Term	Definition
Barrel	The area on a horse's body between the forearms and the loins (also called the trunk)
Bars	Fleshy area between front and back teeth on either sides of the horse's mouth.
Bay	Deep reddish-brown colored horse. Has black mane/tail and legs
Broke	A horse that has been "gentled" to the point that he can be handled and ridden
Broodmare	A female horse kept for breeding purposes; ultimately to produce and nurse foals
Buck	When a horse leaps in the air, keeping his forelegs stiff and his back arched, while lowering his head, sometimes kicking back in an effort to unseat a rider
Cannon bones	The long straight bones between the carpus or hock above, and fetlock (ankle) below
Cantle	Extreme back of saddle
Chestnut	A brownish-yellow coat color. Mane/tail are usually the same color as the coat. Also: Little oval of hard, rough skin found mid-way up the inside of all 4 of the horses legs
Coffin bone	The bone inside the hoof closest to the ground; designated "P3"
Coffin joint	Joint space between the coffin and pastern bones
Coggins	Test for EIA (see definition)
Cold-Blooded	Designating any horse or breed of horse without Arabian or eastern blood in its breeding. In practice, since many so-called cold-blooded breeds have been improved by the use of Arab blood, the distinction is based mainly on physical type: broadly, all heavy draft horses and most European native ponies are classed as cold-blooded
Colt	An intact male horse under the age of 3 years
Condition	(1) The horse's fitness and readiness to run; (2) "Body" condition is essentially grading of muscle and fat content.
Conformation	Structure and general make-up of a horse
Coronet	The small area that attaches the hoof to the rest of the leg.
Cribbing	Grabbing part of the stall, fence, etc., between the teeth and sucking wind at the same time; usually develops as a result of boredom or nervousness
Cutting horse	A horse trained to separate, or cut out, one animal - usually a cow - from a herd
Dam	The mother of a foal
Dished	Concave, referring to the profile of a head, such as that of an Arabian
Dock	The area at the top of the horse's tail; also describes a surgical procedure to remove the tail
EIA	Equine Infectious Anemia - a viral disease that affects the horse's immune system and other organ systems. It is a blood borne disease and is usually transmitted from horse to horse via biting insects like horse and deer flies and mosquitoes. People can also spread the disease by using contaminated equipment on more than one horse (i.e. using a single needle on multiple horses). Also called Swamp Fever, EIA has a higher incidence in states like Texas, Florida, and Mississippi that have warm, wet regions. However, EIA can occur wherever there is a vector to transmit it - and there is no cure
Electrolytes	Minerals (magnesium, potassium, sodium, and calcium) that are lost through perspiration or other forms of dehydration, particularly in heat stress situations. Intake of an electrolyte drink replaces fluids plus the loss of simple inorganic salts
Endoparasitism	Invasion or infection (tissue damage) with worms, largely in the intestine
Farrier	A person trained professionally to tend to a horses hooves
Fetlock	The "ankle-like" joint between the cannon bone and the first bone of the foot (P1). Although it's called the ankle of the horse because of its outward appearance, the fetlock corresponds to your middle knuckle (front fetlocks) or the middle toe at its attachment to the foot (rear fetlocks)
Filly	A female horse under the age of 3 years
Floating	To file sharp points off the molars in order to facilitate eating. Usually done by a Veterinarian
Foal	A male or female horse or pony, up to 1 year of age
Forehand/Forequarters	The head, neck, shoulders, withers and forelegs of a horse, collectively
Frog	V-shaped area found on bottom of horses hooves.
Gait	A pattern of foot movements. The most common gaits are the walk, trot, canter and gallop
Gaited horse	Several breeds of horses that do different gaits than mentioned above. These breeds are usually much smoother to ride. They include, Tennessee Walkers, Paso Finos, Missouri Fox Trotters
Galls	Sores caused by poorly fitting tack (see definition)
Gelding	A castrated male horse or pony
Girth	The circumference of a horse's body, measured from behind the withers around the barrel; the strap that holds down the saddle (saddle girth). Also a back girth is on a lot of western style saddles.
Grade horse	A mixed breed of horse
Gray	Any color from pure white to dark gray.
Green	A horse that has had little training or experience with a rider. Also refers to a rider with very little experience
Groom	Person who looks after the horse (also called a stable-hand). Also: The act of brushing/cleaning a horse.
Hand	A unit of measurement equaling 4 inches, used to estimate a horse's height. The height of a horse is listed as the number of hands, followed by a decimal point, then followed by the number of additional inches (e.g. 14.2 = 14 hands and 2 inches; 18.1 = 18 hands and 1 inch)
Hock	The joint bending backward in a horse's hind legs; the hock is composed of the same bones as in your ankle, but the fetlock is commonly called the "ankle" because of its outward appearance.
Hoof	Horses 'feet'
Horn or Hoof Wall	The material of the hoof (foot). Horns can be pale, dark or mixed and all colors are similar in hardness
Lameness	A problem with the use of the foot or limb or limbs, due to athletic injury, trauma or disease
Level-headed	A term to describe a horse that isn't excitable and is calm and quiet even in unfamiliar situations
Mare	A female adult horse over the age of 3 years
Mucking Out	Removal of dirty bedding and replacing it with clean bedding
Navicular bone	The small flat bone within the back portion of each coffin joint ("caudal heel") with attachments to the flexor tendon
Near-Side	Left side of horse
Neonate	A foal that is less than or equal to 10 days of age
Off side	The horse's right hand side
Paddock	A small enclosure adjacent to a barn, in which horses are turned out and can exercise
Palomino	Various shades of gold. A palomino horse has a white mane and tail.
Pastern	The region above the hoof but below the fetlock on a horse's leg
Poll	Area between the horses ears.
Pommel	Extreme front of saddle.
Pony	Small horse measuring 14.2 hands high or less.
Rear	When a horse rises to stand on his hind legs
Rogue	A horse with a bad temper
Sire	The father of a horse
Sound horse	A horse without any problems - such as lameness, wind, eyesight, etc. - that would affect his usefulness
Stall walking	A stable vice in which the horse paces endlessly around his stall
Stallion	A male horse that hasn't been gelded
Stud	A stallion used for breeding purposes
Tack	Equipment used in riding, including the saddle, bridle and saddle pad
Throat-Latch	The under-side of where a horses jaw and neck meet. Also Part of the bridle
Un-gelded	An uncastrated horse.
Vice	An undesirable behavioral habit
Warm-Blood	designating any horse or breed of horse with Arabian or eastern blood in its breeding. In practice, the distinction is based mainly on physical type: broadly, all light saddle horses and harness horses are classed as Warm-Bloods.
Weaving	A stable vice in which the horse continually rocks from side to side, shifting his weight from one front leg to the other, causing the neck and head to sway as well
Withers	The slight ridge in the horse's backbone, just behind the mane. It is the highest point on the horse's spine and from where height is measured
Wolf Teeth	Rudimentary teeth which occur in front of the front upper molar tooth on either side of the jaw. They are usually removed as they interfere with the placement of the bit and hurt the horses when the bit moves around
Yearling	A male or female horse, between one and two years of age