Recent News for Limb Anatomy & Physiology
Article
The Club Foot
June 01, 2001
Q: After seeing the conformation of several weanlings at a sale recently, I noticed that my weanling had a strange-looking foot. On closer examination of his leg, his foot seemed a bit boxy. Will I still be able to sell him... Read More
Article
The Equine Spine--Back To Work
March 01, 2001
First, how can we visualize and understand what's going on under that hair, skin, and muscle? Denoix has diagnostic steps to examine a horse with performance problems that he believes might stem from the spine.... Read More
Article
Are Straight Hocks a Problem?
January 01, 2001
Does having straight hocks cause a horse to trip or to react any different than a horse without this? Will they tire more easily climbing hills when on a trail? What safety considerations should I be thinking about? --Lynn... Read More
Article
Solving Equine Back Pain
January 01, 2001
A recent survey published in England revealed that 70% of all sport horses sustain at least one musculo-skeletal disorder in any training season. In the past few years, horse health professionals have expressed the need for better and more... Read More
Article
Conformation in Horses
October 01, 2000
Conformation...what does it mean? If you've spent any time around horses or horse people, you've heard this word or related words used again and again. "Wow, that horse has great conformation!" or "My trainer said not t... Read More
Article
Osselets (Traumatic Arthritis of the Fetlock)
September 01, 2000
Osselets begin with swelling on the front of the fetlock joint, with the possible addition of synovial distensions on the sides of the joint (commonly called windpuffs). It's painful when the horse flexes the joint, and can cause lameness.... Read More
Article
Bar Shoes
July 01, 2000
Once regarded as pretty radical, bar shoes now are experiencing something of a renaissance. In particular, egg bar shoes are being fitted to more feet now more than ever before-even those belonging to horses in high-intensity athletic careers,... Read More
Article
Ringbone in Horses
February 01, 2000
Ringbone, a lameness disease of the pastern and coffin joints, is a degenerative disorder that has no cure. Once the condition occurs, it's always there and will progressively worsen.... Read More
Article
Your Horse's Limbs: Does Form Follow Function?
October 01, 1999
We asked several leading experts for their take on the conformation-performance-soundness issue.... Read More
Article
Leg Conformation
July 01, 1999
Good leg conformation in a horse is a must if that animal is to remain serviceably sound for a lifetime of work and performance. No matter how beautiful or well-pedigreed a horse, it will matter little if the animal suffers from... Read More
Article
There Was a Crooked Foal
May 01, 1999
A newborn foal, teetering on spidery legs, has a knock-kneed, awkward charmthat can melt the hardest of hearts. But it's not so charming if, after a couple of weeks, his legs still look as if they're bending in all the wrong places. Some... Read More
Article
American Farrier's Association Convention
May 01, 1999
The American Farrier’s Association Convention held in Lexington, Ky., March 3-6, was planned with the professional farrier in mind. While the lion and the lamb vollied outdoors throughout the four-day event, inside the convention center farriers... Read More
Article
Out On A Limb: Young Burro Receives Artificial Leg At Colorado State
October 16, 1998
A five-month-old burro named Primrose got a leg up on life in the form of a prosthetic hind limb at Colorado State University recently, and her owner, a professional storyteller, put a happy ending on a sad tale.... Read More
Article
Capped Hock Injury
July 01, 1998
I have a three-year-old Thoroughbred filly who was shipped from Texas. When she arrived, she had a swelling on her hock that was called a capped hock. What exactly is a capped hock and how should I deal with it? Will it affect her ability to race ... Read More
Article
Sports Medicine Meeting
June 01, 1998
The 17th annual meeting of the Association for Equine Sports Medicine was held in Leesburg, Va., from March 5-8. The meeting was attended by 400 veterinarians, sports physiology researchers, as well as others interested in equin... Read More
Article
Equine Back Problems
May 01, 1998
Equine back problems are common, particularly in performance horses. The conditions involved can be primary or can result from lameness, ill-fitting tack, or even inadequate schooling. It is noteworthy that the most common reaso... Read More
Article
Saddle Fit
May 01, 1998
Fitting a saddle correctly to a horse's back can be confusing and frustrating, Harman says, because so many variables are involved. There also is the matter of cost. Few horse owners can afford to have a specially designed saddle... Read More
Article
Hind End Lameness
October 01, 1997
I have a 4-year-old hunter who has become lame in his hind end. He routinely goes over 2' 6" jumps, but never anything larger. Being only 5'3", I do not think that my problem is the weight I am asking him to carry. There are... Read More
Article
Dorsiflexion and Carpal Damage
February 01, 1996
Last time we talked about carpal arthrosis, pointing out that too much bowing--dorsiflexion--of the foreleg at the knee was the immediate cause of damage to the articular cartilage. Further, with a bit of mechanics, we saw that too much... Read More
Article
How It Moves
January 01, 1996
In the first article of this series (The Horse of June 1995, page 21), I went on at some length about how much one could expect to predict performance based on the examination and evaluation of conformation. I tried to make it clear that,... Read More
