A Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic hopes her research into the use of padded whips in Australian thoroughbred racing provides objective, scientific data for what can be an emotional and contentious issue.

The study found that the use of the padded whip, using the forehand technique, results in greater force and pressure being applied to a horse than with the backhand. It also found the forces generated by the padded whip were, on average, no greater than those generated by other activities carried out on horses such as vigorous patting, brushing and girthing up.

Dr Glenys Noble is a senior lecturer in equine science in the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at CSU in Wagga Wagga. Her study was funded by the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation (RIRDC).

She said padded whips had been mandatory in Australian thoroughbred racing since late 2009 but no-one knew the force involved when a whip is used forehand and backhand.

Dr Noble said, "The use of the whip with a forehand action results in greater force and pressure being applied to a horse than through the backhand grip. This supports the scrutiny given by racing authorities to the use of the whip in the forehand manner which is implemented by the Rules of Racing."

Six padded whips are used in Australian thoroughbred racing and Dr Noble and her research team tested them all.  

Much of Dr Noble's work was carried out in the laboratory, using ballistic gel as a substitute for horse muscle. Force sensors were placed on the ballistics gel and miniature accelerometers were attached to the padded whips. From this, relationships between the acceleration of the whip and the force applied to the force sensors could be determined.

The study also involved jockeys at Melbourne's Flemington Racecourse riding a moving mechanical racehorse simulator set at a gallop, again striking the ballistics gel to ensure realistic dissipation of energy from the striking whip with the accelerometer fitted.

These results demonstrated that less force is generated by the whip when a jockey is astride a galloping horse than when striking a stationary object.

The research team also recorded the effect of using a whip on the performance of horses running on a treadmill and found the animals took longer to run to fatigue when under the influence of the whip than with vocal encouragement alone.

"The data we collected enables all those involved in the sector, including racing authorities and welfare organisations, to make informed decisions regarding the use of the whip," Dr Noble said.

"This includes in the development of policies and guidelines concerning use of the whip. It is about establishing a framework within which whip research may be undertaken to address additional questions that may be asked in the future."

But Dr Noble said how the study results translate to discomfort or pain for horses remains unknown.

"Does it hurt them? I can't tell you. No one can tell you, as pain is a perception which is unique to each individual," she said.

"To investigate the welfare concerns of whip use, an objective measurement of pain perception by the horse needs to be explored. Given the intricacies involved in pain perception, this maybe difficult and complex.

"We did compare the forces generated by the padded whip with other activities carried out on horses that generate force, such as vigorous patting, brushing, girthing up, pushing the horse over and pulling on a halter lead, to put the forces into some kind of context. Generally speaking, the average forces generated by the padded whip are no greater than those generated by these other activities. So, while I cannot guarantee that all whip strikes do not cause discomfort or pain to a horse; it is likely that many do not."

Dr Noble's findings generated wide interest, and she and Master of Animal Science graduate Ms Jessica Dodd appeared on the ABC's science program Catalyst, for a story, 'Horse Whip' on Tuesday 24 March.

Dr Noble also presented her research last year to the International Conference of Racing Analysts and Veterinarians in Mauritius and the Australian Equine Science Symposium on the Gold Coast. The British Horse Racing Authority also requested a copy of her study. Ms Dodd will present the research findings at the 2015 Equine Science Society Symposium in Florida in May.

Dr Noble's study, Determining forces generated using a padded whip and impacts on the horse, also received in-kind support from CSU.