Hock Anatomy Horse

A horse with good conformation is going to have well formed symmetrical legs. Points of a horse equine anatomy refers to the gross and microscopic anatomy of horses and other equids including donkeys and zebras.

Equine Hock Anterior View

Horses of all breeds types and disciplines can suffer from hock related lameness problems especially those that work heavily off of their hind limbs.

Hock anatomy horse. It is similar to the ankle of a human. Bones talus b. They can take quite a beating in western disciplines such as reining and cutting where the horse works mainly off the hind end.

Tarsus joint hock the hock is the joint between the tarsal bones and tibia. Conformational defects are associated with an increased risk of injury and lameness. Tarsal anatomy of the horse 1.

This joint may include articulations between tarsal bones and the fibula in some species such as cats while in others the fibula has been greatly reduced and is only found as a vestigial remnant fused to the distal portion of the tibia as in horses citation needed. Good hocks are what should transmit the propelling force to move the body forward. The hock is a horsemans term for the tarsus an anatomic region of the horses hind limb.

Muscletendons cranial lateral tibialis cranialis flexor of hock originates from lateral condyle of tibia tendon passes through split in peroneus tertius tibialis cranialis tendon then splits itself. Osteoarthritis of the knee is by far the most common condition affecting this region in horses and is often secondary to other problems such as chip fractures or poor conformation. Anatomy of the horses hock.

The hock is especially important in equine anatomy due to the great strain it receives when the horse is worked. 12 the hock is arguably the most important joint of horse leg anatomy. The hock is essentially round from an external standpoint with a protuberance at the proximal calcaneus.

The hock of the horse is equivalent to the human ankle. Similar to the carpus there is relatively free access to all sides of the limb for excellent eval uation of the bony structures. The horses hock is made up of 10 bones and 4 joints supported by several ligaments.

The hock or gambrel is the joint between the tarsal bones and tibia of a digitigrade or unguligrade quadrupedal mammal such as a horse cat or dog. When the horse is viewed from the front the observer can drop an imaginary line from the top center of the leg at chest level down through the forearm knee cannon and fetlock to the center bottom of the hoof. The views will de pend on the age breed and use of the horse.

It is also one of the most complicated. Although the tarsus refers specifically to the bones and joints of the hock most horsemen refer to the hock in such a way to include the bones joints and soft tissue of the area. Horses hock anatomy the horses hock joint is one of the hardest working of all the joints and plays a critical role especially in performance horses.

Tarsus anatomy dane tatarniuk dvm 2.

Tarsal Anatomy Of The Horse

Reading Radiographs Horse Rider