Have you ever seen the movie Secretariat? That legendary racehorse had a stride length of a whopping 23 feet. (To put this into perspective, a human’s average stride length is around 4.5 feet.) He had the speed and the stamina to win himself the famous title of the Triple Crown, and he holds it to this day.
But, of course, this wasn’t accomplished by dedication alone; the famous equine was bred and built for racing perfection. His body was perfect for the track, with each bone placed just right for the one thing that he loved most: running.
This semester, I wanted to learn how I could tell if there happens to be a Secretariat in my very own backyard. I know what you’re thinking. “Why Kristina, how could you possibly know if a horse is gifted by just looking at it?” Let me introduce you to Equine Profiling. Basically, what you do is take specific body proportions into consideration along with conformation, mental capacity and curiosity, and lineage to try to predict where the horse’s talents may lie.
Wow, that sounds a little confusing. Let’s put it into human terms.
Say my friend named Drake is looking for a sport. He is built with long legs, a thin torso, and a large lung capacity. He has a lot of fun going fast, and he is good at regulating his breathing. However, he has terrible hand-eye coordination. Drake would most likely be good at track, cross country, or some other sport involving running.
That is exactly how you profile horses. Just like Secretariat was built for racing, horses can have specialized bodies for rodeos, shows, dressage competitions, and more.
Now, I bet you are curious how this is done. Well, you will have to come to my presentation to find that out! Just remember that there is more to determining a discipline for your horse than meets the eye. Thanks for reading!
~Kristina
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