Ian Davies

Soundness is more than the absence of observable lameness.

If your horse feels “off” before looking lame, the answer may begin at the feet—where true balance is built. Horse owners are often taught to think in simple terms: a horse is either sound or lame. Real life is rarely that clear. Many horses keep working long before they show obvious lameness, even while they become less balanced, less comfortable, and more dependent on compensation. To describe that middle ground, this article uses The Spectrum of Usability—a practical five-step scale based...

Every horse owner knows the tension that comes with a vetting or the frustration when a performance horse feels just a bit "off" without clear signs of lameness. The immediate question is often: Is the horse sound today? While this is important, a more critical question deserves attention: Is the horse structurally built to handle the demands we place on it over time? A horse can pass a veterinary soundness exam with no issues today but still lack the physical balance and structural integrity...