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Why we are seeing blue tongues in dressage arenas – and what needs to be done about it

In her next H&H subscriber-exclusive investigation into issues affecting horse sport today, Pippa Cuckson explains what we currently know about blue tongues in dressage horses – and what we need to find out
Pippa Cuckson Pippa Cuckson

    • It is generally assumed that “blue tongues” (aka cyanosis) seen in dressage horses result from restricted oxygen supply, variously caused by harsh use of the double bridle, with and without rollkur, and tight nosebands.

    Denmark-based Julie Taylor, founder of equine welfare channel Epona.Tv, broke the first “blue tongue story” in 2009, involving Sweden’s Patrik Kittel and Scandic. She had been seeking out instances of hyperflexion and captured Scandic’s alleged blue tongue on video “only because it was hanging out.” She told H&H: “We had heard of tongues going blue but never seen it, but as soon as we reviewed the footage, we knew what that was.”

    The video went viral. In the UK alone, discussion on its members’ forum crashed the British Dressage website. Mainstream press such as The Guardian wrote about it. Patrik Kittel emphatically denied breaching the FEI code of conduct; the FEI eventually ruled his riding was not “excessive” though did issue a warning .

    Julie did not expect blue tongues to still be unaddressed over a decade later. More alleged blue tongue examples are available now than then thanks to advances in high resolution still photography.

    ● What are your thoughts on concerns related to blue tongues being seen in sport horses? Write to us at hhletters@futurenet.com, including your name, nearest town and country, for the chance for your letter to appear in a forthcoming issue of the magazine

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