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The walk is a four-beat gait that averages about 7 kilometres per hour (4.3 mph). When walking, a horse's legs follow this sequence: left hind leg, left front leg, right hind leg, right front leg, in a regular 1-2-3-4 beat. At the walk, the horse will alternate between having three or two feet on the ground.
For a front leg, this is when the lower leg is in front of the horse, i.e. angled forward, while the caudal phase is when the leg is underneath the horse, i.e. angled backward. For a hind leg, the cranial phase occurs when the lower leg is under the body of the horse, and the caudal phase is when the limb is out behind the body of the horse.
Humble or one leg hobble is a strap placed around the front pastern, and then the leg is lifted and the strap is wrapped around the upper leg and then buckled, leaving the horse with three legs to stand on. Mounting hobbles are knee hobbles that are made with a quick release, on a lead that passes to the rider. They are used to mount fractious ...
His action was remarkable. When he galloped his back seemed to get shorter and his legs longer. That was due to extraordinary hind leverage; his hind legs seemed to project right out in front of his forelegs. When he was going fast he galloped absolutely true, but when held in check to go half speed seemed to cross or 'plait' his forelegs.
The horse needs the hind legs under for jumping, and for going up and down hill. A weak loin inhibit's this, especially affecting eventing, jumping, and trail horses. The loin regulates the distribution of weight on the forehand by allowing the horse to elevate its back and distribute its weight to the hind end. Horses unable to coil the loins ...
Leg injuries that are not immediately fatal still may be life-threatening because a horse's weight must be distributed on all four legs to prevent circulatory problems, laminitis, and other infections. If a horse loses the use of one leg temporarily, there is the risk that other legs will break down during the recovery period because they are ...
Although most horses are usually clinically normal when standing, some may stand rigidly with the hind legs in full extension behind their body, heels lifted, supporting their weight only on their toes. Others may intermittently flex and abduct their hind legs, with associated muscle spasms, when asked to stand still for long periods.
In the capriole (meaning leap of a goat), the horse jumps from a raised position of the forehand straight up into the air, kicks out with the hind legs, and lands more or less on all four legs at the same time. It requires an enormously powerful horse to perform correctly, and is considered the most difficult of all the airs above the ground.