Body Condition Score in Danish Horses Related to Type, Use, and Training Level: Patterns, Risk, and Protective Factors

Abstract

Body condition in horses is a growing concern that has different patterns of development in horses that are above and below the ideal range. This study used professional and para-professional evaluators (veterinarians, farriers, trainers, Danish Equestrian Federation (DEF) officials) who were trained and certified in the use of a modified Henneke scoring system to assign a body condition score (BCS) on a scale of 1-9. Scores of 5-6 are regarded as ideal, and 78.6% of the evaluated horses were in these groups. Only 4.8% of horses were below ideal BCS but 16.5% were above ideal BCS, and this was influenced by type, age, and training. A significant protective effect towards above ideal BCS was shown for horses trained at higher intensities. Cold-blooded horses and traditional ponies had increased risk for being above ideal BCS. Although BCS increased with age, a large proportion of geriatric horses were both above and below ideal BCS. Discipline was not related to BCS. Patterns of BCS distribution for horses attended by different professionals were investigated. Veterinarians attended more horses with BCS above and below ideal values, farriers mostly saw horses that were above ideal BCS, and officials at competitions mainly saw horses with ideal BCS.

Keywords: body condition score; body condition score patterns; equine body condition; horse welfare; training level.

Figure A1

PDF copy of the survey questionnaire.

Figure 1

Illustration of the appearance of horses for each body condition score, from the Henneke scale 1–9.

Figure 2

Kruskal–Wallis plot, distribution of BCS for data collectors’ profession. 1: Veterinarians, 2: Feed consultants, 3: Farriers, 4: Equine therapists, 5: Trainers, 6: DEF officials (p = 0.001). The box represents 50% of the scores for the group. The blue line in the box is the median, and the diamond is the mean. The upper and lower blue lines show the minimum and maximum values. Circles outside the lines represent outliers.

Figure 3

Distribution of the body condition score per collector. The distribution for consent type 2 is evenly distributed (DEF officials scoring horses at events). The box represents 50% of the scores for the group. The blue line in the box is the median, and the diamond is the mean. The upper and lower blue lines indicate the minimum and maximum values. Circles outside the lines represent outliers.