Glossary
Dynamic examination.
Direct answer
The dynamic examination is the systematic assessment of a horse in motion: in a straight line on hard and then soft ground, on a circle in both directions, on the lunge and, where needed, ridden. The dynamic examination complements the static examination and makes gait irregularities visible and describable.
Surface, speed, circle diameter and the person leading all change the gait appreciably. Comparing two appointments is therefore only meaningful if those conditions stay the same. Provocation tests such as flexion tests belong to the protocol but lack specificity: horses with no problem also respond, so a positive test on its own localises nothing.
The contrast with human medicine lies in the setting. In people, walking is usually recorded in a laboratory on level ground. In the horse the problem often appears only in the situation of use: on a circle, on changing footing or under saddle. The protocol deliberately reproduces those situations so that movement asymmetry appears at all.
LamenessDiagnostic analgesia (nerve block)Movement asymmetry
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