page_title: Equine conformation
section_title: Croup and "hip"
hierarchical_section_title: Equine conformation / Conformation of the body / Croup and "hip"
caption_attribution_description: English: A Clydesdale horse with a very low set tail.
context_page_description: Equine conformation evaluates the degree of correctness of a horse's bone structure, musculature, and its body proportions in relation to each other. Undesirable conformation can limit the ability to perform a specific task. Although there are several faults with universal disadvantages, a horse's conformation is usually judged by what its intended use may be. Thus "form to function" is one of the first set of traits considered in judging conformation. A horse with poor form for a Grand Prix show jumper could have excellent conformation for a World Champion cutting horse, or to be a champion draft horse. Every horse has good and bad points of its conformation and many horses excel even with conformation faults.
context_section_description: The croup is from the lumbosacral joint to the tail. The "hip" refers to the line running from the ilium (point of the hip) to the ischium (point of the buttock)of the pelvis. After the point that is made by the sacrum and lumbar vertebrae, the line following is referred to as the croup. While the two are linked in terms of length and musculature, the angle of the hip and croup do not necessarily correlate. But it is desirable for a horse to have a square to slightly pear shaped rump. A horse can have a relatively flat croup and a well-angled hip.  Racehorses do well with hip angles of 20-30 degrees, trotting horses with 35 degrees. Once a horse is developed, the croup should be approximately the same height as the withers. In some breeds a high croup is hereditary trait.
  Steep Croup or Goose Rump
  A steep croup is often linked to shortened stride
  Less of a fault for slow-moving horses such as draft breeds than for light riding horses
  Some breeds prefer a steep croup on their horses. Quarter horses in particular.
  Flat or Horizontal Croup
  The topline continues in a relatively flat manner to the dock of tail rather than falling off at oblique angle at the hips.
  Seen especially in Saddlebreds, Arabians, and Gaited horses
  Encourages a long, flowing stride. This helps a horse go faster, especially when a flat croup is sufficiently long to allow a greater range of muscle contraction to move the bony levers of skeleton.
  Short croup
  Length from L-S joint to dock of the tail is insufficient for adequate muscular attachment
  Reduces power of hindquarters
  Usually seen in conjunction with multiple hind leg faults
  Short "hip"
  The L-S joint is often behind the point of hips. Insufficient length from point of hip to point of buttock
  Horse will have difficulty collecting.
  A well-muscled build may hide a short pelvis.
  Provides less length of muscular attachments to the thigh and gaskin. This diminishes engine power in speed or jumping events.
  Short hip is less effective as a muscular lever for collection and to contract the abdominal muscles as the back rounds. More muscular effort is required.
  Flat "hip"
  Flat pelvis, line from point of hip to point of buttock flat and not properly angled, result is pelvis structure too long.  L-S joint often tipped, ischium improperly placed.
  It is more difficult to engage the hindquarters, so the back tends to stiffen. Thus it is hard to excel in dressage, jumping, stock horse work. Minimizes the ability to develop power at slower paces needed by draft horses.
  Jumper's Bump (also known as Hunter's or Racking Bump) 
  The horse has an enlargement at the top of the croup, or a malalignment of the croup with the pelvis and lumbar vertebrae, caused by the tearing of a ligament at the top of the croup. One or both sides of L-S joint may be affected.
  Fairly common, usually seen in jumping horses and in horses that rack in an inverted frame.
  It is a torn ligament caused by excessive hindquarter effort, or from a horse that had the hindquarters slip out underneath or trotted up a very steep hill. Usually does not cause problems once healed, although it is easier to re-injure.
  Usually associated with horses with weak loins or a long back that is unable to coil loins properly for collection. Commonly caused by overpacing young horses, a rider allowing a horse to jump while strung out, or by racking (or other gaiting) in a very inverted frame.
caption: A Clydesdale with a very low set tail.
exif: {"Image ImageDescription": "", "Image Make": "NIKON", "Image Model": "E5400", "Image Orientation": "Horizontal (normal)", "Image XResolution": "300", "Image YResolution": "300", "Image ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "Image Software": "Microsoft Windows Live Photo Gallery12.0.1347.718", "Image DateTime": "2009:03:05 14:06:52", "Image YCbCrPositioning": "Co-sited", "Image Padding": "[]", "Image ExifOffset": "2327", "Thumbnail Compression": "JPEG (old-style)", "Thumbnail XResolution": "1/96", "Thumbnail YResolution": "1/96", "Thumbnail ResolutionUnit": "Pixels/Inch", "EXIF ExposureTime": "10/601", "EXIF FNumber": "14/5", "EXIF ExposureProgram": "Program Normal", "EXIF ISOSpeedRatings": "63", "EXIF ExifVersion": "0220", "EXIF DateTimeOriginal": "2009:02:23 10:55:41", "EXIF DateTimeDigitized": "2009:02:23 10:55:41", "EXIF ComponentsConfiguration": "YCbCr", "EXIF CompressedBitsPerPixel": "4", "EXIF ExposureBiasValue": "0", "EXIF MaxApertureValue": "3", "EXIF MeteringMode": "Pattern", "EXIF LightSource": "Unknown", "EXIF Flash": "Flash fired, auto mode", "EXIF FocalLength": "29/5", "EXIF FlashPixVersion": "0100", "EXIF ColorSpace": "sRGB", "EXIF ExifImageWidth": "2394", "EXIF ExifImageLength": "1821", "EXIF FileSource": "Digital Camera", "EXIF SceneType": "Directly Photographed", "EXIF CustomRendered": "Normal", "EXIF ExposureMode": "Auto Exposure", "EXIF WhiteBalance": "Auto", "EXIF DigitalZoomRatio": "0", "EXIF FocalLengthIn35mmFilm": "28", "EXIF SceneCaptureType": "Standard", "EXIF GainControl": "Low gain up", "EXIF Contrast": "Normal", "EXIF Saturation": "Normal", "EXIF Sharpness": "Normal", "EXIF SubjectDistanceRange": "0", "EXIF ImageUniqueID": "2C1766B236324C0C8AC3270B6C67198E", "EXIF Padding": "[]", "EXIF OffsetSchema": "4156", "Interoperability InteroperabilityIndex": "R98", "Interoperability InteroperabilityVersion": "[48, 49, 48, 48]", "EXIF InteroperabilityOffset": "6181"}