By Kylee Jo Duberstein, PhD

Equine enthusiasts are always evaluating the horse’s appearance, particularly if they are considering purchasing the animal. Conformation is the term used to describe this appearance and can be broken into principal categories of balance, structural correctness, muscling, and type. Of these, balance and structure are of highest importance when we assess most of our performance horses. Balance refers to equal distribution of weight from front to back and from top to bottom, as determined by angles and proportions of body parts. Structural correctness is critical for soundness and clean movement and is determined by proper bone alignment, particularly in the legs.

So how important is conformation when selecting a horse? Just as top human athletes possess certain body types that grant them athletic prowess, a well-balanced horse has smoother gaits and is better able to perform athletic maneuvers. Being structurally correct also greatly increases the horse’s likelihood of staying sound when his body is subjected to repeated concussive forces. So how do we look at a horse and analyze these important qualities?

To begin, we want to see that the horse’s parts are proportional. The horse’s body should be a square, and the neck, shoulder, back, and hip should all be approximately equal lengths, with the horse’s topline shorter than his underline. A common flaw that negatively affects the horse’s balance is a back that is long in proportion to his body. A too-long back makes it difficult for the horse to bring his hind legs up under his body as he moves. This causes him to distribute more weight on his front end, which reduces power and maneuverability, increases concussive forces on the front limbs, and causes a more jarring ride. Another important yet easy-to-determine criterion of balance is hip and wither height. These should be approximately the same. If a horse is built “downhill” he will carry more weight on his front end, causing the same problems mentioned above. However, when assessing young horses’ balance, remember they will grow faster at the hip than the withers and will appear built downhill at different points during growth