How AI is changing the game in what we know about our horses

Advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) in the equestrian world are hoped to benefit equine welfare.

Fracture detection, vet-built horse monitoring technology and a new platform built to improve horse’s lives in many ways are among the latest developments in this area.

Researchers at the Royal Veterinary College have built an AI system that can detect and pinpoint fractures in horses. The study has been shortlisted for the STEM (science, technology, engineering, and maths) for Britain 2026 award.

Using knowledge gained from thousands of human fracture images, the AI system can identify the type of scan it is presented with (such as X-ray, CT or MRI), recognise the image angle, and then detect and locate any fractures in horses.

EquiConnect, developed by University of Nottingham spin-off company Vet Vision AI, aims to help owners and yards better understand their horses’ behaviour through continuous AI monitoring. Using cameras installed in stables, the system tracks horses’ daily routine, including how long they spend eating, resting and sleeping, and alerts owners if patterns change.

Vet Jess Hulme, equine commercial lead at Vet Vision AI, told H&H the technology is already helping yards optimise management and identify potential problems earlier.

“One of the biggest things we’re learning is how important sleep is for horses,” she said. “In some cases, we’ve identified horses experiencing significant sleep disruption and once management changes were made, the improvement in their behaviour and performance has been really noticeable.”

The system is also helping yards monitor feeding patterns.

“Subtle changes in eating behaviour can be linked to things like gastric ulcer risk,” said Dr Hulme. “By monitoring patterns over time, we can help owners spot when something isn’t quite right and make changes before it becomes a bigger issue.”

She added: “When certain behavioural thresholds are reached, the system sends an alert asking the owner to check the horse. It’s not making a diagnosis, it’s giving owners the information they need to act quickly.”

Vet Vision AI’s co-founder and chief technical officer Robert Hyde, who is also a vet, told H&H the biggest benefit is helping owners start to understand each horse as an individual. For example, eating and sleeping patterns – and what effect any changes are having.

“For the first time, we can build a detailed picture of a horse’s normal daily behaviour,” he said. “Once you know what normal looks like, it becomes much easier to spot subtle changes that may indicate a health or welfare issue.”

The system also allows owners to review behaviour patterns over time on a virtual dashboard.

“Small improvements in things like rest and feeding can have a real impact on behaviour, wellbeing and ultimately performance,” said Dr Hyde.

‘Huge ecosystem’

EquiConnect is working with riders including Becky Moody and Emily King, and the King’s Troop, and is currently available for yards of 10 horses or more.

Deep-tech company Equiyd is an intelligence infrastructure platform for the horse world, which aims to “capture the full picture” of horses’ lives.

“It started off with the horse management app, but actually that’s just the surface,” Equiyd chief technology officer and co-founder Alfonso Ferrandez told H&H. “We are a huge ecosystem. We have a data lake and on top of that sits a number of apps or features.”

These include buying and selling horses, digital passports, competition records, health records, performance analysis and an AI assistant. It also has patented disease monitoring technology, which would enable an owner to be notified if a horse was in close contact with an infected animal during an outbreak.

“Our next phase, which launches next month, is shared access, so you can release your horse profile to a vet, farrier or yard,” Dr Ferrandez said. “They’ll have a different user interface that will all interact with the same record, so everybody can do the job they need to do, with the horse at the centre, and nothing is lost.”

The technology is also able to look at the data it is being fed – which is anonymised – to build a better picture of horses’ lives across the world. The hope is that this can be used for research and to improve horses’ lives.

The Equiyd team draws from their experience in medical technology and, having seen the problems caused when systems are built in silos and do not talk to each other, wanted to create an interoperable platform with the horse at the centre.

“My passion is to improve the welfare of horses,” said Dr Ferrandez.

Both companies also stressed the high importance they assign to security and data protection.

What to think about when using AI – and any new technology

New technology is popping up rapidly in the horse world, so it is more important than ever that owners look carefully into any tech they are considering using and are aware of how to keep themselves and their data safe and secure.

David Cowan is a law professor at Maynooth University in Ireland, a research fellow at the University of London specialising in technology issues and the author of Law and Technology. He gave examples of how data collected could be used in evidence, such as insurance claims, understanding people’s legal rights to privacy when using cameras and what steps equestrians can take and much more.

“AI has great potential for equestrianism, from the individual rider to professional sports and veterinary practice. We can all create ‘smart yards’ now, because smart products are bringing sophisticated horse welfare within reach of all, in terms of the type of care and the cost,” Dr Cowan told H&H.

“However, the use of apps, digital CCTV and diagnostic and performance tools also means that legal duties are part of that reach and should not be ignored. Happily, with careful attention, the legal risks can be mitigated.”

Dr Cowan said that legal pitfalls related to capturing the information the AI tech needs could relate to data protection and privacy laws, and that stored data can be vulnerable to cyber attacks. But, he added, the legal requirements are there to protect all involved and risks can be mitigated with training, handling data with care and taking measures such as, for example, asking clients to sign forms consenting to CCTV coverage.

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