Evaluation of Horse Comfort in English and Western Riding Style Saddle

Abstract

An estimated thirty million people participate in the sport of horseback riding in the United States alone, which means that it is important to investigate how riding affects the horse. This project investigates how the saddles, which are the most distinct differences in the two most popular riding styles, English and Western riding style, affect the comfort of the horse while being ridden. The hypothesis was that horses ridden in English riding style would display more signs of discomfort than horses ridden in Western riding style. Participants started off by tacking up their horse in their respective riding style (IV) and were videoed riding around an arena, following a specific course that included the most common activities a horse and rider would perform in a walking gait. This video was analyzed and the measures of comfort (DV), eye blink rate and behaviors on the horse grimace pain scale, were added up. The experimental results did not support the hypothesis as a chi-squared test conducted for eye blink rate yielded a p-value of 0.662, while the horse grimace pain scale yielded a p-value of 0.2708, which meant that there was not a statistically significant difference in comfort behaviors in English versus Western riding style. The results of this study, if supported by other future studies, can help researchers in the equine field know that when investigating the riding styles and comfort of the horse, their focus can be directed to tack other than the saddle.