What should a pre-purchase exam include for a dressage horse?

A pre-purchase examination for a dressage horse should be more comprehensive than a standard pre-purchase exam for a pleasure horse, reflecting the specific physical demands that dressage training places on specific structures and the importance of identifying subclinical conditions that may not yet affect performance but that will become limiting as training demands increase. The examination should include a thorough physical examination of the entire musculoskeletal system, with specific attention to the structures most stressed by dressage work: the hocks and stifles, which bear the concentrated impact of collected work and must be sound and with adequate development of the joint spaces for long-term soundness; the back and sacroiliac region, where soreness is very common in dressage horses and can significantly affect performance and training; and the front feet and coffin joints, which manage the increased loading of the forehand in the first years before collection is fully developed. Radiographs should be taken of the hocks, coffin joints, and stifles as a minimum, with the specific views determined by the veterinarian's assessment of the individual horse's conformational risk factors. A flexion test and trot-up to assess soundness in all four limbs under basic movement stress is standard. Many experienced dressage buyers request that the examination include the horse working under saddle — both in a warm-up and during more demanding work — so that any back, hind limb, or soundness issues that only appear under the weight of a rider can be assessed. Scoping of the upper respiratory tract and stomach ultrasound may be appropriate depending on the horse's history and the buyer's specific concerns. The veterinarian conducting the exam should ideally have experience with sport horses and with the specific demands of dressage, as the specific risk factors and the clinical significance of various findings differ between performance disciplines.