# My yearling - lots of pics



## Crossover (Sep 18, 2010)

I know she's a bit young still but I'd like to get some honest opinons on my girl and her potential as a sporthorse. She'll finish around 15hh. 

She is a bay fewspot appaloosa. Here is her pedigree.. Bright Mariah Appaloosa


The two side and rear pic I just took this morning. As you can see, Mariah really enjoys getting her pic taken . PS. She actually has a very thick mane, I roached it becuase of a tick invasion.


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## Indigosblue (May 9, 2011)

lol, i was like why is her mane pink? She's very cute and guessing from the moving pics looks sporty enough. I know little about conformation, so i can't help you there, but she looks really cute! The only thing i noticed was that she looks a bit cow hocked in the rear-end picture, but i don't know if that's something she always has? My mare is a tiny bit cow hocked and it doesn't affect anything, so i wouldn't worry about it too much if your horse is too =P


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## tempest (Jan 26, 2009)

Maybe I'm just seeing things, I'm not great at spotting conformation flaws or advantages, and it could just be the colored spots on her forelegs, but it would appear that she's a little forward in her knees. Maybe I'm just seeing things though.


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## Crossover (Sep 18, 2010)

Indigosblue said:


> lol, i was like why is her mane pink?


I had put pics up before. That was pink swat to help against the flies and ticks after I roached her mane.


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## sarahver (Apr 9, 2010)

I was wondering about her knees too, hard to tell with the colouring! It looks as if she is wearing knee pads like a skater would ha.

Also, she appears to toe out slightly or is she standing awkwardly? More so the right than the left.

Nice compact body though and powerful looking hindquarters.


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## Crossover (Sep 18, 2010)

She may of been, she really doesn't like to pose for the camera and I was fussing at her to get her as square as I could.


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## SeeingSpots (May 29, 2011)

She is VERY cute but I do not think she is a few spot That is what we thought my mare was....but is actually a Varnish Roan! I think that is what your mare is


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## blue eyed pony (Jun 20, 2011)

I love her hindquarter and shoulder! Not really a fan of those hind legs, with the cow hocks and toes out, but that might just be uneven growth. I would see about having your farrier do a 'corrective trim' because these things can be fixed in young horses if you encourage them to grow in the right direction.

She is a little bit downhill (might be just that she's a yearling and therefore probably in an awkward stage, in which case she'll grow out of it) and it really IS hard to tell about those knees but they're not back which is a really good thing. Over at the knee really isn't something you need to worry about unless it's a moderate to severe case. IF she is over, she is only mildly over. Mildly over at the knee is actually something a lot of racehorse trainers like, because it reduces strain on the tendons, whereas back at the knee increases it and also creates incorrect wear on the joint, leading to arthritis.

Other than the downhill and the hocks, I really like her. I think assuming she'll level out or end up uphill-built, and that those hocks get corrected, she might make a lovely sport horse


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

There is something a bit odd about her front legs. I noticed it immediately. I think it's that the whole front leg come down rather more forward than is typical. Almost like her arm (radius bone, the length of bone above the knee) is rotated forward and inward. I cannot see her elbow very well, so perhaps she was tensing and holding it into her side more. She has a very steep ulna (shoulder to elbow) and I have heard this make for a good freedom to swing the front leg upward, as a jumper must do (knees tucked up to eyeballs). She is cute and has a bright expression.


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## Crossover (Sep 18, 2010)

blue eyed pony said:


> I love her hindquarter and shoulder! Not really a fan of those hind legs, with the cow hocks and toes out, but that might just be uneven growth. I would see about having your farrier do a 'corrective trim' because these things can be fixed in young horses if you encourage them to grow in the right direction.
> 
> She is a little bit downhill (might be just that she's a yearling and therefore probably in an awkward stage, in which case she'll grow out of it) and it really IS hard to tell about those knees but they're not back which is a really good thing. Over at the knee really isn't something you need to worry about unless it's a moderate to severe case. IF she is over, she is only mildly over. Mildly over at the knee is actually something a lot of racehorse trainers like, because it reduces strain on the tendons, whereas back at the knee increases it and also creates incorrect wear on the joint, leading to arthritis.
> 
> Other than the downhill and the hocks, I really like her. I think assuming she'll level out or end up uphill-built, and that those hocks get corrected, she might make a lovely sport horse


 
Thank you, she is cowhocked and my farrier and I have been working on getting her trimmed to straighten her out the best we can. I'm hoping the downhill will correct also, her sire and dam are well balanced so I have high hopes.


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## Crossover (Sep 18, 2010)

tinyliny said:


> There is something a bit odd about her front legs. I noticed it immediately. I think it's that the whole front leg come down rather more forward than is typical. Almost like her arm (radius bone, the length of bone above the knee) is rotated forward and inward. I cannot see her elbow very well, so perhaps she was tensing and holding it into her side more. She has a very steep ulna (shoulder to elbow) and I have heard this make for a good freedom to swing the front leg upward, as a jumper must do (knees tucked up to eyeballs). She is cute and has a bright expression.


It may of been my fault. I was fussing at her trying to get her to stand square and not walk off so she was a bit annoyed at me by the time I took the pics. I wouldn't be surprised if she wasn't braced. Knees to eyeballs, that creates quite a picture . I was thinking of working her towards hunter if not sporthorse (or having someone else do so)


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## Crossover (Sep 18, 2010)

SeeingSpots said:


> She is VERY cute but I do not think she is a few spot That is what we thought my mare was....but is actually a Varnish Roan! I think that is what your mare is


Mariah has two high colored appaloosa parents and she was born with classic fewspot appearance. 
She did not roan into her current look, she was born that way. Generally a varnish roan begins with a lot of color and roans away to just color on the bony areas. Yes, her base color is bay roan, but her white body indicates two LP genes. 

There will soon be a test for LP available if someone needs proof, but i am quite sure she is not a varnish roan simply by her appearance. 

She is a bay roan fewspot.


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