Is conformation everything???

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_jetset_

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I have been looking at horses today (not for me) and there was a lot of emphasis on conformation for the job to be done, ie. dressage in this instance.

I know that a good conformation is a great help for you when training, but is it everything??? The reason I ask is that one of my mare's hind legs are set behind her, she is built on the forehand and definitely not built for dressage. However, she is finding canter half pass easy, does good simple changes and will hopefully get some changes in the not too distant future.

My other mare (Disgrace) is also not built for dressage, in my opinion she is more an eventer and having a racing TB Mum and show jumping Dad, this seems pretty reasonable
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She is built with her hind legs a bit out behind rather than underneath her and she is also built a bit down hill (I know... I don't make things easier for myself do I), but as she is getting stronger, things are starting to improve.

So I guess what I am asking is am I already fighting a losing battle due to conformation??? Or can correct training create a more even footing?
 
No, its not everything but it helps! If you are in a position to choose a horse to do a specific job, then yes, choose the one with the best conformation for that discipline. Why? Because all things being equal, it will find the work easier and stay sounder than one with a lesser conformation.

Trainability is probably more important than conformation (within reason), but if you are actually buying a horse, try to get both!
 
I suppose its about where you compromise on conformation. For a dressage horse, my priorities would be an uphill (or not downhill) build, a well set (not straight-hocked) hind leg, and a neck that isn't too low. Straight front legs are a must for any sports horse. Not too thick through the throat area is important for a dressage horse too.
 
I never really thought of Grace as 'downhill' as such, but the more I look at her, the more I am beginning to think she is...

God, I need to improve my horsey conformation knowledge, it is appaling
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Why the throat area?
 
well, i have to say conformation is definatly pretty important if your a show person or what have you, but i think its not a big deal really. unless there is something that massivley affects them theres nothing to worry about is there?
i mean, my poor boy has the biggest feet, is 6"9 long, a not great set neck, and has a dent in his head - basically nothing going for him conformation wise,( i think we must have been blind to all of this at the time of purchase!) but is such a charecter and good worker. you'd be lucky to find the perfectly built trainable horse, but if you do find one... please let me know
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conformation isnt everything - look at the showjumper HH did an artice on last week!!

but for dressage conformation is VERY important imo, more so than eventing - eventing tends to be the horses that are 95-99% correct imo anyhoos. as you go up the levels conformation gets nearer 100%.

but then it depends how far you want to go with a horse ie. a happy hacker dosent need to have the worlds best confo but an olympic dressage horse does.

i cannot get what i want to say written down in words that mean it! sorry
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So I guess what I am asking is am I already fighting a losing battle due to conformation??? Or can correct training create a more even footing?


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Yes, you should sell them both immediately and buy something super expensive.
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Im warming to the little mare
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Ha ha... Maybe that would be the way forwards
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I have worked damned hard with Han to get her into a horse that is ready to compete medium, and she really is now. Everything has just come together all of a sudden with her, and she has been easy and a real pleasure to ride!

I keep thinking about that little mare... there was just something about her!
 
Maybe we should sell all our horses and pool the money together.
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Do you think we could afford one then?
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I have just sent an email asking if they would send me some photos
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I need to sell mine first.
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I used to think it didn't matter that much then went on a dressage course with Baron Blixen Fincke, who told me I had done an excellent job of training the mare I had but because she was built slightly downhill, she would never go to the levels I wanted.
I was really upset and vowed to prove him wrong, putting 12 months training into her.
I entered lots of Aff. comps ready for her aff. debut at Elementary only for her to go slightly lame the day before the first one, it turned out she had broken down due to the stress of making her carry herself in a way her build wasn't suited for.
I sold her to a lady for hacking and she remained sound until she died recently aged 30 plus.
So yes, conformation does count hugely if you wish to progress to a higher level, the strain on their joints means if there is a weakness it shows eventually, and yes, the late Baron knew his stuff.....
I think correct training can improve a horse a lot, but when it comes to the Advanced stuff, they are at a distinct advantage if they aren't built downhill to start with.
 
I dont think its everything by any means, but like others have said I think it helps and makes things a bit easier. Doesnt that amateur who got to was it HOYS or Olympia to do dressage ride a geralder or something like that? And you see the odd top SJer and eventer who have a conformation fault.
 
i don't think it is everything but it really helps!

it depends on the type of horse you are looking at... i normally buy youngsters so conformation is very important as trainability is hard to judge in unbroken horses!
if the horse is older and ridden then i can allow some faults as long as the horse's temperament can make up for it.

my eventer is built downhill and it took me about 18 months to really get him working through and up to the bridle- he was regularly scoring low 20's in BE dressage and normally around 70% at dressage up to Elementary.
BUT is was very hard for him and if you didn't ride every stride he would instantly slip back onto the forehand- every corner and transition had to be accurate and planned otherwise you would feel him pitch forward and the hindlegs were lost.

my dressage trainer thought he should be able to get to Advanced dressage but i always thought he found it too taxing and when he was working 'properly' his shoulder was always vunerable to popping out of place so he needed the backman regularly.
now he is not under so much pressure to work so correctly (different rider) he is slightly on the forehand but his shoulders are not causing him so many problems as he is being allowed to go as he is naturally build.

(wow, that was longer than i planned!)
 
I think it should count for alot. The eventers/dressage/showjumpers that have glaring errors probably have ALOT of work put into them to keep them sound.

After Hen I would be alot more cautious with conformation - all his problems stem from his very upright pasterns.
 
There is a difference between functional conformation and absolutely correct conformation, although obviously the closer a mechanism is to perfect the more easily it works and the more likely it is to succeed and stay sound. It's accepted that different disciplines and levels of competition allow for more leniency and there can even be "advantages" - or at least not functional costs - in minor deviations, such as jumpers slightly over at the knee or dressage horses slightly toed in.

Also, there are always exceptions. Everyone knows a horse that "shouldn't" be doing such and such BUT they're noticeable exactly because they ARE exceptions and even then, it often comes out later they didn't stay sound or at least required some massive management to stay that way. Any horse that has to "work hard" to achieve the same thing as another horse does easily is, obviously, at a disadvantage at least in the long term. Simply put, the more circles you have to do the more miles you're putting on the clock. Every horse has a "mileage" it's going to give out at and the more of that you use up training, the less you've got left. Sometimes you can eek it out, sometimes not.

I would also say I see links between conformation and "behaviour", when horses that seemed very trainable initially fall off the wagon down the line somewhere. What people take as "resistance", as in lack of willingness, is quite often the horse feeling the strain. Obviously some horses deal with this better than others, although it's debatable whether or not a horse that keeps going even in discomfort is actually benefiting from the experience! That said, a horse with a trainable mind, who has to make fewer repetitions, will be easier on itself than a naturally tricky one. Of course, it will also likely lose in the end to the one with the good mind AND the good mechanism. Getting to the top in any sport is hard work even for athletes built for the job.

Luckily, not many of us use our horses to full potential so if they're only giving a percentage of what they've got, or they can't make every step up, it's not necessarily a disaster.
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It makes sense to pick a horse prefect for a job but then again, most of us don't have that luxury so it becomes a case of weighing different risks and minimising the effects of the ones we're aware of.
 
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