Terms to Know
New to horses? Take a look at these important terms and their definitions:
Sex and Age Mare
A female horse.
Stallion
A male horse
Gelding
A castrated (neutered) male horse.
Filly
A baby female horse.
Colt
A baby male horse.
Yearling
For show purposes, a horse born the previous calendar year. If a foal were born on December 31, it would be a yearling the next day.
Yeld Mare
A mare that does not have a foal in the current year.
Brood Mare
A mare that has a foal in the current year.
Body Parts Poll
Area between the ears.
Crest
The area at the top of the neck.
Withers
The highest point on the horse's back, located at the end of the mane or neck.
Croup
The highest part of the rump.
Stifle
The joint where the rear legs attach to the body, this is actually the horse's knee.
Gaskin
The area between the stifle, and the next joint on the horse - the hock.
Hock
This joint, midway down the rear leg, is actually equivalent to the human ankle.
Cannons
The area between the hocks and fetlocks.
Fetlocks
The joint just above the hoof.
Pasterns
The area between the fetlock and hoof.
Feather
The long hair on the horse's legs.
Underline
The belly.
Heart Girth
The distance around the horse, measured just behind the front legs over the top of the withers.