Review my horse please

[jlewis24]

Hello, I am fairly new to owning a saddlebred and I was hoping you guys could review my horses conformation. He was shown halter as a weanling and yearling the first picture is him at 6 months and the second is him as a 4 year old
http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc6/263863_10150352358023082_829748081_10209469_659907 6_n.jpg

http://a8.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/262998_10150361826833082_829748081_10333167_494708 8_n.jpg

[luvtoshowcp]

Sorry that your request has gone unanswered for so long. And let me apologize further by saying that I do not feel my opinion has much weight because I am only an aot.(amateur owner trainer) I will commend you on finding what most of us on here believe to be the most personable and cooperative horse breed on the planet. To me your horse looks well proportioned and athletic in his weanling shot. I see no faults from that view. His adult pic is not staged as well, so hard to draw conclusions from it, but once again I see nothing troubling. Are you training him yourself? If so what type of a career do you have in mind for him?

[jlewis24]

yes i am doing most of his training myself but i will be taking lessons with experience trainers when i can. he was started undersaddle and only had about 6 months under saddle before i bought him. He has been doing halter since he was a weanling so i will be continuing doing that and I plan on showing him for hunter at breed shows. Thanks for the response and I will try and get a nicer recent conformation picture :)

[Samigator]

I am no conformation expert, but I think he's very nice! I agree, can't tell much from the older photo, but he looks very nicely put together in the baby picture. If he was showing halter and doing it successfully, I'm sure there are probably no major flaws. I really like how his neck comes out of his shoulder. I think his markings also compliment his build nicely. Nice horse, you'll have fun with him I'm sure. How long have you had him?

[Tazsprout]

Can you get a picture with him squared up? If so, I'll try my hand at the Dr. Deb Bennett measurements. Shoot from side, use a 50 to 70mm lens,

[jlewis24]

I will post a new pick of him parked on tuesday :) thanks for the reply guys i really appreciate it

[jlewis24]

Samigator I have only had him for about 3 weeks now but i've been talking to his breeders for a while. Im planning on showing him in some halter classes in september. He received grand champ as a weanling and yearling but i think it was just at a local type show

[jlewis24]

http://a5.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/281533_10150378722433082_829748081_10507334_168895 _n.jpg

I didnt have anyone to help me take the picture of him parked but this is the best i could get

[cblue08]

Congratulations on your first ASB. He's is definitely a cutie! :)

I think he looks very athletic and capable of going in most any direction you want to go. The main thing I see is that he needs to develop some muscling, especially over his topline. Do you know any dressage? There are lots of good exercises, working long and low, that can really help a horse strengthen its topline and it will really help you in the hunter ring also.

Good luck with your new guy!

[luvtoshowcp]

I agree w/ cblue, your boy could use some hind end and topline muscle. Does he lunge nicely for you? If so, use very loose elastic side reins either to your saddle girth or a surcingle. You want to encourage him to work with his head low and a gentle roundness to his neck and back. Depending on how he lunges, lots of slow trot would be just the ticket. Under saddle you could get similar benefit from working over trot poles. To my eye he is almost underweight as well, so if you increase his exercise to build the muscle be ready to increase his calories as well.

[D_BaldStockings]

Nice shoulder and good bone. Legs and hooves are rather good.
Has a lot of filling out to do. Coupling and haunches/gaskin are quite undermuscled, so you will need to get to work. :)

Will you be showing Hunter and halter at SB shows or at pinto shows?

Since a SB at halter will be judged 'as if' it were an ideal high-headed and high-motioned Saddle seat horse his training as a hunter to go long and low may not work in his favor. Most people expect horses at halter to carry more weight than he shows.
Right now he appears gawky and I would enter for fun, but without much expectation of a win in his current shape.

Of course we don't know how he moves!

I look forward to updates from you.


psst, who is this horse??

[Tazsprout]

How about a picture UNSTRETCHED..:) and a true lateral.
What is it that you would like to do with him long term? I think that will make a huge difference. From the photos you sent I would say that at this point, he has a good front end a good back end and is weak over the topline. Like a lot of SBs, he is also long in the back. So for long term utility, I would certainly think about top line development exercises. Even if your long term goal is the high headed SS stance, these exercises will protect his back/spine by padding them out with good epaxial muscles (those are the ones that run on either side of the spine) and with good iliopsoas muscles (the ones that connect the pelvis to the underside of the spine. If you work on these properly, you will also get (bonus!) a nice arch in the neck. Without these, I think this horse could hollow out in the back and do the broken-back at the base neck posture.

Chris U.

[Mona129]

How about a picture UNSTRETCHED..:) and a true lateral.
What is it that you would like to do with him long term? I think that will make a huge difference. From the photos you sent I would say that at this point, he has a good front end a good back end and is weak over the topline. Like a lot of SBs, he is also long in the back. So for long term utility, I would certainly think about top line development exercises. Even if your long term goal is the high headed SS stance, these exercises will protect his back/spine by padding them out with good epaxial muscles (those are the ones that run on either side of the spine) and with good iliopsoas muscles (the ones that connect the pelvis to the underside of the spine. If you work on these properly, you will also get (bonus!) a nice arch in the neck. Without these, I think this horse could hollow out in the back and do the broken-back at the base neck posture.

Chris U.

fully agree. No matter the direction you take him he needs a topline muscled out. He is a bit underweight. I would also say his pastern angle is a bit steeper than I'd like to see it but not uncommon in our breed, I just personally look for more slope. He has a nice shoulder. I look forward to seeing how he develops over the next five or six years!

[Daisygirl]

More than muscle I think he needs quite a bit of weight. He's not filled out at all. Look at his flank, sides, and over his hips and butt. His neck looks thin also. You need more fat there, not just muscle. Muscle will come as you work him more. Young horses will look more narrow and gangly, that will change as they grow and fill out. But he needs some groceries!

He looks really cute and sweet. You are going to have a lot of fun with him!

[jlewis24]

well when i first got him he was pretty underweight so he still has some weight to gain. yes he dose need more topline muscle and we have been working on lunging with elastic side reins and a caveson (sp?). We will not be showing till september at a pinto show and it will be just for fun I really just wanna experience it for myself and see how he will react to everything. and he is registered as MRF Nitris under american saddlebred and MRF Nitro under pinto.

Thanks for the comments guys its always nice to hear other's opinions

[attafox]

jlewis - FYI, Tazsprout is a vet ...

[sdlbredfan]

I don't know much about the pinto shows, but I seem to recall they also have halter classes for 'saddle type'. Right now he looks more saddle type than hunterish. I agree with the 'long and low' work to develop musculature, no matter what your eventual plans undersaddle are. He is a very nice looking horse, and I am sure you will have lots of fun with him.
Jeanie