Real life Horse Definitions

Real-life Horse Definitions

Age

• Life span of a horse on average is 25 years, horses are generally at their best at three to twelve years of age
• The age of a horse is determined from the first of January

Aged horse

• A horse of eight years of age or older b. A horse that is smooth mouthed indicating that the horse is twelve years of age or older

Alter

• To castrate a horse; to geld

Appointments

• Clothing and equipment used in showing

Asterisk

• a symbol used either in front of horses name of in front a jockey's name, when used in front of a horses name it indicates the horse is imported, used in front of a jockeys name it indicates that he is an apprentice rider

Bald

• a common head markings, a white face including the eyes and nostrils or a portion thereof Banged the hair of the tail is cut off in a straight line

Bangtail

• slang term for a racehorse or wild horse

Barefoot

• Unshod

Barren

• A mare that is not in foal

Bay

• one of the five basic body colors of horses; a mixture of red and yellow and ranges from a light yellowish tan (light bay) to a dark, rich shade that is almost brown (dark bay), the tail and mane are usually black with black points

Birth Date

• January 1st is always considered the birth date of a horse regardless of when it is born in the year

Black

• one of the five basic body colors of horses; a black horse is completely black including the muzzle and flanks, if in doubt about the color, a true black horse will have fine black hairs on the muzzle and black hairs on the flanks

Blaze

• a common head marking, a broad white marking covering almost all of the forehead but not covering the nostrils of eyes Blemish An abnormality that does not affect the serviceability of a horse

Blood-horse

• A pedigreed horse, usually synonymous with the Thoroughbred breed

Bone

• The circumference around the cannon bone halfway between the fetlock and knee joints

Breed Registry Association

• A group of breeders joined together for the purposes of protecting the purity of their breed, recording the lineage of their breed, encouraging further improvement of their breed, and promoting interest in the breed

Brown

• one of the five basic body colors of horses; a brown horse is almost black but is distinguishable by brown or tan hairs on the muzzle and flanks

Canter

• A slow, restrained, three-beat gait in which a hindfoot and the opposite front foot are paired and strike the ground in between the other front foot and rear foot, with this gait the lead needs to be changed frequently

Capped hock

• An enlargement at the point of the hock

Chestnut

• Sorrel one of the five basic body colors of horses; basically red in color ranging from light yellow (light chestnut) to dark liver color (dark chestnut), the mane and tail are usually the same color as the body but they may be lighter (flaxen main and tail), the main and tail are never black

Cinch

• girth of a Western saddle

Cocked ankles

• Fetlocks are bent forward in a cocked position, usually occurs in the hin legs Combined training eventing A sport that tests the horses and riders ability in three different areas: cross-country jumping, stadium jumping, and dressage

Colt

• A young stallion under three years of age; in Thoroughbreds the age is extended to four

Conformation

• Body shape or form

Crest

• the top part of the neck

Crop

• a riding whip with a short, straight stock and loop

Curb

• Swelling at the back of the leg and just below the point of the hock Dam the female parent of a horse

Dapple

• small dots, patches or spots which contrast in color or shade with the background color

Dressage

• Guiding of a horse through natural maneuvers without emphasis on the use reins, hands, or feet

Draft Horse

• One classification of horses, standing at least 14.2 to 17.2 hands high,weighing 1,400 lb. or more, used primarily for heavy work such as pulling loads

Dun

• buckskin a variation of the five basic body colors, a yellowish color that ranges from pale yellow to a dirty canvas color, may be striped down the back

Endurance rides

• Designed to test the stamina of horses through competitive rides over a prescribed course

Eohippus

• dawn horse Earliest known ancestor of the modern horse, approximately 12 inches tall, it had four toes in front, and three toes of the hind feet, slender legs, short neck and even teeth, well adapted to living and eating swampland herbage

Equus asinas

• Zoological name for donkeys, males of the species are called jacks, and females are, jennets

Equus caballus

• Zoological name for the modern horse

Field Hunter

• Type of horse used in following the hounds in fox hunting

Fistulous withers

• An infected or inflamed condition in the area of the withers that can be caused by a bruise or ill-fitting harness

Gallop

• run A fast, four-beat gait in which the feet strike the gowned separately alternating one hind foot, then the other hind foot, then the front foot on the same side as the first hind foot, then the other front foot, their is a brief interval in which al four feet are off the ground

Girth

• The circumference of the chest as measured from behind the withers and in front of the back

Gray

• a variation to the five basic coat colors, a mixture of black and white hairs, sometimes not distinguishable from black but gray horses become lighter with age

Hand

• Term used to describe the height of a horse, each hand is 4 inches, this measurement was derived from the average width of the human hand

Height

• The distance from the highest point of the withers to the ground, this measurement is expressed in hands

Jumpers

• Mixed group consisting of all breeds and types, the only requirement being that the horse can jump

Knee-sprung

• buck-kneed Knees are bent forward

Light Horse

• One classification of horses, standing over 14.2 hands high, weighing between 900 to 1400 lb., used primarily for riding, racing, driving, or for farm utility purposes

Lope

• A slow, smooth gait in which the head is carried low, the western adaptation of a very slow canter

Man O War

• Famous thoroughbred who lived from 1917 to 1947, lost 1 race at of 21 starts, he was maintained largely for private use, sired over 300 offspring

Mesohippus

• Descendent of Eohippus, approximately 24 inches tall, three toes both front and hind legs, well adapted to prairie life

Moon blindness

• periodic opthalmia An inflamed or cloudy condition of the eye that recurs at periodic intervals

Mule

• Hybrid produced by crossing a male donkey (jack) and a female horse (mare)

Pace

• A fast, two-beat gait in which the both the front and hind legs on the same side take off and strike the ground at the same time with a brief moment when all four feet are off the ground at the same time

Palomino

• a variation of the five basic coat colors, a golden colored body with a white, silver, or ivory mane and tail

Parade horse

• Horse of any breed, cross, or color used in parades under elaborate Spanish, Mexican, Western equipment

Parrot mouth

• overshot jaw condition in which the lower jaw is shorter than the upper jaw

Piebald

• a type of pinto color with colored areas of black and white

Pinto

• calico or paint a variation of the five basic coat colors, irregular white and colored areas in either a skewbald or piebald patterns

Poll evil

• An infected or inflamed condition in the area of the poll, usually caused by bruising

Polo

• A game in which four mounted riders on each team attempt to drive a wooden ball with a long-handled mallet between two goal posts at either end of a playing field 300 yards long and 120-150 yards wide

Polo mount

• A horse that is particularly adapted for use in playing the game of polo, usually of mixed breeding, but most are predominantly Thoroughbred

Pony

• One classification of horses, standing 14.2 hands high or under, weighing up to 900 lb.

Pony Express

• A private venture mail service started in 1861 which carried US Mail from St. Joseph Missouri to Placerville California before the existence of telegraph or rail way, operated for approximately 18 months before being replaced by the telegraph

Przewalski

• Only surviving species of the original wild horses

Quittor

• A deep-seated running sore located at the coronet

Racehorse

• A horse that is bred and trained for racing under a saddle

Roan

• a variation of the five basic body colors, a mixture of white hairs with one or more base colors

Skewbald

• a type of pinto color with areas of white and colored areas of any color except black

Snip

• a common head marking, a white mark on the lips or between the nostrils

Splints

• Bony growths on the cannon bone, usually occurs on the inside of the front legs

Star

• a common head marking, any white mark on the forehead located above a line running from eye to eye

Stifled

• A condition in which the patella (cap) of the stifle joint is displaced

Stripe

• a common head marking, a narrow white marking that extends from about the line of the eyes to the nostrils

Teeth

• A mature male horse has forty, a mature female has thirty-six, a foal of either sex has twenty-four. Teeth can be used to determine the approximate age of a horse up to twelve years of age by noting the time of appearance, the shape, and the degree of wear of temporary or permanent teeth

Tevis Cup Ride

• A well-known endurance ride held at Auburn, California each August which is 100 miles long over extremely rough terrain with a time limit of 24 hours

Thoroughpin

• An inflamed condition in the web of the hock

Trot

• A rapid, natural, two-beat gait in which a front foot and the opposite hind foot leave and strike the ground at the same time with a brief moment when all four feet are off the ground at the same time

Undershot jaw

• A condition in which the lower jaw is longer than the upper jaw

Unsoundness

• A serious abnormality that affects the serviceability of a horse

Walk

• A slow, natural, flatfooted, four-beat gait in which each foot leaves and strikes the ground at separate intervals White one of the five basic body colors of horses; a true white horse is born white and remains white throughout its life, the skin is pink and the eyes are brown or rarely blue

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