Parts of the Horse/Mechanics
In Horsemanship, it is very important to know how horses function, and what different areas on them are named. If your horse were to ever injure himself, describing to a vet what happened and where is very important, and this is how you can make sure your horse is healthy and un-injured.
Lets start with the basics shall we? First lets go over basic horse mechanics. If you do Jumping or Dressage, I am sure you have noticed the different gaits. The walk is a four beat gait, starting with a back leg, then the same side's front leg, other back, same front. Eg. Right back, right front, left back, left front. This type of walking gait is exhibited in many other herbivores such as Giraffes, Cows, and Sheep. In the trot, (some breeds don't exhibit this gait) it is a two beat gait, with two legs diagonally from each other moving at one time. The Canter or Lope, is a three beat gait. It starts off with a hind leg to get the proper impulsion, then the other hind leg, AND the front leg across diagonally, move at the same time. The Gallop is a four beat gait, where the hind legs move first then the front. So right hind, left hind, right front, left front.
When a horse is Cantering or Galloping, a front leg reaches forward farther than the other one. This leg is called the lead leg. If the lead leg is the front leg, it is called the "left lead". In Dressage or Jumping, which lead leg is very important. If you are riding at the Canter, and are about to make a right turn, you want to be on the right lead. Having the lead leg the same as the direction you are turning, makes it easier for the horse to turn, and you are also less likely to slip sideways while turning. In horse racing when the horses are Galloping at high speeds, their lead leg hits the ground all by itself, and if you are good at physics, calculating a horses mass, plus the speed and force of that leg, that leg is supporting up to 2 1/2 times the horses weight! That is one of the main factors as to why race horses "break down". When racing at such a young age, and their bones aren't fully developed, all that extra weight can cause the cannon bone, the fetlock joint, and a bunch of other bones to break.
Ok so i don"t want this post to be tooooo large, so i'm going to close with Muybridge. Now for those who are not aware of who he is, Muybridge was the first person to ever photograph the horse in movement. His Photos proved to a lot of skeptics, that during the gallop all four of the horses legs are off the ground at one point. This is also true for the canter and trot. A lot of people used to think that if the horse didn't have at least one leg on the ground, it would fall over!
My next post will be on the parts of a horse.
Here are his photographs. Enjoy! :)
Lets start with the basics shall we? First lets go over basic horse mechanics. If you do Jumping or Dressage, I am sure you have noticed the different gaits. The walk is a four beat gait, starting with a back leg, then the same side's front leg, other back, same front. Eg. Right back, right front, left back, left front. This type of walking gait is exhibited in many other herbivores such as Giraffes, Cows, and Sheep. In the trot, (some breeds don't exhibit this gait) it is a two beat gait, with two legs diagonally from each other moving at one time. The Canter or Lope, is a three beat gait. It starts off with a hind leg to get the proper impulsion, then the other hind leg, AND the front leg across diagonally, move at the same time. The Gallop is a four beat gait, where the hind legs move first then the front. So right hind, left hind, right front, left front.
When a horse is Cantering or Galloping, a front leg reaches forward farther than the other one. This leg is called the lead leg. If the lead leg is the front leg, it is called the "left lead". In Dressage or Jumping, which lead leg is very important. If you are riding at the Canter, and are about to make a right turn, you want to be on the right lead. Having the lead leg the same as the direction you are turning, makes it easier for the horse to turn, and you are also less likely to slip sideways while turning. In horse racing when the horses are Galloping at high speeds, their lead leg hits the ground all by itself, and if you are good at physics, calculating a horses mass, plus the speed and force of that leg, that leg is supporting up to 2 1/2 times the horses weight! That is one of the main factors as to why race horses "break down". When racing at such a young age, and their bones aren't fully developed, all that extra weight can cause the cannon bone, the fetlock joint, and a bunch of other bones to break.
Ok so i don"t want this post to be tooooo large, so i'm going to close with Muybridge. Now for those who are not aware of who he is, Muybridge was the first person to ever photograph the horse in movement. His Photos proved to a lot of skeptics, that during the gallop all four of the horses legs are off the ground at one point. This is also true for the canter and trot. A lot of people used to think that if the horse didn't have at least one leg on the ground, it would fall over!
My next post will be on the parts of a horse.
Here are his photographs. Enjoy! :)
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