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Holmstrom, M., Magnusson, L. E., & Philipsson, J. (1990). Variation in conformation of Swedish warmblood horses and conformational characteristics of elite sport horses. Equine Vet J, 22(3), 186–193.
Abstract: The variation in conformation of 356 Swedish Warmblood horses is described, using a quantitative method of measuring horses. Thirty-three of the horses were elite dressage horses, 28 were elite showjumpers, 100 were riding school horses and 195 were unselected four-year-olds. Most horses had a long body form. The average height at the withers was 163.4 cm. Sixty per cent of the horses had a bench knee conformation, 50 per cent had a toe-in conformation of the forelimbs and 80 per cent had outwardly rotated hind limbs. The majority of these deviations were mild or moderate. Conformation was influenced by sex and age. Mares were smaller and had longer bodies and shorter limbs. The elite dressage horses and showjumpers had larger hock angles and more sloping scapulas than other horses. The showjumpers also had smaller fetlock angles in the front limbs. It is suggested that the larger hock angles among the elite horses may be because hocks with small angles are more prone to injury, and because small hock angles may negatively influence the ability to attain the degree of collection necessary for good performance in advanced classes.
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Koenen, E. P. C., Aldridge, L. I., & Philipsson, J. (2004). An overview of breeding objectives for warmblood sport horses. Livestock Production Science, 88(1-2), 77–84.
Abstract: The aim of this paper is to review the current breeding objectives of organisations that run a selection programme for warmblood riding horses in the light of an increasing trend in trade of semen across countries. In a questionnaire, 19 horse breeding organisations provided information on breeding objective traits. Variation both in length and amount of details used to define individual breeding objectives was large, reflecting that many traits in sport horse breeding are not easy to measure, and therefore, have to be defined in a subjective way. The majority of the breeding objectives included conformation, gaits and performance in show jumping and dressage. Some breeding objectives also included behaviour, soundness, health and fertility. However, several organisations did not specify the sport discipline and the level of competition (amateur, national or international level) in the breeding objective. In general, relative weightings of the traits within the verbally presented breeding objectives were not given, but were assessed by the organisations in response to this study. The relevance of more information on expected future production circumstances and on the genetic parameters of the traits of interest are discussed. A further review of the consistency, completeness and the number of traits of the present breeding objectives for sport horses is recommended to optimise the efficiency of selection decisions.
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Philipsson, J., Arnason, T., & Bergsten, K. (1990). Alternative selection strategies for performance of the Swedish warmblood horse. Livestock Production Science, 24(3), 273–285.
Abstract: The Swedish riding horse population includes about 6000 broodmares and 150 breeding stallions. The overall breeding goal is to produce riding horses competitive in several disciplines, i.e. dressage as well as showjumping and eventing. The effectiveness of this multi-purpose objective was studied in alternative strategies for selecting stallions and mares as candidate dams for them. The alternative selection strategies for stallions included 1-stage (conformation), 2-stage (conformation and performance test) and 3-stage (conformation, performance test and competition results at advanced levels) selection schemes. The mare selection schemes included the corresponding 1- and 2-stage selection schemes. The results clearly showed the 2-stage selection procedure to be most efficient, especially for stallions. It is important that the intensity in selection after the performance test is kept high. Differences in defining the breeding objective are less important, provided the selection is based on a performance test including both dressage and jumping. According to the results, the development of the Swedish performance testing scheme, in which now only 30% of the tested stallions are selected for breeding, seems justified. In mare selection schemes, performance tests also seem to be justified, especially if jumping ability is to be improved. Differences between field and station tests are only minor and since the volume of testing can be much higher in the field this would allow a much stronger selection and should thus be preferred.
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Thoren Hellsten, E., Viklund, A., Koenen, E. P. C., Ricard, A., Bruns, E., & Philipsson, J. (2006). Review of genetic parameters estimated at stallion and young horse performance tests and their correlations with later results in dressage and show-jumping competition. Livestock Science, 103(1-2), 1–12.
Abstract: Results from performance tests and competitions of young horses are used by major European warmblood horse breeding associations for genetic evaluations. The aim of this review was to compare genetic parameters for various tests of young horses to assess their efficiency in selection for dressage and show-jumping. Improved understanding of genetic information across countries is also necessary, as foreign trade with semen is rapidly increasing. The review is based on inquiries to European breed associations and on (17) scientific publications available, which have analysed genetic parameters of young horse data and/or relationships between young and mature horse results in sport. Despite differences in testing methods of young horses, results for major horse populations were in good agreement. Specially designed young horse performance tests, including stallion tests, showed high heritabilities and high genetic correlations with later competition results. We recommend that test results are encouraged to be used across countries for genetic evaluation of imported stallions and semen. Short station tests are generally preferred when selecting stallions for both dressage and jumping traits, whereas competition data may be used when selecting for only one discipline. We also recommend that extensive field testing of young horses is encouraged and should include both genders.
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Wallin, L., Strandberg, E., & Philipsson, J. (2003). Genetic correlations between field test results of Swedish Warmblood Riding Horses as 4-year-olds and lifetime performance results in dressage and show jumping. Livestock Production Science, 82(1), 61–71.
Abstract: The main objective of this study was to estimate genetic correlations between traits of young sport horses (4 years old) evaluated in the Swedish Riding Horse Quality Test (RHQT) and later competition results in dressage and show jumping. The data comprised 3708 Warmblood horses born between 1968 and 1982 that had participated in the RHQT as 4-year-olds and 25[punctuation space]605 horses born between 1953 and 1995 with competition records. According to the criteria between 1206 and 1879 horses were common to this two files and were available for the estimations of the genetic correlations. Competition performance traits were cumulative points and cumulative placings received during a horse's lifetime, and a log10 transformation was used to achieve a more normal distribution of the data. Genetic correlations between gait traits scored in the RHQT and competition results in dressage were favourable, in the range 0.63-0.75, and between jumping traits scored in the RHQT and results in show jumping 0.83-0.93. Estimated heritabilities for gait and jumping traits scored in the RHQT were in the range 0.09-0.27 and 0.10-0.18, respectively. Estimated heritabilities for the cumulative points and cumulative placings in dressage and show jumping were 0.17/0.16 and 0.23/0.27, respectively. Thus, the results from the RHQT have proved to be useful for early genetic evaluation and selection of both mares and stallions for sport performance traits.
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Wallin, L., Strandberg, E., & Philipsson, J. (2001). Phenotypic relationship between test results of Swedish Warmblood horses as 4-year-olds and longevity. Livestock Production Science, 68(2-3), 97–105.
Abstract: The relationship between longevity and different traits scored in the Swedish Riding Horse Quality Test (RHQT) was studied to evaluate their use as predictors of survival. Data comprised 1815 Warmblood horses born between 1969 and 1982 that had participated in the RHQT as 4-year-olds. Survival information was obtained via a questionnaire sent to owners of horses that had participated in the RHQT between 1973 and 1986. All phenotypic values of traits scored at 4 years of age were adjusted for the effect of place/year (event). Survival analysis was performed taking into account censoring. Traits having significant effects on longevity were: conformation, legs (included in conformation), orthopaedic status, jumping ability, and the horses' combined classification score for dressage and jumping talents, respectively. Orthopaedic health had the greatest influence on longevity, and demonstrated the importance of judging health traits in young sports horses. The results of this study confirmed that there is a significant phenotypic relationship between many of the RHQT traits and longevity, and thus the possibility of using them as predictors of survival.
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