Racehorses are to be fitted with high-tech devices, similar to the fitness and activity trackers sported by humans, as part of a groundbreaking attempt by scientists to improve horse welfare.
The issue has become urgent following the deaths of seven horses at last year’s Cheltenham Festival. Ahead of the Grand National meeting at Aintree this week, with the big race on Saturday, the British Horse Racing Authority (BHA) has announced that all runners will undergo pre-race examinations.
The EquiVi device, developed at the University of Bath, consists of three sensors positioned on different parts of the horse that transmit real-time measurements of vital signs. Metrics, such as respiratory rate, blood oxygen saturation, temperature, blood pressure and heart-rate variability, can be simultaneously tracked, helping to prevent unnecessary fatalities, according to experts.
“The development of clinically validated sensors that can provide real-time data from ambulatory animals to owners, trainers and veterinarians represents a major step forward and has the potential to drastically improve the wellbeing of the animals,” said Dr Ben Metcalfe, the project’s lead researcher and a lecturer at Bath University’s department of electronic engineering.
The device allows trainers to observe the relationship between a racehorse’s performance and cardiovascular activity. It will help trainers to tailor their programmes and treatment of those horses who may become distressed immediately after exercise. “We can see fantastic potential for these as an aid in fitness programmes, for the early and accurate detection of diseases, and for minimally intrusive monitoring of sick horses,” said Dr John Keen, clinical equine cardiologist and specialist in equine internal medicine at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies in Edinburgh, which is also part of the project.
A separate project for the BHA, also conducted by the University of Bath, will use a digital race archive to reconstruct how jockeys fall. It is hoped that the work, similar to a study carried out on rugby players, will lead to greater understanding of concussion and spinal injury.
“The knowledge gained from these projects could have a positive impact on the safety of all those who ride horses, thoroughbred or otherwise,” said Dr Jerry Hill, chief medical adviser at the BHA.
And jockeys have welcomed the studies too. “Anything that can be done to make riding safer has to be encouraged. It will be interesting where this research will lead,” said Mick Fitzgerald, who won the Grand National and the Cheltenham Gold Cup as a jockey before becoming a TV presenter.