Evaluate and place these young performance mares. Then see how your choices compare to our expert judge’s.
This is a class of young performance mares so I approach judging them based on my perception of how athletic they may be and how well they’ll hold up under work. Over many years, I’ve seen horses overcome flawed conformation to perform well. However, even though a horse may overcome conformation flaws, that horse will work much harder for success than a horse with better balance and structure.
I look for overall balance, structural correctness, breed and sex characteristics and muscling, according to the rule books for the stock breeds. Regarding overall balance, a horse that is high in the hocks will have an uphill battle, in every meaning of the phrase, to succeed. A horse with hocks higher than his knees will struggle to lift his front end up and reach underneath himself with his hind legs, unlike a horse that is level from knees to hocks.
Ready to Put Your Conformation Knowledge to the Test?
Place the mares from first to third, then check your answers below!
First Place | Mare B
I look for overall balance first, and this mare is the best balanced of these three. Though she could have a slightly shorter back and slightly longer croup, her topline is strong, smooth, and level with nicely defined withers. She’s appropriately deep through the heartgirth and has adequate muscling throughout.
She has a bright eye and an attractive head that joins with a clean throatlatch. Her well-shaped neck is of good length and though it could ideally tie in to her chest a touch higher, her tie-in is very acceptable. A good shoulder angle and good hip angle match well—symmetry that’s eye appealing and functional.
Her front legs form a straight column through her knees and show a suitable amount of bone. Her front pasterns are of ideal length and match her good shoulder angle. The hocks may be slightly straight, but should not limit her ability to perform. Her knees and hocks are level with front and hind cannon bones matching in length, lending to her excellent overall balance. Conformationally, she has every chance to be an athletic performer.
Second Place | Mare C
I am again looking for overall balance, and though this mare can’t match Mare B, she is more level from front to hind end than Mare A. Her withers are adequately prominent, and her length of croup is good, but she’s long and weak between her withers and hip. The depth of body is adequate, but her midsection is long, and she lacks muscle definition and volume throughout.
Her head is a bit common with a long ear, but joins to a trim and functional throatlatch. The neck is long enough, but ties in to her chest too low. Her shoulder angle is steep while her hip angle is flat, each of which can limit her athleticism and the mismatch detracts from her appearance.
Her front legs show an appropriate straight column through her knees, and she has short but sturdy pasterns in both front and hind legs. The hock angle is very good, and with her hocks set low to match the level of her knees, she should be able to drive well from behind. I can see her succeeding at some level of performance.
Third Place | Mare A
The first thing I see about this mare is that she’s several inches higher in her hind end than her front end, and at age 3, she’s finished leveling out. No matter how good she is, that lack of balance will always make any job harder for her.
Though she’s built downhill, she has a smooth topline and the prettiest head in the group. Her neck is also the most attractive, long, trim and tying in nicely to her chest. Like Mare C, this mare is long in her middle section, and her shoulder angle is steep while her hip angle is flat. She’s also lightly muscled and shallow in her heartgirth when compared to her length of front leg.
Her front legs appear to be aligned well through her knees, and her front pasterns show a better slope than her shoulder. Her hocks are adequately angled, but are set higher than her knees, which goes along with her downhill build. She will have to work very hard to get her hind legs underneath herself to drive off her hind end.
Rick Baker operates Rick Baker Show Horses in Bluff City, Tennessee, and specializes in developing AQHA and APHA horses for the halter division. He showed the 2020 AQHA world champion performance halter horse, in addition to numerous other champions at the AQHA World Championship Show and All American Quarter Horse Congress. A judge since 1993, Baker currently holds AQHA, NSBA, and WCHA cards, as well as a halter specialty APHA card.
