Conformation - what do you make of this ?

Question

Just take a look and tell me ....

http://www.flickr.com/photos/11231383@N05/2669603604/sizes/o/

Answer 1

wow! that is the strangest thing i've ever seen! well, you said that's the horse is sound, so i guess he's fine! gosh, i can't get over that!! it's creepy!

Answer 2

What the h**l?.........

Is it solid?

Has it always been there or just recently showed up?

Can horses be double jointed?

You got me....

Answer 3

wow. those legs are not straight. (from the angle) they wont make a good halter horse.

Answer 4

The hoof looks awkward to me, and the leg isn't that straight either. I definitely wouldn't enter this horse in a conformation class.

I'm sorry if this is your horse, Debi, but you asked! :)

Answer 5

I'm more confused by the top face of the pastern. Is that a 'photo glitch'? Or is that really something growing over the top of the pastern? It almost looks like hoof material growing above the actual hoof out of the front of the fetlock.

Ok, obviously I need a new prescription. :)

Answer 6

It took awhile looking at the pick to realize it was the other front leg....weird pic, Im gonna say calf or bucked  kneeded, camped under, short pasterned and add in weired stance picture.

Answer 7

That is one very weird angled and long pastern with a puffy fetlock and weak hock or barely any hock.

And, if it's the front legs...and underneath her like that....hmmm...

Is there an answer to this?

***EDIT****

The pastern area looks like it was shaved..it doesn't "match" from the fetlock up...it looks like it is an add-on!!

*****EDIT****

You say the horse isn't lame..but it has to walk very stifley and I'm sure not a very comfortable ride.  It would be like walking in stilettos..but with a sneaker toe or something.

PLEASE...if you know what it is..tell us...or let us know something....Thanks!!

Answer 8

The horse is back at the knee. It's the same as people who are double-jointed (from joint hypermobility) and their knee bends the opposite of what is typically seen.

Edit - ok, well, now I'm ALL confused. Front leg, back leg...ah hum, not that confusion is that far off for me at any given moment! Ha hah. Can't wait to find out what you actually know about it.

Answer 9

so, at first i though that was the saddest looking back leg I'd ever seen, and then i realized it was a front leg!!

is it solid or liquid?

how old is the horse?

if its solid and the horse is old i would guess arthritis.. i used to care for a horse that has huge knobby knees from horrible arthritis..

but otherwise, you've completely stumped me.

EDIT: o yay! i love thumb downs! thanks!

...jeeze.

Answer 10

I don't like how straight her hocks are, and how big of an angle she has to her pasterns.  Definitely not pretty.  Now, form-to-function wise.....having hocks like that might lead to some issues later on, because they are not set to make her very atheltic from her hind end.  If I were looking to buy a horse, and saw legs like that, it would really be a no-sale for me.  Now, I am thinking of stock type breeds (quarters, paints, etc).  I fyou look at how Saddlebreds, Tenn Walkers, etc stand with their hind end stacked out, sometimes you will see some stuff like that....but basically, it would be considered a big conformation fault in my book.

Answer 11

This is a hind leg, so this is not back at the knee which is a front leg deformity.The horse is post-legged and slightly coon-footed, which means the hoof angle is steeper than the pastern angle.  Post-legged means the angles of the stifle (not shown in your pic) and hock are too open, or straight.  the horse will be prone to locking up of the stifle joint, and needs corrective work done to improve the hoof angle and reduce strain on the joints.

Answer 12

it looks like it has a rotated cannon. From the look of the way his legs are placed it looks like he's forcing his feet into the squared off position.

While he may not be lame right now, many horses go through years with a rotated cannon before it being correctly diagnosed because it is a deformity they developed at foaling. Rotated cannon can also develop more severely by many things such as improper diet, being started to early, trauma and excessive exercise, and improper warm up.

I would suggest to your friend that she takes this horse to an Equine Sports Medicine Veterinary as they are trained to deal with these types of injuries and deformities.

Answer 13

At first I though what unusual hindquarters, then on second look I think its front legs. What is that, is it a dislocation? Seems most unusual, I haven't seen this before so I'm interested to learn.... is the horse lame with this?

Answer 14

Is it a front or back leg? I cant figure it out. Either its the front and back at the knee coupled with a funky shaped knee. Or a hind one with VERY little hock. I am leaning toward hind leg but either way those are some funky legs......

Answer 15

I think that she doesn't have enough set to the hock, if this is the rear that is, she has a camped out appearance but that could be the way she is standing I would like to see the set of her hip or shoulder.

Answer 16

Well he doesn't have sickle hock thats fo sho! um I guess the pic got messed up but what I can make of it the hoof is nice and round but is really REALLY outwardly stretched from the fetlock area, and is not underneath

so the answer to your question the horse is not really conformationally correct in a sense