Western sport horse poor performance workups broaden

Veterinarians evaluating an underperforming Western sport horse may need to cast a wider net than lameness alone. In a new EquiManagement report from the 2025 American Association of Equine Practitioners Convention, Ben Buchanan, DVM, DACVIM, DACVECC, of Brazos Valley Equine Hospital, said respiratory disease, muscle disorders, neurologic dysfunction, and metabolic problems should all be part of the differential list. The article highlights airway disease as an often-overlooked contributor, with bronchoalveolar lavage, endoscopy, thoracic imaging, muscle enzyme testing, and, in selected cases, biopsy or genetic testing helping sort out the cause. It also notes that in Quarter Horses, inherited conditions such as PSSM1, malignant hyperthermia, and HERDA can affect performance, while cautioning that PSSM2 testing remains unvalidated. (equimanagement.com)

Why it matters: For equine practitioners, the takeaway is practical: poor performance is a syndrome, not a diagnosis. Purdue’s Equine Sports Medicine Center similarly emphasizes that defining the specific complaint, the horse’s job, and the exercise demands is the first step in narrowing the workup, because respiratory, cardiovascular, muscular, musculoskeletal, and behavioral factors can all limit performance in different ways. That matters in Western disciplines, where subtle airway inflammation, exertional myopathies, or neurologic deficits may be missed if the exam focuses too narrowly on orthopedic pain. (vet.purdue.edu)

What to watch: Expect continued discussion around standardized workups for Western performance horses, especially as clinicians weigh when to use airway diagnostics, muscle biopsy, and validated versus unvalidated genetic testing. (equimanagement.com)