Equine Documentary Trailer: “The 24 Behaviors of the Ridden Horse in Pain: Shifting the Paradigm of How We See Lameness”
The trailer for “The 24 Behaviors of the Ridden Horse in Pain” is streaming now. The film, produced by Padma Video in association with Train With Trust, is a 35-minute documentary featuring world-renowned expert in equine orthopedics, Dr. Sue Dyson, and her research on how “bad” horse behavior can actually be an early indicator of pain.
“We are conditioned that many horse behaviors are normal, when they are not.” says Dr. Dyson. “We need to appreciate that what we call ‘naughty horses’ are often a reflection of underlying musculoskeletal pain.”
Through a six-phase study, spanning three years, and over 400 horses, Dr. Dyson and colleagues developed The Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram (RHpE), a tool to reliably predict lameness before the condition worsens into limping and other obvious signs of injuries. The Ridden Horse Pain Ethogram is a catalog of 24 behaviors which scientific studies have demonstrated can be associated with pain in the ridden horse. The majority of these behaviors are at least ten times more likely to be seen in lame horses compared with non-lame horses.
The film follows Dr. Dyson and Dr. Jim Myers of Gold Coast Equine, as they examine and diagnose show jumper Lauren McMahon’s beloved mare Galina. Galina, was not obviously lame, yet seemed increasingly unhappy under saddle. Lauren had “tried everything” to figure out what was wrong, including ulcer treatments, multiple joint injections and specialized shoeing, but Galina only became more resistant while being ridden. Galina’s story is not uncommon for horses that do not present with an obvious head-bobbing lameness. Oftentimes these are horses that get labeled as “resistant,” “lazy,” and for horses that buck or rear from pain, “explosive.” Trainers often tell riders to “push them through it.”
The film educates horse lovers on how to spot the early signs of pain while taking viewers on an emotional “ride” through the eyes of a young girl who loves her horse and will stop at nothing to try to figure out how to make her comfortable.
“In the end,” says Producer/ Director Kathryn Lauritzen, “we want people to first ask ‘Is it pain?’ before assuming the horse is misbehaving. Call the vet out and have your vet watch you ride so they can see for themselves the behaviors the horse is expressing.”
Watch the trailer at: https://youtu.be/nbn0b0W_isQ
The full film will stream for free starting September 30th at 24HorseBehaviors.org.
A special advance screening is scheduled for September 10 at the “The Natural Horsemanship Revolution” Conference & Film Festival at the Montana Center for Horsemanship in Dillon, Montana.
Website: www.24HorseBehaviors.org
About Sue Dyson:
Dr. Sue Dyson specializes in equine orthopedics, with a focus on lameness and poor performance in sports horses. She lectures internationally and is known both for her clinical work and extensive research having published over 370 peer-reviewed papers on lameness and diagnostic imaging in scientific journals. She also co-authored several veterinary textbooks, as well as training and competing at National level in both eventing and show jumping.
Read more:
24 Behaviors of the Ridden Horse in Pain (24horsebehaviors.org)
