Basic Horse Terminology

[Red of the Wolf]

A List of Basic Horse Terms

Gender and Age

Stallion - A mature male horse.

Mare - A mature female horse.

Gelding - A male horse that has been fixed. No more babies, not for him.

Colt - A male horse under the age of three years, generally.

Filly - A female horse under the age of three years, generally.

Foal - A young horse under the age of one year, generally.

Weanling - A horse under the age of one year that is being weaned from nursing. Usually at the age of four to eight months.

Yearling - A young horse at the age of one year.

Basic Physical terms

Hoof - The horse's foot, or toe.

Pastern - The joint right above the hoof.

Fetlock - The joint that connects the pastern and the cannon bone.

Hock - The joint on the hind leg, equal to our ankle, below the stifle.

Knee - The joint that connects above the cannon on the front leg, equal to our wrist.

Stifle - The joint on the hind leg, equal to our knee, between the hock and hip.

Cannon - The portion of the leg between the knee(foreleg), or hock(hind leg), and fetlock.

Barrel - The main part of the torso containing the ribs and upper abdomen.

Flank - The sides of the abdomen and stomach.

Quarter - A horse's rear end consisting of the hips and high thighs of the hind legs.

Crest - The peak of the neck's arch.

Poll - The top of the horse's forehead, between the ears.

Fore lock - The 'bangs' of a horse.

Mane - The long 'hair' along a horse's neck.

Wither - The point of the shoulders where the neck meets the spine.

Feather - Long hair along the fetlocks. It can be a small tuft just behind the joint or a great amount covering the entire lower leg up to the knees and hocks.

Gaits and Other Actions

Walk - The first gait, a 'four beat' pace.

Trot/Jog - The second gait containing a 'two beat' pace.

Canter/Lope - The third gait containing a 'three beat' pace.

Gallop - The fourth gait; faster than a canter also containing a 'three beat' pace.

Balk - The action of a horse refusing to move. It can be a sudden stop, or simply not budging when pushed or pulled.

Crowhop - A playful 'hop' in which the horse bows it's head, arches it back and jumps with all four feet leaving the ground.

Buck - An action, either play or fight, in which the horse brings its hind legs off the ground and 'kicks out'.

Vocals

Nicker - A low, almost breathy whinny. Used mostly for greetings, warnings and simple communication.

Whinny - A high pitched, excited sound. A general form of communication, can be made when playing, fighting, as a greeting, as a warning, or to simply get ones attention.

Blow -  A sudden but soft, short exhalation through the nostrils; a sigh. Often made when a horse is greeting, shying away or curious.

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If you would like a more in-depth list of terms, or would like a more detailed definition, here is a link to Wikipedia.
Wikipedia's Glossary of Equestrian Terms