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CONFORMATION AND SOUNDNESS N HORSESby John R Kohnke BVSc RDA

The structuraldevelopmentof the limbs, size and bodyproportions hat make up anindividual horse'sconformation can nfluence ts balanceand movementduringexercise.The strengthof its limbs and conformation n furn, can nfluence ts overallsoundness nd ability to perform n competition.Conformation and soundnessare nterrelated n determining he movement,performanceandoverall quality of a horseduring its competitive ifetime.Soundnesscan be classified n anumberof ways relative o the horse's reedom romlameness, ut it canalso relate o the horse'ssuitability for aparticular pu{pose,such aseventing,umping, polocroosse, ack anddressage ompetition,which can ncludeothermeasures f soundnessor thepulpose,suchasboldness, emperament nd flow of thestride.Soundnesscan alsobe influencedby factorssuchas he type of working surface,shoeing,dietarybalance,body weight and he exerciseprogram,especiallyas a horseages.Accidental injuries suchas ower limb lacerations,excessivebonemodellingresponses nd abnormalgrowth andbalance n the hoovescan all influence he relativesoundnessor the purpose.A horsewith a minor oint or tendon njury, for example,maynot be suitable or upper evel equestrian ports,but its soundness s a hack will not becompromised.As horsesage,nafural wear and ear' andotherdegenerative hanges,that arenot alwaysrelatedor influencedby conformation,canoccur and restrict itssuitability for long term training and competition.It s always mportant o selecta horsethat is soundandstrong f you plan to competeover a few years, ather han try torehabilitateahorse rom the race rack which hasbroken down due o tendon and ointproblemsand carries he legacyof unsoundnessnto retirementandequestriancompetition.SplintsIdeally, splintsshouldbe appraised n an individual basis, aking into account helocation,sizeand nterferencewith movement,and he overall conformationof the frontlegs. Most splints n the lower or mid cannon areaare accidental', resulting romknocksor bumpsof everyday ife asa horse.However, n contras! the majority of splints Iocatedon the insideofthe upper cannonareawhich appear o blend into the kneeoutline, are causedby underlyingconformational aults. These nclude thedegreeof offset in the cannonbones, he bulk ofthe shouldersandneck, and he amountof hard work the animalwas given in its youngerdays.Therefore, ower splintson the canoncanbe considereda minor 'blemish', but highsplints n the knee region,or those ound close o tendons,shouldbe appraised n relationto limb conformationand risk of interferingwith tendon or knee oint soundness.

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FRONT LIMB CONFOR]VIATIONCheck the alignment and relationshipsof the knee and cannonboneof the front limb onboth near and offside,standing3-4 metres o the side, evelwith front shoulders,and thenview from the front.

SideView

IDEAL "Etrndlng Under" I'Standlngover,' prungg ng

..__Qqnqutgign

v\ r.4I"..1"llI )t

) \ ltaAIDEAL 'rOpenKneee '. ilCutout n Front'r ilest la ElChmF.(lmmature) o Knee hlps r TendoniralnSllghtepiphysitis*-' FetlocKeprain r FeilocKstrainmayneedmofe imo . .Heel onousglonto malure_ _UWwItislmportanttovtewthetrtrrttl--tlmuotro@emoaandlerow,s},nrmetrvcooft rimlgano umed-ln np umeooutconfomiauon'iirEicou]i"tncr-Jagehoriskof olnt ^arand s6r endbreekd.

Predispogego. Knoechips. Fetlock pralno Seeamoldltiso Hoof

Predlsposeso:. Kneespralnr Tendon lFalnr Suspgnsorystnaln

toeout"Prodlsposeso:. Knee prains'r Fetlockpralnsr Heelooncueslon. Tendon train

Prodlsposeso:. KneeSlabso Tendon tralno Healbruislng. Segamoldltle

PredlsposEso:r Knee hips. KneEprain. Suspensoryetrain

Predlsposeeo. Knee pralneo Fellock pralneo Heel ndInelde oof.concuggion

In (plgeon.toed)Predlsposeso:. Kneespralno. Follock pralns

toe In (plgeontoed)Predisposeso:r Kneo hlps. Tendonotrain. Fetlock prainsr Hoofooncussion

e riskof lolntwearand teer snd breakdnram

ffi, ffi W Y{ WPl.: wldo-toe ut _].Besenarr

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PASTERN ANGLESThe pastern anglesof both the front and rear Iimbs shouldbe assessedrom eachside, asshort upright pasternscan increase oint concussionand long pasternspre-dispose otendon strain and fetlock sprain, particularly if the heelsare low.

NormalPasternAngle ortu Longuprlghtpaeterne ndPredisposeso:r Jolnt oncusslon. Navloularleease eloplng arterns,Predlaposeso:. Tondon tnainAccentuatedyhlghheelsand o Fstlook pnalncontractedendons Accentuatedy owheelsLIMB ALIGNMENT

Observation at the walk to evaluate imb low and straightness,absenceof 'paddling','plaiting', 'winging' and 'dishing' aspoor Iimb alignment results n higher risk ofinterference and abnormal joint loading during exercise.

hlng"

FRONT LrMB CONFORMATION IOffset Cannon Sones

Force on insldo lpllnt bonedown and backwards.

Offset Cannon BonesPredisposeoo Iligh splintso Knee weaknesse Hoof concussion

A\ l r l/-1" LI

/irT U ii!i tiui :i llU t, 1t !i.'ti u . .,tJ 'i i\ .t,i iu ii i

wtngtng" tl Peddlin "Dlg

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HIIIDLIMB CONFORIVIATIONAppraise the alignment and strength of the hindlimbs standing 3-4 metres to the side, evelwith the hind limbs and rump, evaluating both near and off sideso nd then from the rear.SideView

Rear Viewaear vlew. r Locklng aiellaIt s lmpoilantoViewthehlncillmbsrom heUacforCtralgntness,nitormltynO ymrnetryodetermlneweak onfqnatlonhatcouldead o nterforencerhock nd etlock

f'9tanda yvlde" rrBow-logged" "Cloga-aplltupbehfnd"

Predlsposoeoir Back praln. Hook prain' Curblgamentetrain

PredlsposEgo:r Frontirnbovadoad. ghort hoppygait

Predispoeeso:. Bog pavlnJolntilling. Elonepavlnn'lthage

ttCow Hockgtt

$, $il $ jru"SlckleHocko"DEAL hockcAt the walk irom the rear

"StralghtMover" I'MovlngNarow behlnd" rrMovlngWIde behlnd"

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CONFORMATIONNDS()UNDNESSPredlsbose.c o:Locatlon Conformatlon I nesultr n:

SHOULDERS Straighthoulders(ofren ithuprightpasterns)lncreaied oncussion ownllneof front egsLeg'bows.backward uringwork

Jointproblems ;NaMculariseaseRingbone plintsKneeChip ractures racehorsesKreeStress sprainSuspensorytrainSlab racturen knee racghorses.Tendon train heavyarsnaand rider. *1Heelbruising corns? hFetlock prainSesamoiditisn young,heavyhorses.Suspensorytrain extendedrotAllow o mature probabty ot a long erm.problem correct alciummbalanceeg grazingfertilized ikuyupastures.'Hig.h'splints ust belowknee oint (younghorsesworked.hard heavyboCylreiilrtl.ArthriUsn kneeJoint

Tendon trainSesamoiditis/ssamoidracturesSuspensorytrain +Fetlock prain old age arthritisFUngboneNavicular lsease

Navicular iseaseToe bruising/pedal steiilsOver-reachlng.taceratlonsheelbulbbruisingLumbo-sacral rthriUsSacroillac train nshow umpersor eventers'huntsrsbump.Hockarthritls bonespavln.Oldhorses swayback?8og spavin.Bone spavin in old age.Locking of patella.Sprain of 'curb, llgament - curby hocks.Bone spavin in ol d horses. Oflen associatedwithspeedy movement - less interferencewith hlnd ancfore llmbs.Spllnts on inside of forelegs,shorter strldes andmore steps to cover dlstance, cho.ppygait,andcould affect stamlna In performanCehorses.'Paddllng' gait.Correctiveshoeing helpful.

Results n gait lnterference,and rlsk of tdpplng ancstumbllng, and spllnts. More undeslrable han toe.1n.'Wlng to the inside. gaitCorrectiveshoeing and weighted shoes.

FROI.TTEGS

Backat the knees CatfKnees)

Overat the l(ree(BuckedGrees)(tGeesprung)Moreweight arrled ownbackof eg

OpenKnees(tmmature(rrees) Oepresslonverkneeareaheavy oun! WarmbloodsOffset (rees(Offset annonbones)Bench Gees

Moreweightcarriedby insidesplint tearingof upperattachmentBreed nfluencss:-- Standardbreds- Thoroughbreds

LongPasterns(Slopingpasterns) Pastern ngle45nor less(oftenhereditary)Aggravated y low heels.Uprlghtpasterns(straightegs) Mostcommon n horseswithstraight houlders nd short,solldbuild.Increasesoncussion p legwhenworkedon hardarenis.Contracted oof(Plnched ooQ Breed nfluence eudrterhorses.

BACK Shortback Increasedlslrof Interferenceand over+eachingLongback Extrawelghton tumbo-sacralcoupllng

HOCKS

StraightHocks lncreased tresspathwaythroughhocksand stifre.Slckle Hocks Increased elghtdownbackof hocks.CowHocks More oadcarrled n insideofhocks.Traillng Hocks Shorter trlde,ncreasedwelghton front lmbswhenworking.

FEET

To e n(Plgeon oed) Oflencongenitalcan becorrected y trimmlngqraduallv.Turnedn . trlm nslde

ToeOut(SplayFooted) Ofren ongenttalcanbecorrected y hoof rlmmingoraduallv.Turnedout - trimoutside