"(Serviceably sound) describes a horse who is capable of performing the work for which he is intended without becoming lame." - Dictionary of Farrier Terms
One would think that this definition is fairly straightforward. However, in my personal experience, there is actually a very wide opinion of what is and what is not a lame horse. Oftentimes owners are not exposed to truly sound horses so they do not realize that their own horses look or feel a bit "off". To compound the problem, there are many vets that have not had the training or experience to develop an educated eye to see the subtle lamenesses that their clients do not see or feel. While ignorance or lack of veterinary resources is not an excuse for a horse to go without treatment, at least it is unintentional.
But there is another group of owners and trainers who realize that their horse is "not quite right" but believe that all horses should be tolerant of some level of pain and discomfort. These owners and trainers only treat severe lamenesses on principle. Even worse are the owners and trainers that keep their horses a bit lame because it makes the horses more docile and/or more rideable for the owners. In many of these cases, I think that the term "serviceably sound" is often used as an excuse to avoid treating the horse which really bothers me.
I believe that owners have an obligation to make their horse as sound as possible given their veterinary and financial resources. The term "serviceably sound" should only come into play when discussing how much work the horse can tolerate and stay sound. If the rider intends to do lower level dressage, then the horse does not need to be sound enough to hold up to canter pirouettes. "Serviceably sound" should never be a reason to decide against treating a horse, especially when the owner can afford to do it.
