Whip Use by Jockeys in a Sample of Australian Thoroughbred Races—An Observational Study

Abstract

The use of whips by jockeys is an issue. The current study viewed opportunistic high-speed footage of 15 race finishes frame-by-frame to examine the outcomes of arm and wrist actions (n = 350) on 40 horses viewed from the left of the field. Any actions fully or partially obscured by infrastructure or other horses were removed from the database, leaving a total of 104 non-contact sweeps and 134 strikes. For all instances of arm actions that resulted in fully visible whip strikes behind the saddle (n = 109), the outcomes noted were area struck, percentage of unpadded section making contact, whether the seam made contact and whether a visible indentation was evident on impact. We also recorded use of clockwise or counter-clockwise arm action from each jockey's whip, whether the whip was held like a tennis racquet or a ski pole, whether the hind leg on the side of the impact was in stance or swing phase and whether the jockey's arm was seen traveling above shoulder height. The goal of the study was to characterize the area struck and the visual impact of whip use at the level of the horse. We measured the ways in which both padded and unpadded sections of the whip made impact. There was evidence of at least 28 examples, in 9 horses, of breaches of the whip rules (one seam contact, 13 contacts with the head, and 14 arm actions that rose above the height of the shoulder). The whip caused a visible indentation on 83% of impacts. The unpadded section of the whip made contact on 64% of impacts. The results call into question the ability of Stewards to effectively police the rules concerning whip use and, more importantly, challenge the notion that padding the distal section of whips completely safeguards horses from any possible whip-related pain.

Thoroughbred Racehorse Welfare through the Lens of ‘Social License to Operate—With an Emphasis on a U.S. Perspective

“…One study involving detailed analysis of 109 whip strikes (McGreevy et al, 2012) reported that 83% of whip strikes made a visible indentation into the horse's hide and muscling when viewed in slow motion [103]. Additionally, the unpadded section of the whip made contact on 64% of impacts.…”

A Critical Analysis of the British Horseracing Authority’s Review of the Use of the Whip in Horseracing

“…There is no research to indicate that this whip is pain-free, although it is reasonable to assume that, if it were used in the same way and with the same force as a traditional whip, it would have less impact, thereby causing less tissue damage and thus less response with less-intense associated pain in general terms. However, still photographs and high-speed video footage of whip use during Australian flat races indicate that when padded whips are used, both the padded and unpadded sections can come into contact with the horse [ 18 ]. Recent research (since the review) suggests that strikes where the unpadded section of the whip makes contact with the horse are more common than when only the padded section makes contact [ 18 ].…”

“…However, still photographs and high-speed video footage of whip use during Australian flat races indicate that when padded whips are used, both the padded and unpadded sections can come into contact with the horse [ 18 ]. Recent research (since the review) suggests that strikes where the unpadded section of the whip makes contact with the horse are more common than when only the padded section makes contact [ 18 ]. Additionally, there is recent evidence (since the review) that backhand strikes land with more force than forehand strikes [ 19 ].…”

Flogging tired horses: Who wants whipping and who would walk away if whipping horses were withheld?

“…Subsequent studies have examined the extent to which whip rules are policed [ 6 ], the differences in whip use between apprentice and senior jockeys [ 7 ], jockeys’ attitudes to whip use [ 8 ], and the impact of forehand and backhand whip use [ 9 ]. The padded whip has been regarded as the simple solution to concerns about whipping, but slow-motion videography has demonstrated that such whips strike horses with its unpadded section 64% of the time [ 10 ]. The same study showed that many whip-rule breaches are overlooked and others cannot be observed in any given focal horse, because competing horses obscure the viewer’s line of sight.…”