Pilot Study on the Development and Assessment of a Novel Sensor for Measuring Rein Tension

INTRODUCTION: Effective horse-rider communication is essential in equestrian sports, both for performance and animal welfare. Rein tension, which is often applied through negative reinforcement (i.e., the release of pressure to reward a desired response), plays a central role in this interaction. However, high or inconsistent tension can lead to discomfort or injury, particularly in the mouth cavity. While previous studies have analyzed rein tension in basic gaits such as walk, trot, and canter, limited research exists on more complex maneuvers like jumping or abrupt stops. This pilot study introduces a custom-designed strain gauge-based sensor system developed to measure rein tension under typical riding conditions. A high sampling rate was configured to allow accurate detection of short-duration tension peaks. The sensors were calibrated and showed an accuracy of.