Critiques on my 16 y/o Quarter horse gelding please
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He looks like a nice guy! He appears to be a bit downhill, but he has a nice neck and connection to his withers, clean throatlatch, nice length and slope to his shoulder. He could have a bit more depth to his body and hip. He has a nice forearm but a little long in his cannon bones and possibly a tad back at the knee. His stifle is a bit short and straight. He has a decent head, but not refined.
Bump
He is butt high but actually his stifle might be lower than his elbow, which is an important measure of how downhill a horse is.
Is that his natural croup conformation or does he have a chronic strain hunters bump injury,? It looks natural to me but it is very peaked. That might also make him look more downhill than he is.
He is however very post legged behind, and I’m used to seeing more length of hip on a stock horse breed. I don’t see him being a catty cowhorse.
I think his shoulder is fine. His neck ties in quite low I think but that’s a breed characteristic. His shoulder and upper arm will determine his ability to tuck his knees over a jump. Can he do that,? Or is that not relevant in AQHA hunt seat?
He might be fine for AQHA hunter classes, I have no idea. He wouldn’t be my choice for jumping or dressage in open nonbreed competition.
But mind and temper are the most important things for most ammies or juniors, and if he is a nice quiet confident boy, as he looks here, I am sure you will do fine
Thanks
His hind leg is awfully straight. . .
I like his kind expression.
A question for you AQHA folks: How come so many in the breed have that sloping croup? Is there some biomechanical advantage that that gives?
My guess is that when the sloping croup is paired with more acutely angled hocks, it might allow the horse to drop his hind end and be catty behind. One of the conundrums of AQHA is that although they are often built very downhill in front, they can really collect behind when they do cow work and reining. The opposite of a Friesian, saddlebred and some warmbloods that are built uphill but can’t collect behind.
However my guess is that with hind legs this straight the steep croup is not going to add any collecting power to this horse.
With respect to the croup’s length and angle. Yes, I see how that horse is built “pre-tucked” with his hind end and so the “spring” that goes from the horse’s hind foot to his pelvis and SI joint is compressed. But what happens what you want to expand that spring of the hind leg? When the horse has opened all of his angles maximally, that angle in his hip limits him. Or at least that’s the way it seems to me.
I won’t comment on the post-legged build that’s seen in some quarter horses.
Bump
I expect that the working cow horse tucks his hind end but doesn’t need the recoil to jump. Or he gets it from having a sharp hock angle that allows his hind legs to expand. It is interesting to me that cowhorses obviously collect like crazy but would find it conformationally hard to collect in dressage style. I haven’t given it much thought before so I’m kind of thinking out loud here :).
