Equine Conformation Part 1
There is no such thing as the perfect horse...
However, by being knowledgable about the finer points of equine anatomy and conformation, you can find a horse that is more likely to be able to do what you want him to do, without being compromised by his shape and build.
Below is a drawing showing the main points of equine anatomy and conformation, including some of the things I will be discussing.
| A | Muzzle | B | Poll | C | Crest | D | Withers |
| E | Back | F | Loins | G | Croup | H | Dock |
| I | Point of Hock | J | Hock | K | Thigh | L | Stifle |
| M | Chestnut | N | Ergot | O | Coronet | P | Pastern |
| Q | Fetlock | R | Cannon | S | Forearm | T | Point of Elbow |
| U | Shoulder |
Let's start at the front end
The first thing people look at in a horse is the head. Although it has little to do with the actual performance of the horse, except for the points noted below. most people like to see a horse with a refined head, bright, kind eyes, pricked ears and an alert expression.
Old English terms such as fiddle-headed refer to horses with coarse, unrefined features, and roman-nosed refers to a horse with a convex profile such as is found in the draught breeds, as opposed to the concave, or dished, profile of the Arabian and similar breeds.
Horses are not capable of breathing through their mouths, so the size and shape of the nostrils are important to horses in highly aerobic activities, such as race-horses. This is the reason that Thoroughbreds tend to have larger nostrils, with finer cartiledge than, say, a draught horse.
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The eyes and ears can give clues to the temparament of the horse, if not his athletic ability. Large, kind-looking eyes, with no white showing and no rolling of the eyeballs, indicates a more tractable demeanour, as do ears that are pricked and alert, rather than pinned back against the horse's head.
Two areas of the head which can have an effect on the performance of the horse are the throat and the poll. The poll is where the skull of the horse fits on to the spine, right behind the ears. Stiffness in this area can cause the horse to have difficulty in softening to the rider's hand and "come on the bit". Likewise, a horse with a thick throat area may have difficulty giving to the rider and may give the rider the feel that he is riding a plank of wood.
The horse's neck should be in proportion to the rest of the body, appearing neither too long nor too short. A gentle arch to the neck is pleasing, without excessive muscling underneath. Stallions are more prone to have more crest along the topline of the neck than either geldings or mares, although the more a horse is worked in certain disciplines, such as dressage, the more the muscle along the topline will be toned up. A horse with thick muscling along the underside of his neck will feel stiff and resistant to ride. This can also be changed with exercises to build the muscle along the top of the neck, encouraging the horse to relax the muscles along the underside.
The term ewe-necked refers to a neck that appears to be put on upside down and a horse with a swan-neck has a very long neck, usually with excessive bend similar to a swan, from which the term is taken. Both of these conformations are considered undesirable.
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