Conformation
I get so many questions about proper conformation and I am often shown photos to give my opinion on a horse. I am super surprised to see the number of people that aren't familiar with conformation, how to assess it, or what a conformation fault truly is. Let's start with the basics 😀

Conformation is simply the way a horse is put together. This plays a role in the way a horse moves, how they perform, and how injury-prone a horse can be.

Overall, when we assess conformation, we are looking for good proportions- all of the horse's parts fit well together and none seem too big or too small for the rest of the animal.

Conformation faults are structural problems or unproportioned areas. Conformation faults are not always genetic and they don't have to be permanent! Depending on the fault, there are ways to work with them or even eliminate them. Some disciplines actually look for certain faults because the professionals in those disciplines feel that they actually help the horse to perform better.

Here's where things get more interesting- we can't make good assessments of conformation when horses are too young because they aren't born well proportioned at all- they tend to be all legs 😍 And even when their joints naturally fuse as they stop growing, we can make a better assessment of conformation, but it isn't the end of the world when we spot faults in most horses. Conformation of a horse will change throughout its life- so if you know why these changes are happening we can intervene and make sure that our horses' shape and functionality actually support whatever their daily activity and favorite disciplines are.

Some common conformation faults that (usually) cannot be changed are:

  • Over at the knee
  • Back at the knee
  • Base Wide
  • Base Narrow
  • Knock Kneed
  • Bow Legged
  • Cow Hocked
  • Bow Hocked
  • Sickle Hocked
  • Straight Behind (Posty)
Some common conformation faults that can be changed are:

  • Sway Back
  • Ewe Neck
  • Camped Out
  • Camped Under
  • Pigeon Toed
  • Toed Out
There are definitely more faults to put on both of these lists, but this is a good starting point. And remember- conformation faults don't have to be the end of the road for your horse! The most severe faults are often noticeable on foals and veterinarians do their best to correct the faults enough to allow the horse to have a good quality of life.

If you want to learn more about how to improve some faults that your horse has or what jobs your horse may be more suited for according to his conformation, jump on over to my Free Facebook Group!

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Meet Margaret

 

I've worked with and studied horses for the majority of my life. I have seen my fair share of injuries and lameness. I've had horses that were trained and some that we broke to ride ourselves.

Through this, there were horses that didn't heal as fast or as thoroughly as I'd hoped. There were also horses that had chronic behavioral issues and/ or were difficult to train. At that time, I believed that was the end of the road with those horses- they had reached their highest potential and it wasn't enough for my ambitions.

Sometime in 2017, I came across a Facebook post that showed before and after massage photos and told the story of a horse that had been struggling to pick up his left lead and was constantly knocking poles in the show jumping ring. After several massages, there were no more pole knocks or problems picking up canter leads. That had my attention. I followed the page that made that post for a little over a year before I finally took the plunge and signed up for the equine massage certification program through Midwest Natural Healing for Animals.

Watching/ following that Facebook page inspired me. I wanted to be able to just look at a horse and KNOW what problems they may be dealing with and how to fix the root CAUSE. I can confidently say that I have learned all of that and more.

I find joy in the relief and release that I provide to horses from all disciplines- I find that helping the horse physically creates a better situation for everyone. Obviously, releasing tension in a horse will lead to relaxation, and relaxation can open the horse up to a deeper connection to the handler. This can also lead to advancement in training and higher performance.

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