The KWPN aims to breed horses that can perform at the highest level and sustain that performance over time. Health is a fundamental prerequisite in this regard. A horse that is physically and mentally balanced can perform its work with ease and has a stronger foundation for a successful sporting career. Therefore, alongside performance, conformation, and character, health is an essential part of the KWPN breeding goal. However, selection for health should not be linked solely to performance breeding for health is also a moral responsibility. Horse welfare is improved when horses can physically carry out what is asked of them with ease.

Selection for health

Health encompasses a wide range of traits, such as the musculoskeletal and respiratory systems, fertility, and metabolism. Because these characteristics differ greatly, each requires an appropriate selection approach. Heritability plays a key role: only when a trait is sufficiently heritable can selection have a lasting effect.

Genetic influence
The KWPN is known for its strict stallion selection. Clear and binding standards also apply to health. Stallions have a major genetic influence on the population; therefore, they must meet all established health requirements in order to be approved.

Quality indicators

The KWPN encourages breeding with healthy mares through predicates. The PROK predicate demonstrates that a mare meets the KWPN’s radiographic standards. The D-OC predicate indicates that she has a lower-than-average likelihood of passing on osteochondrosis (OC) to her offspring. A keur mare with PROK or D-OC status can be promoted to elite mare. These predicates serve as quality indicators and support both selection decisions and the market position of the horse.

Genomic breeding values for osteochondrosis

In 2016, the KWPN introduced the genomic breeding value for osteochondrosis, which reflects a horse’s genetic predisposition relative to the current KWPN population. The OC breeding value estimates the genetic quality of a horse compared to the average of all KWPN horses—specifically, whether it has a higher or lower likelihood than average of passing on OC to its offspring. The test is available for KWPN showjumping and dressage horses, as well as for horses closely related to that population, such as many horses from other Western European studbooks. Applications can be made for stallions and mares of all ages, from foals to older horses.

Sustainability as an overarching goal

Health includes many aspects. That is why the KWPN increasingly uses the term sustainability: the aim to breed a horse that is healthy, capable of performing its work, and able to compete at sport level over a long period. Sustainability is the sum of all health-related factors and forms the foundation of the modern KWPN sport horse.