Poor welfare indicators may be associated with performance limitations in racehorses

Abstract

Welfare is defined as the state of an animal, which includes both its emotional and physical condition. Monitoring it for racehorses is of fundamental importance to prevent poor welfare, which is deleterious to the animal's integrity but might also affect performance. This study aims to evaluate the welfare of French racehorses, and to explore potential links between compromised welfare and race placing. 52 trotters and 32 gallopers were evaluated for welfare using the AWIN horse protocol with behavioural observations using the scan sampling method in order to detect abnormal behaviours (stereotypies, alert posture, inactivity or other abnormal behaviours). The horses' race placing was also recorded for a six-month period around the study (percentage of races in which the horse finished in the top three, in the top five or in which it was disqualified (trotters)). Linear models were constructed to identify significant horse-centred welfare indicators affecting race placing. Results demonstrated a discrepancy in the welfare indicators evaluated in the two populations of horses, especially for environmental indicators that indicate a more restrictive management in gallopers than trotters in terms of social interactions and frequency of free exercise. Furthermore, the study identified risk variables associated with racehorses' welfare, including mouth corner lesions, which were observed in 23.1 % of trotters and 18.8 % of gallopers. Additionally, 40.4 % of trotters and 25.0 % of gallopers exhibited limb skin lesions. The prevalence of these four abnormal behaviours was observed across both groups, with percentage observations ranging from 0.3 % to 3.5 % across the scans. The results also identified a negative relationship between inactivity and finishing positions in trotters for the three race placing indicators (linear models; p < 0.05), emphasising the importance of this behaviour in evaluating their welfare and finishing positions. No such correlation was observed in gallop horses. Further research is needed to explore the complex relationships between welfare, including concepts like positive mental states and enjoyment, and racehorses’ race placings.