Conformation

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hroes

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I'm hopefully going to see a 3yr old 16.2hh thoroughbred tomorrow and was wondering what other people thought from his ad picture. Buying him for show jumping and possibly eventing later on. I'm not too good with conformation but I think he looks pretty good. Thanks:)
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At three he may have some growing to do, but for now he has very long cannon bones, upright shoulder and weak second thigh. I also don't like the shape of his back. He looks as though he is holding it up. Sorry, but I don't like his conformation. However, at three years old, he may well grow into himself and look a lot better in a years time.
 
Thanks, I'll see what I think of his hocks but is there anyway I'd be able to tell if he'll grow into it when I see him or is it not worth the risk? Didn't think tbs grew much after 4 so how likely is he to sort himself out? Long cannon bone could be just be that he'll grow more if I'm right not sure though
 
Naturally good jumpers tend to have a slightly croup high balance and more angular hocks. To me he looks a little downhill and somewhat sway backed? Are his hind feet slightly toes out? Could be the photo. Might it be an idea to see him free jumped to see how much natural ability he has? It is hard to get a clear idea from one static photo rather than the animal in motion.
 
TB's are not a fast maturing breed. Slow and fast maturing breeds are a myth, no horse is skeletally mature before it is 5 1/2 yo. :)

Although his conformation isn't perfect, I don't dislike him.
 
I'll just have to see how he goes free jumping and lunging see if hes got any talent haha. He looks awkward but I put it down to his age, maybe not I'll see how it goes though. Thanks everyone:)
 
Handsome is as handsome does although a good conformation is less likely to breakdown. He looks like a typical TB to me but agree he is a bit upright in his shoulder and I don't like his long cannon bones but it is a matter of will he do what you plan for him in which case talent and trainability may well be equally important
 
He looks very upright on his front pasterns, not necessarily a problem except he may feel uncomfortable to ride. Long in the pastern is a worse confo fault but makes them comfy!

I would look very hard at his back fetlock joints as they look in the photo to be a bit rounded and are showing some wear which is not great in something so young.
 
His face and expression is very pretty, but conformation wise I don't like him. There are many things I see wrong. He is downhill. His back is a very strange shape, no 3yo's back should look like that. I agree with Wagtail, he has got very long cannon bones, and his shoulder is upright, normally you want a sloping shoulder, and his second thigh doesn't look strong (you want strong thighs for jumping). Also, as others have said his pasterns are extremely upright, which will generally give you a bumpy ride. It may just be me, but his back fetlock joints look rounded almost swollen, which is a worrying thing, especially if he is only 3.

I feel bad saying all these negatives, I'm sure he's a very sweet and affectionate horse, but if you're planning on eventing him and jumping him, due to his poor conformation, I don't think he's right. If he were just for hacking, then yes, maybe he'd be OK, but I don't think he'll cope well doing eventing and SJ.


Is he an Exracer? Generally, TBs don't mature conformation wise, so how they are at 3 is usually how they'll stay for the rest of their lives.
 
hroes said:
Thanks, I'll see what I think of his hocks but is there anyway I'd be able to tell if he'll grow into it when I see him or is it not worth the risk? Didn't think tbs grew much after 4 so how likely is he to sort himself out? Long cannon bone could be just be that he'll grow more if I'm right not sure though
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Yes, if he DOES grow his cannon bones will not and so they will not look as proportionately long as they do now. But he is already 16.2 which is tall for a TB. I would expect him to possibly mature at 16.3 - 17hh and that will not make a huge difference to his proportions I don't think. Go see him and see how he performs if you like him.
 
He looks like a pretty typical TB, with all the conformational specialisations of that type. Not a horse I would buy to jump.
 
I'll go againt the others here as I think he's a lovely sort of a horse. His conformation is not perfect, but he looks a proper athlete and has a lovely honest head. He wouldnt look out of place at a 4* trot up, he's just the sort to event
He looks quality- how is he bred?
 
He was in training for racing but didn't make the cut, the owner says he's very athletic but I might get a vetting if I really like him. Definitely will be checking his back legs carefully and seeing how he moves. I wasn't sure about his back but thoroughbreds usually have weird backs so I didn't think much of it. Thanks for everyone's opinions though! Glad I posted this. Hes supposed to be well bred but I'll be checking out his parents I think.
 
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He looks a little "fine" below the knee and I agree with the comments about the shoulder, back and hocks. Personally I would not be going to view but then I prefer bigger boned TBs anyway! Good luck viewing, you might like him more in the flesh.
 
Not suitable at all for jumping!

He has a nice top line, though back is too short for jumping, he will find spreads hard. Not sure where people see a sway back!

His legs, front and back are weak, no jumping power! The shoulder is too upright meaning he will be an uncomfortable ride and have short choppy strides and find landing hard.

Suggest that you keep looking as none of these will improve with age and maturity.
 
hroes said:
He was in training for racing but didn't make the cut, the owner says he's very athletic but I might get a vetting if I really like him. Definitely will be checking his back legs carefully and seeing how he moves. I wasn't sure about his back but thoroughbreds usually have weird backs so I didn't think much of it. Thanks for everyone's opinions though! Glad I posted this. Hes supposed to be well bred but I'll be checking out his parents I think.
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He just has a long, sloping wither like many TBs do.
If you dont go and see him, please send me a link to his ad!
 
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