2 MSEK for Research to Improve Horse Welfare and Diagnostics

Six new research projects on horses have been awarded funding by the Foundation for Equine Research, with 2 MSEK coming from the Agria Research Fund. This year’s topics focus, among other things, on improving horse welfare in dressage, reducing the culture of silence within equestrian sports, as well as developing improved methods for diagnosing common diseases and injuries.

“The topics of this year’s selected projects are important both for the well-being of horses and for the future of equestrian sports,” says David Haak, CEO of Agria.

A new assessment protocol aims to shift the focus at dressage competitions. Instead of identifying shortcomings, the project seeks to help the sport recognize and reward harmony in line with good horse welfare. In close collaboration with the equestrian federation, active participants in the sport, and researchers, an assessment protocol will be developed with horse welfare and harmony at its core.

Another important question to be investigated is: Why is it difficult to speak up when horse welfare is compromised? By examining social and psychological barriers, researchers hope to reduce the culture of silence and thereby contribute to greater community within the equestrian world and increase the legitimacy of equestrian sports in the eyes of the public.

One of the veterinary projects will investigate improved diagnostics with a focus on horses with EMS (Equine Metabolic Syndrome), which is associated with high insulin levels. The new diagnostic method is based on horse-specific analyses of C-peptide and is expected to provide a more reliable picture of whether elevated insulin levels are due to increased production or reduced ability to metabolize insulin in the individual horse.

Another project focuses on improving the diagnosis of lameness by examining the effects of lunging, flexion tests, and local anesthesia on the degree of lameness. Objective analysis methods have revealed shortcomings in traditional lameness examinations that can lead to incorrect diagnoses, and now the diagnostic methods will be further investigated.

Additional projects aim to develop an analysis method for detecting tapeworms in horses quickly and cost-effectively, in order to prevent colic and other health problems.

Moreover, researchers want to focus on understanding which gene variants increase or decrease the risk of infectious diseases. The results may in the future be used both in breeding and for more effective treatments.

“The foundation has high hopes for this year’s projects. The approved projects related to horse welfare address current issues and have an exemplary collaborative approach between research and sport. In addition, other approved projects are expected to improve horse health and welfare in several ways through better diagnostics and more precise knowledge of the individual horse’s conditions and disease profiles, which will provide important tools for the future,” says Lina Bengtsson, Research Secretary, the Foundation for Equine Research.

New Projects Awarded Funding for 2026

• Defining and Grading Harmony: Towards a Complementary Assessment Protocol in Line with Good Horse Welfare at Dressage Competitions
  Elke Hartmann, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU)
• Speaking Up for Animal Welfare in Equestrian Sports
  Hans Erik Næss, Kristiania University College
  Susanne Johansson, Swedish School of Sport and Health Sciences (GIH)
• Why Are Some Horses More Prone to Infections While Others in the Group Develop Immunity?
  Thomas Bergström, SLU
• The Importance of Confounding Factors in the Evaluation of Lameness in Horses
  Emma Persson-Sjödin, SLU
• Improved Diagnosis of Tapeworms Using LAMP PCR
  Carl Peter Halvarsson, SLU
• Use of Horse-Specific Insulin and C-Peptide Tests to Improve Diagnosis and Monitoring of Insulin Dysregulation
  Emma Margareta Strage, SLU
  Hege Brun-Hansen, Norwegian University of Life Sciences