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Allanto-chorion:
The outer sac of the placenta that attaches to the
uterus of the mare. |
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Amble: An
easy four-beat horse gait with lateral motion. |
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Amnionic vesicles
(amnion): The first part of the amnion to be
externalized at birth of a foal. The amnion is the inner
sac of the placenta that surrounds the fetus. |
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Antibody: A
large protein molecule found in the blood, that provides
protection from infection. |
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Appointments:
The clothes, equipment, and tack required for riders and
horses in certain horse show classes. |
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Bad Doer: A horse who does not
eat well or does not digest what he does eat. |
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Banged: Hair of the horse's tail cut
off in a straight line. |
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Barefoot: Unshod |
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Blemish : An abnormality that
does not seriously affect the serviceability of a horse,
such as wire cuts, rope burns, nail punctures, shoe
boils, capped hocks. |
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Blister: An irritant applied as
a treatment for unsoundness and blemishes. |
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Blood-Horse: A pedigreed horse. To most horseman
the term is synonymous with the Thoroughbred breed. |
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Bowed Tendon and Deep Flexor Tendon:
A swelling of the back side of the cannon resulting from
a severe strain or rupture of one or both of the flexor
tendon or tendon sheaths. |
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Breech: Incorrect positioning
of the foal at birth, where the rump or back is against
the pelvic inlet, and uterine contractions cannot expel
the foal. |
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C |
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Caballero: The Spanish word for
horseman. |
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Caballo: The Spanish word for
horse. |
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Cadence: The beat, time,
measure, or sequence of a horse's footfall. |
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Calk: Grips on the heels and
the outside of the front shoes of horses, designed to
give the horse better footing and prevent slipping.
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Calf-kneed: Standing with the
knees too far back. |
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Camp Out (Camp): A horse is
said to camp out when the forelegs stretch out to the
front while the back legs hold in position. |
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Canter: A slow, restrained,
3-beat gait where 2 diagonal legs are paired and produce
a single beat that falls between the successive beat of
the two unpaired legs. |
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Capped Elbow (Shoeboil): A bruise and
swelling at the point of the elbow caused by irritation
of the shoe when the horse is lying down. |
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Capped Hock: A swelling at the
point of the hock. |
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Caslick: A surgical procedure
where by the lips of the vulva of the mare are sewn shut for about
two-thirds of their length. This prevents the aspiration
of air into the vagina and decreases the incidence of
uterine infection. |
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Cast: A horse that has fallen
or lain down close to a wall or fence so that it cannot
get up without assistance is said to be cast. |
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Castration: Removal of the
testicles of a male horse to make him sterile. A
castrated horse is called a gelding. |
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Chestnut (body part): The horny
growth on the inside of the horse's legs, above the
knees and below the hocks. They are regarded as vestiges
of the first toe of prehistoric horses. |
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Clean: A horse term indicating that
there are no blemishes or unoundnesses on the legs.
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Cleft palate: A physical split
in the roof of the mouth which causes difficulty in
nursing. A congenital defect most often recognized when
milk flows from a suckling foal's mouth. |
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Coarse: Lacking in quality,
shown in texture of hair, hairy fetlocks, all over lack
of refinement, common head; flat and shelly feet, an
coarse legs. |
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Cob: A close-knit horse,
heavy-boned, short-coupled and muscular, but with
quality, and not so heavy or coare as to be a draft
animal. A cob is usually mall, standing under 15 hands.
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Cobby: Close-coupled, stoutly
built. Like a cob. |
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Cocked Ankles: A condition
usually limited to the hind feet. Horses having this
condition stand bent forward on the fetlocks in a cocked
position. |
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Colostrum: The milk secreted by
the dam for the first few hours following birth. |
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Colt: A young uncastrated male
horse under 3 years of age; in Thoroughbred, the age is
extended to include four-year-olds. |
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Corns: Bruising to the soft
tissue underlying the horny sole of the foot, which
manifests itself in a reddish discoloration of the sole
immediately below the affected area. |
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Conformation: Symmetrical
disposition of the parts of the horse. |
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Crest: The top part of the
horse's neck. |
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Cow Hocked: When the hocks
stand close together and the hind feet well apart, with
the toes turned out. |
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Cribbing: A horse that bites or
sets his teeth against the manger or some other object
while sucking air is said to be cribbing. Not the same
as wood-chewing. |
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Curb: A swelling on the back
side of the horse's hock and four to six inches below the point
of the hock caused by a sprain of the tendon or ligament
in that area. |
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Dam: The female parent of a
horse. |
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Dandy Brush: A hard horse brush used
to remove excess hair and hard dirt. |
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Drench: A method of giving
liquid medicine to a horse by elevating his head and
pouring it down his throat from a bottle. |
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Dwelling: Showing a perceptible
pause in the flight of a striding foot. |
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Ear Down: To restrain a horse
by twisting its ear. |
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Equestrian: One who rides
horseback. |
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Equine: Member of the family
Equidae -- horses, zebras, mules and asses. |
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Ergot: The horny growth at the
back of the horse's fetlock joint, thought to be a vestige of
the second and fifth toes of prehistoric horses. |
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Ewe Neck: A neck like that of a
sheep, with a dip between the horse's poll and the withers. Also
termed "turkey neck" and "upside-down neck." |
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Farrier: One who trims and shoes horses.
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Feathers: Long hair found on a
horse such as on the fetlocks. |
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Fetlock: Part of the lower leg
just above the pastern. |
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Fistula: An ulcerous lesion
found at the withers which should be treated by a
veterinarian since the brucellosis organism that causes
abortion in cattle is almost always present. Usually
follows some sort of trauma to the withers. |
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Flaxen: A light-colored mane or
tail. |
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Flehmen posture: The facial
expression made by horses who raise their head and curl
their upper lip into the air. This position closes the
nostrils and allows smells in the nasal passage to be
trapped and further analyzed. |
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Foal: A young, unweaned horse
of either sex. |
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Foal-Heat: The first heat cycle
after foaling, which generally occurs between 9 and 13
days after giving birth. |
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Forging: Striking the ends of
the branches or the undersurface of a front shoe with
the toe of the hind foot. |
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G |
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Geld: To surgically castrate a
male horse. |
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Gelding: A castrated male
horse. An uncastrated male horse of breeding age is
called a stallion. |
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Gonitis: Inflammation of the
stifle joint. This can be an acute or chronic condition
predisposed by external violence, wounds, and strain. |
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Hackamore: A bridle with no
bit. |
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Hand: The standard measurement
of a horse. It is four inches. The height of a horse is
measured from the ground to the top of the withers.
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Head-shy: Horse is afraid of
having the head touched or of quick movements about the
head. |
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Heart Girth: A measure
of the circumference of the horse's chest at a point just behind
the front legs and up over the withers. |
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Hinny: The hybrid offspring of
a jenny, a female donkey, and a stallion, a male horse.
(Also see Mule) |
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Hitching: When the horse is not moving squarely
behind; apparently going farther with one hind foot than
with the other. |
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Hock: Joint in the horse's hind legs
that corresponds to the knee in the front legs. |
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Hybrid: The result of crossing
two different species. The mule is a good example. |
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IgG: A type of antibody that
can be tested for in the blood of a foal shortly after
birth. It is an abbreviation for immunoglobulin type
"G". |
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Induced labor: The chemical
initiation of uterine contractions that bring about
birth. The use of drugs (e.g., oxytocin) to cause a mare
to foal. |
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Interfering: Striking the
supporting leg (usually at the fetlock) with the foot of
the opposite striding leg. This defect is commonly found
in splay-footed horses. |
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Involution of the uterus:
Process whereby the uterus shrinks and contracts to
regain its pre-pregnant size and shape. |
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Jack: A male ass. |
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Jennet (Jenny): A female ass. |
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Lop Ears: Ears which tend to
flop forward and downward, or toward each side. |
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Lugger: A horse that pulls at
the bit. |
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M |
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Metritis: Inflammation of the
uterus of the mare. Most often caused by bacterial
organisms infecting the uterus. |
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Mule: A hybrid; the result of
mating a mare, a female horse, with a jack, male donkey.
(Also see Hinny) |
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Mutton-Withered: Term used to
describe a horse that is low in the withers and heavy in
the shoulder. |
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N |
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Near-Side: The left side of the
horse. |
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O |
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Off Side: The right side of the
horse. |
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Osslets: Result from an
inflammation in the area of the fetlock joint and appear
as soft puffy swellings. |
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Overshot Jaw (Parrot Mouth): A
hereditary imperfection in which the lower jaw is
shorter than the
upper jaw. |
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P |
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Paddling (Winging Out):
Throwing the front feet out to the side during the
stride. This defect is common in pigeon-toed horse.
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Parrot Mouth (Overshot Jaw): A
hereditary imperfection in which the lower jaw is
shorter than the upper jaw. |
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Pastern: That part of the leg
between the fetlock joint and the coronary band of the
hoof. |
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Piaffe: A dressage movement in
which the horse does a cadenced trot in place, without
moving from the spot. It is the foundation of all high
school movements. |
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Piebald: The black-and-white
coat color of a pinto horse. |
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Placentitis: Inflammation of
the fetal membrane or placenta. Causative agent may be
viral, fungal or bacterial. Infection |
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Placenta/fetal membranes: The
sacs surrounding the foal that connected the fetus to
the uterus of the mare. The structure is that of a sac
within a sac, the outer sac being the allanto-chorion,
which interfaces the uterus of the mare and is the site
of blood exchange, and the inner sac, the amnion, which
surrounds the fetus and facilitates fetal movement
through the birth canal. |
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Pointing: Extending the foreleg
without flexing the knee and fetlock very much. |
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Pounding: Making unduly heavy
contact with the ground at the completion of the stride.
Often found in calf-kneed horses. |
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Quarter (of the hoof): The side
of the horse's foot just in front of the heel and behind
the toe. |
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Quarter Cracks: Splitting of the hoof
wall from the coronet downward in the side of the hoof.
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Quittor: A deep-seated running
sore at the coronet or hoof head caused by necrosi of
the cartilage of the third phalanx, resulting in severe
lameness. |
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R |
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Ringbone: A bony enlargement or
bony tumor often but not always encircling the horse's pastern
region and involving the bones of the pastern. This is
usually regarded as a serious unsoundness. |
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Road Puffs (Wind Puffs, Windgall):
Soft puffy swellings about the size of a hickory nut
located on or above the horse's fetlocks on either forelegs or
hind legs. |
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S |
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Sacrosciatic ligament: A
structure composed of connective tissue responsible for
the suspension of the abdominal muscles. Relaxation or
breakage of this ligament causes sagging of the abdomen. |
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Shoeboil (Capped Elbow): A
bruise and swelling at the point of the elbow caused by
irritation of the shoe when the horse is lying down.
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Sidebone: A bony enlargement at
the hoof head and back toward the heel, resulting from a
turning to bone of the lateral cartilage of the feet.
Blows and other injuries to the cartilage set up an
inflammatory condition which results in these bony
formations. |
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Sire: The male parent of a
horse. |
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Stallion: An uncastrated male
horse of breeding age. An uncastrated male horse younger
than breeding age is a colt. |
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Stifled. A dislocation of the
stifle joint which is permanent is a very serous
unsoundness. |
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Stringhalt: A nervous-muscular
disorder characterized by the sudden, irregular, violent
jerking up or flexing of the hock when the horse is
moving. |
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Stud: A place where mares and
stallions are kept for breeding purposes. |
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Sweeny or Shoulder Slip. An
atrophy or shrinking of the shoulder muscles caused by
injury. |
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Splint: A bony enlargement
located most commonly on the inside of the front cannon,
usually caused by muscular straining. Can become more
marked with exercise. Splints, if located high on the
cannon so that the bones of the knee are involved, are
serious. |
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Suckling reflex: Reflex shown
by foals that make suckling movements with their mouths
and tongues when stimulated with an object in their
mouth (e.g., finger, teat, bottle nipple). |
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Tack: All articles of gear, or
equipment, that are used on or attached to riding or
driving horses. |
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Thoroughpin: A soft, puffy
swelling located in the hollows of the hock. The
swelling can be pushed from one side to the other.
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Thrush: A disease of the cleft
of the frog of the horse's hoof which may cause lameness. |
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Traces: The parts of a horse harness
which run from the collar to the single-tree. |
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Trot: A 2-beat horse gait where
diagonal pairs of legs move forward and strike the
ground at the same time. |
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Unsoundness: Abnormalities that
affect serviceability. |
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Wean: To permanently separate a
foal from it's dam or mother. |
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Weanling: A weaned colt or
filly less than 1 year of age. |
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Weaving: A horse's rhythmic
swaying back and forth while standing in the stall or
tied. |
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Wind Puffs, Windgall (Road Puffs):
Soft puffy swellings about the size of a hickory nut
located on or above the fetlocks on either forelegs or
hind legs. |
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Winging Out (Paddling):
Throwing the front feet out to the side during the
stride. This defect is common in pigeon-toed horses.
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