Longitudinal welfare assessment in French jump racehorses during season preparation

Public scrutiny of racehorse welfare is increasing. The preparatory training phase preceding the racing season is potentially a critical period for physical and mental development. Structured welfare assessment protocols have recently been developed, but their use in field conditions remains limited.

(1) To evaluate the field applicability of a racehorse-specific welfare assessment protocol in a professional French jump racing yard; and (2) to explore whether it can detect relevant physical and behavioural changes in young horses during season preparation.

Longitudinal observational study with repeated measures.

Sixteen two- to three-year-old racehorses (10 Thoroughbreds, 6 French Non-Thoroughbreds) from a single jump racing yard were assessed at three time points (T0, T1, T2) over 5 months before the racing season. Direct observations included environmental conditions, physical health, horse grimace scale (HGS), human-horse relationship tests, and behavioural activity budgets via scan sampling. Mixed-effects models evaluated temporal changes and associated factors.

Horses were healthy, with adequate nutrition and comfort, though no free turn-out and social contact often limited to visual interaction (68%). Body condition score decreased significantly at T1 (β = -0.96; 95% CI: [-1.7, -0.26]; p = 0.007) and T2 (β = -2.0; 95% CI: [-2.9, -1.1]; p < 0.001). Lip commissure lesions were prevalent (external 65%, internal 75%). HGS scores increased significantly at T2 (β = 1.7; 95% CI: [0.85, 2.6]; p < 0.001), and horses with physical social contact had lower scores (β = -1.3; 95% CI: [-2.3, -0.22]; p = 0.02). Behavioural activity budgets showed inter-individual variability.

Small sample size and attrition limit generalisability. Assessments were conducted during routine training days without altering management, occasionally limiting evaluations.

Structured welfare assessments are feasible in field conditions, highlight areas for improvement, and can capture relevant changes during jump racing season preparation.