# Critique my new gelding



## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

Hey everyone! Alright, so after a few years of no horse ownership, which drove me insane! I have just recently purchased a new equine friend! I'd love to get your input or constructive criticism on his build. I'll try not to overload you with pictures yet 

Specs: 
Henry
16 yr old registered Morgan gelding
approx 15.3-16h tall.
Used to be a saddleseat horse, now being ridden western and I am going to start some dressage work with him.

This is the day he arrived (which was this past Thursday)! He's been a joy to have and I can't wait to work with him more  Definitely a lover! Hope these pics work! I was by myself for he leg ones and he was much more interested in turning around to see what the heck I was doing rather than standing still lol. I can always take more!

Without further ado, here's Henry!



























Aaaaaand just because he is so cute and I absolutely LOVE his ears!


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## Endiku (Dec 6, 2010)

What a beau! And I think you did a wonderful job considering that you were alone for these pictures.

I really like him. His withers are a tad more sloped than I'd like,and he has a very cresty neck, but that seems like a very common thing in Morgans.Very gentlemanly and regal look to him, and very clean, straight legs. It looks like he might toe out just a bit in the back, but nothing huge. I think you've found yourself a winner!


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## csimkunas6 (Apr 18, 2010)

I love the look of him, but then again, I have a soft spot for Morgans....love his head, and his ears are adorable!


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

lol There is definitely no denying he is a Morgan. He has every Morgan traits I can see..I do think he has a cute head for a Morgan... He does have really nice straight legs..He may be very slightly toed out, but in the other pictures he doesn't look bad at all..He does have a longer back than I like but it's not awful, especially considering he's 16..He looks in nice shape and at a very nice weight for a Morgan..His neck does tie in a little odd but nothing major. Nice chest....All in all he is a nice looking guy. He has his little quirks but nothing major that should really change or hinder his ability to work. And really, what horse is absolutely perfect in conformation?


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

He is stunning! STrange, I would have said he was Saddlebred, just to look at him.


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## DraftyAiresMum (Jun 1, 2011)

If I could find a man with a chest like that, I'd be a very happy woman. ;-)

I agree with DrumRunner that his back is a touch longer than I'd like to see, but it's not THAT bad and it looks well-supported, so it shouldn't be a problem. I like his legs...a lot. Looks like he's got a nice shoulder angle. Remember, a horse is supposed to toe out slightly in the back in order for their legs to function properly, so his toeing out in the back isn't even remotely a fault (in fact, he's got just the right amount of toeing out to be considered in the ideal range). As for his neck...he looks like he's been forced to carry his head more upright, like the majority of saddleseat horses you see, so it's no wonder it's muscled funky. Give him some time working long and low and I bet you'll see a tremendous difference.


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## sierrams1123 (Jul 8, 2011)

Looks like his front left hoof has a little flaring(his back two as well), it is also not even with the his right hoof. His back looks a little toes out but I think it may be the way he is standing because in the others it does not appear that way to me.
He does have a long back, I would also like to get some side pictures of him standing on flat ground, the first one looks like the ground goes down hill.
I also agree with TinyLiny, I see Saddlebred as well.
He does have a cute head, he looks very alert.....he is grinning in the 2nd photo 

Congrats on your new boy


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## AndreaSctlnd (Jan 17, 2012)

I love the cheesy grin in photo 2...he's a beaut.


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## minihorse927 (Aug 11, 2008)

I love the grin he is giving you in the one photo!
I see a hair toed out on the hind and his whithers are a little more sloped than I like but overall I think you scored on this one!


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

sierrams1123 said:


> I would also like to get some side pictures of him standing on flat ground, the first one looks like the ground goes down hill.


Okay, I may be wrong, If I am someone correct me..I know a little about Morgans but I'm not an expert...I think he looks a little down hill because Morgans are supposed to stand like that..They are trained to hold their hind quarters and feet out further...I think it's called parking out? 

Like this...


















But like I said..I may be wrong, I'd like to know too though. Learn something new!


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## BaileyJo (Aug 23, 2011)

It's those hooked ears! They look like Saddlebred. So cute. He's very striking. I love his eye. Nice looking boy!

Is he gaited by chance?


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## minihorse927 (Aug 11, 2008)

DrumRunner said:


> Okay, I may be wrong, If I am someone correct me..I know a little about Morgans but I'm not an expert...I think he looks a little down hill because Morgans are supposed to stand like that..They are trained to hold their hind quarters and feet out further...I think it's called parking out?
> 
> Like this...
> 
> ...


Yes, it is called parking out and yes it is the way that you would see morgans set in the show ring. With these types of breeds you want to set the horse to make it look like it has the best conformation possible. The one on the top photo for example is much more stretched in the rear while his front legs are pretty straight under, this is to make him look more level across the topline. I believe standing square this horse would appear butt high. The second photo the horse is standing a little less stretched which is making him look butt high in the picture all together.


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

Ahhh okay, thanks..Do you think the OPs horse is parking out, standing funky, or a little down hill?


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## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

wow! thank you for all of the input everyone! he's definitely a camera ham, I'm glad you guys noticed the grin as well  I definitely agree that his back is a tad long, but for his age and background I am quite happy that its still in such good shape. the western saddle that I ride in definitely hides that bit of extra length. Ok I wasn't imagining things about his feet! I saw his right front flare as well, which surprised me since he was owned by a farrier...its nothing horrible so my farrier and I are just going to do a nice adjustment to it and see how it goes from there. 
tinylinly & sierrams, trust me I see the ASB too when I look at him! I actually thought he was an ASB when I saw him at first, he's very refined for a Morgan, especially one of his age! and those ears! those are ASB ears in my book lol. I like it though, it adds his own little bit of flare to him 
drumrunner, you are correct that the majority of Morgan are taught to stand 'parked out' when they are displayed. I was trying to get him to stand a bit more square,but the ground does slope the tiniest bit down behind him, I'll see if I can snap a shot of him on the concrete barn isle to help later. 
thanks for all the compliments guys! I can't wait to see how his overall physique changes once we start really working on his stretching and bending exercises under saddle  I'd love to see that topline fill in just a tad more to help with those withers too 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

Gotcha, I didn't know if it was something that all Morgans did because they are bred for it and most get it naturally or if it was just something they were trained to do...


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## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

Whoah! more replies by the time I got done typing on my phone lol. BaileyJo, he is not gaited, though that would be fun to have lol. 

I'll try to grab some more pictures of him on concrete when I head out tomorrow for you guys! I'll do one parked out and one square so you can see the difference it would make with him 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

it is definitely a trained stance. just used to show them off in the in hand classes. we also teach the saddleseat horses to park out under saddle while in line up. pretty much just a 'pretty' stance lol
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## BaileyJo (Aug 23, 2011)

This might explain why we see the Saddlebred look in him.... about halfway down the page. 

http://foundationmorganhorse.com/article-what-is-a-morgan.asp


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

Thanks for filling me in! Neat stuff..


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## minihorse927 (Aug 11, 2008)

DrumRunner said:


> Ahhh okay, thanks..Do you think the OPs horse is parking out, standing funky, or a little down hill?


The first pic of the OP's horse it looks like he is standing on unlevel ground and that the front appears higher than the rear cause of it. He is standing fairly square and is not parked out in the picture. I would love to see a picture of him parked out though.

Definitely a trained stance. It is used in saddlebreds also in halter and under saddle. We tend to park out mini horses in the show ring as well but no as extreme as other breeds. Some people do park out minis as extreme as a morgan or saddlebred but tend to be trying to cover something up such as being uphill, downhill, or having slightly crooked legs. You will see it used in mondern shetlands and hackneys as well both in harness and in halter.


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## sierrams1123 (Jul 8, 2011)

I don't either drum think a picture on flat ground would help figure it out


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## DrumRunner (Jan 26, 2011)

Yep..I was just curious about it in general..learned something new. :wink:


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## tinyliny (Oct 31, 2009)

I am more used to seeing this type of Morgan horse:


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## sierrams1123 (Jul 8, 2011)

tinyliny said:


> I am more used to seeing this type of Morgan horse


Me too, tinyliny.

OP, is this horse papered Morgan or did the previous owner say he was?


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## AndreaSctlnd (Jan 17, 2012)

My morgan draft X parked! I loved seeing him do that. He also bowed. He was so great. I miss him. He was a nut. More dog than horse. LOL


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## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

sierrams & tinilinny, don't worry I know how 'off' of a Morgan he looks like lol. He is simply one of the more refined ones out there. It's really not that uncommon nowadays, but for back when he was bred it was definitely a bit rarer. But yes he is indeed papered. I have his papers and also his DNA testing results. He is indeed a Morgan 

Here is a picture of his sire Merriehill Chicagoan, as you can see they have a lot in common in regards to looks.


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## sierrams1123 (Jul 8, 2011)

Okay, thanks for clearing that up


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## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

No problem! Don't' worry, I had my questions when I first saw him too lol.


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## BaileyJo (Aug 23, 2011)

sierrams1123 said:


> Me too, tinyliny.
> 
> OP, is this horse papered Morgan or did the previous owner say he was?


You're not crazy.... :wink:

From FoundationMorganhorse.com

"Today, more than 60%, or even much higher, of horses with Morgan registration papers carry large amounts of recent Saddlebred blood, both "legally" and illegally from back-of-the-barn secret crosses to Saddlebreds, and also to Hackneys, both cob sized Hackney ponies and horse sized Hackneys.

This was done to cater to the Saddlebred look for the show ring. 

The true Morgans have been driven from their own shows and are essentially a minority in their own breed, with over 60% of the horses with "Morgan" registration papers carrying the later Saddlebred crosses."


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## sierrams1123 (Jul 8, 2011)

I knew I wasn't crazy!


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## AndreaSctlnd (Jan 17, 2012)

BaileyJo said:


> You're not crazy.... :wink:
> 
> From FoundationMorganhorse.com
> 
> ...


That to me is ludicrious. Why want a Morgan if you don't want the look of one? I mean, if you want a Morgan that looks like a saddlebred, then get a darn saddlebred! Just makes no sense.


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## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

AndreaSctlnd, I agree wholeheartedly. I've ridden Morgans and Saddlebreds for years, but they each are what they are for a reason. In the region that I show in there really are no other Morgans that look as saddlebred-y as Henry. we have the more refined ones, yes, but not to his extreme. His papers actually have a lot of foundation horses in there. His looks simply came from crossing one very refined Morgan with another one, no saddlebred hiding anywhere in the past 6+generations. if I was serious about showing he wouldn't have been my first choice by far simply because he's more ASB type than Morgan, but his personality won and I'm not looking to go crazy showing so its ok. None of the Morgan breeders or trainers I know endorse the ASB look, I think the paragraph from the foundation website might be pushing it a bit lol. I will agree that a more refined Morgan may have better carriage in certain areas than a stocky foundation looking one, but that doesn't mean he'd be picked over another. Like everything else, its all personal opinions 
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## Susan Crumrine (Oct 5, 2009)

I love his ears!
I am a Morgan horse fan from way back, I have seen the Saddlebred feature's taking over. LOL
He is adorable and he will be loads of fun.


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## Courtney (May 20, 2011)

WOW. I love this guy... he's beautiful.


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## jbolt (Jan 1, 2012)

he does look like he may puposely be parking out, idk for sure though....................:?


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## Underfire05 (Jan 17, 2008)

jbolt, he is not parked out in the picture, simply standing at a normal stance. I'll try to grab some other pictures for you guys the show the difference between him parked out and square. Parking out is an extreme stretch  he was just very alert lol
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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