Etablerade hästsportprofilers syn på användning av täcken

Sammanfattning: Horses are used in a variety of disciplines partly as a hobby as well as for competitions at the elite level. Regardless of how the horse is used, the horse owner is obliged to help the horse with its heat balance with a blanket if necessary. However, there is a widespread lack of knowledge on when to use the blanket and if it really is needed. Previous studies have shown different results regarding the thermoneutral zone and the lower critical temperature of the horse. The differences can be explained by the fact that these studies were carried through with different prerequisites. Also, there are several factors that have impact on the lower critical temperature of the horse. The complexity of thermoregulation challenges the horse owner when to decide how to use blankets on their horse. This study is a semi-structured qualitative interview study. The aim of the study was to gain a better understanding of how established profiles within the sport are thinking about the use of blankets, and in what way the view differentiates between different disciplines depending on the performance of the horse. This will aim at giving the horse owner better understanding of whether and how horse coverage differs depending on which horse and what work it will perform. This will also aim to investigate if the profile's proven experience is linked to scientific knowledge. The research issue was: How differs the regimes of using blankets on horses between professionals from different sport disciplines? What are the underlying reasons that affects the profiles decisions and is there scientific-based knowledge in these arguments? The data collection was based on semi-structured qualitative interviews. Six experienced professionals (“profiles”) in the Swedish horse industry were interviewed. The profiles represented equestrian sport (show-jumping n=2, dressage n=1 and eventing n=1), Icelandic horse sport (n=1) and trotting (n=1). The study's results were divided into eight themes. These themes were; Reasons to use blankets on the horse, use of blankets during the year, risks of improper use of blankets, use of blankets at different temperatures, individual adaptation, weather conditions, blankets during transport and reason for clipping the horse. The result of this interview study showed that the reasons for use of blankets on the horse was the same for Showjumping profile 1 and 2, Dressage profile and Eventing profile. The main reason for these was to keep the horse easy to manage. These profiles clipped their horses and used blankets as a complement for the heat loss this lead to. These profiles also agreed with each other witch the risks of misuse of blankets were and took this seriously. The Trotting profile valued the use of blankets more as an asset to maximize the horse's performance in front of a race. This is because he or her thought that you can reduce the growth of the coat by using blankets early in the season. The Trotting profile therefore did not clip their horses, but considered a shorter coat to improve the horse's performance. Unlike the Show jumping profile, the Dressage profile and the Eventing profile who individualized blankets after each horse and day, the Trotting profile used the same blankets on their horses throughout the cold season. The Icelandic horse profile mainly used a thin blanket during muddy periods to facilitate the care of the long coat of the horses if I was not fully clipped. The Icelandic horse sport profile saw clipping as an aid to make the horse dry faster and used blankets on the horses for that reason, like the other riding profiles. However, it was unusual for the Icelandic horse profiles horses to be clipped. The common denominator was that all profiles believed that the horses could perform better without thick fur. 3 In conclusion: The occurrence of blankets usage differs between the different disciplines. The Dressage profile, the Eventing profile and the two Show jumping profiles used a variation of thicknesses on the blankets to keep the horse warm when they chose to clip their horses. The Icelandic horse profile mainly used a thin blanket because of the large amount of dirt stuck in the long coat in muddy seasons. The Trotting profile used the blankets mainly to keep the coat short without having to clip. The common denominator was that all profiles believed that the horses could perform easier if they were clipped with a blanket as a complement. An experience reinforced by the literature. Common to all profiles is that their reasoning and experience can more or less be linked to a scientifically based knowledge. The study's discussion also showed that although the experience and reasoning about a question is correct according to the literature, it is sometimes not followed in reality.