, information that was collected retrospectively up to the time of clinical examination.