Beginner Anatomy: Basic Parts

How many knees does your horse have?

If I ask you to watch his flank, where are you looking and what are you probably checking for?

If I tell you his poll is too low, what does that mean?

These are all very simple questions that any rider should be able to answer, but to do so you'd need at least a basic understanding of anatomy. Alas this is one of the more brutal theory lessons because it's *yawn* boring! When I teach it in the barn it involves a very patient horse, some taped labels, and lots of laughs. Online that's unfortunately less of an option, so we're left with the old-fashioned diagram route.

Let me introduce the ever patient Teoria:

Now already you know that Teoria has two knees; the joints in a similar location on her hind legs are the hocks.

If her poll is too low, her head is down.

And if you're watching her flank, you're probably checking to see how fast she's breathing (aka his respiration rate -- but that's for another day). It's kinda hard to tell from this diagram (I never claimed to be an artist!) but it's the area where the hair grows backwards.

Feel smarter yet? You should!

Now some things to make some of these easier to remember.

Between the forearm and the shoulder is the elbow -- just like on your own body. Easy!

The barrel, on some ponies I've met, seriously resembles a barrel!

The chestnut is an interesting creation; nobody knows exactly what it is, although theories abound. The one I hear most commonly is it's a Darwinian leftover; that is, once upon a time, before horses evolved into the creatures we know today (another Thursday Theory lesson), they had three toes. Legend has it that the chestnut is the remnant of an early equine toe-nail. As to the toes themselves? By the same theory, they became the splint bones (see intermediate anatomy). Huh!

The fetlock, pastern, and coronet, all being rather random names close together near the hoof, often get mixed up in order. The fetlock -- the joint which allows the foot to move, the pastern which gives you some idea how much spring will be in the gait, and the coronet which connects the hoof to the leg. But how to remember which is which? Well, you remember Cinderella? Sure you do. Well she had a long wait before Prince Charming finally smartened up enough to find her, and when he did she could say: "Finally, Prince Charming!". FPC. Or Fetlock, Pastern, Coronet. Yeah I know it's silly, but you're not likely to ever forget it now are you?

Critical to your horse's well being is their hoof. "No hoof, no horse." It's an ancient saying that's stood the test of time because it's well... true! How many of you have missed a ride simply because your horse pulled a shoe? Such a little thing, but a critical one. And so we have Teoria's hoof:



So the triangle part that's a little more sensitive than the rest is the Frog -- but don't bother kissing it, Prince Charming's already taken (see above). Note I hereby reserve the right to mix my fairy tales! The frog is critical to blood circulation -- it houses the pump that gets the blood to go back up out of the foot into the rest of the body. Every time the horse steps down, the pump is activated. So when we put shoes on them, do you think the frog should still touch the ground? Of course! But that's one of those tiny but critical things that might not occur to you till it was too late if you didn't know your theory...

The white line is literally a white line (all the creative part names were taken). If you see a barefoot horse who has just had their feet trimmed, you can see it. Very kewl.

The bars are on either side of the frog; the wall, made of material similar to your fingernails, is on the outside, and the sole (not the soul -- that's a religious debate I'm not qualified to lead!) is the rest. It should be long and slightly concave and tends not to be overly sensitive but can certainly still be bruised (again leading to unsound horse. No hoof, no horse) so don't be too harsh with that hoof pick of yours!

So now you know the basic parts of the horse! Congratulations! That puts you one huge step closer to being a horse-person rather than just a rider :) But how much did you remember?