Equine locomotion: 3. The reproducibility of gait in Standardbred trotters

Abstract

The reproducibility of certain gait characteristics was investigated in Standardbred trotters at a speed of 12.0 m/s. Twenty-two horses were recorded twice on the same day and 4 of them on a 3rd occasion 3 yr later. The short-term reproducibility was very good. In the long-term study the stride length and duration of swing and stride had increased. This was interpreted as an effect of training.