are more serious than others and some become apparent sooner than others. For example, if a shorter femur is combined with a longer tibia (stifle to hock) and/or a longer rear cannon bone, the horse will appear to be sickle-hocked in most cases. Sickle hocks are usually considered undesirable, but perhaps all of the contributors to the sickle-hocked appearance are the true cause of the issues typically associated with the trait. Who looks higher than the hocks when a horse appears to be sickle-hocked? The shorter-femur construction also results in a shorter
rear stride since the horse is unable to reach as far underneath the body with the hind leg. The majority of the stride’s ellipse is behind the horse. And if one considers the physics of weight bearing, it is
obvious that having the hocks out behind the horse as a result of a shorter femur causes additional stress on the joints or the rear leg. This results in excessive wear and tear of the hocks especially, due to them being further behind the weight of the horse. If the horse can perform a particular movement, it is
seldom considered whether the horse will remain comfortable and/or sound doing that movement over a period of time. This is especially true of piaffe, passage and pirouette. Will the horse be able to perform for years or will there be signs of physical stress and/or vet bills early on? Perhaps that missing consideration contributes to hock injections becoming commonplace…even in horses that have yet to reach double digits in age. How is dressage good for the horse if the hocks are injected when it is only six or eight? Examine the photos and judge for yourself. Do you have
a preference regarding action? Which horse is truly loading its hocks? How would you score them as a judge? Which horse do you think would be more prone to injury to the hind leg, particularly from the hock down? Which one would you prefer to own, assuming they are both geldings and carry no reproductive value? Maybe we should modify that old adage about dressage being good for all horses to include something about the level of dressage that is good for a particular horse being based on the unique structure of that horse.
About Judy: Judy has researched equine conformation for 30 years and has written three books on the subject (the most recent, an e-book). She travels worldwide giving conformation clinics for all disciplines. Judy also analyzes individual horses based on photos and gives breeding consultations. Learn more at
www.jwequine.com.
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