When it comes to diagnosing lameness, smartphones just got smarter.

Detecting lameness—especially subtle lameness—with the naked eye has always been challenging for owners and veterinarians alike. Fortunately, new technology has made lameness detection easier through gait analysis. The required equipment, though, is expensive, and it’s often found only in referral clinics.

But high-quality gait analysis technology might be at our fingertips … literally.

New research by British scientists has revealed that gait analysis applications on a common smartphone can give reliable data to help detect hind limb lameness issues in horses. All it requires is the phone, the horse, and something to strap it securely to the horse’s hindquarters