Alignment in foals
Dr . Sergio Giliberti
By alignment we refer to the imaginary lines that have been defined for horses and which are taken into account when one looks at and assesses a horse . They are not arbitrary and they serve as guidelines when observing a horse . It is the direction in which the lower limbs are planted as regards the horizontal plain or each of the vertical lines that determine the direction of the lower limbs in order that they be well formed . The correct direction of these lines , and consequently of the limbs , is what contributes towards the constitution of an athlete with a lesser tendency towards injuries and which allow the horse to carry out exercises more efficiently and with less effort ( this is not only a personal opinion ; dozens of scientific research papers endorse this ).
Curriculum Vitae
Dr . Sergio Giliberti Actually Cría Doña Sofía Polo , of Daniel Sammartino
2007 to 2015 Cría Ellerstina Polo , of Gonzalo Pieres
2006 to 2007 Cría La Natividad , of Bartolomé Castagnola
2004 to 2006 Freeland Farms , of Richard Freeland ( USA )
2002 to 2004 CE La Irenita , of Jorge Mac Donough
It is also an important factor when discarding sport horses at stud farms . Those that during their first few months appear rather crooked are got rid of one way or the other : they are given away , abandoned to their luck in a pen , etc . When older , the economic loss for the breeder is generated differently :
• First , when looking over two-year-old foals , what breeder didn ’ t think “ I can ’ t show these ”, or “ this filly will never go past break-in ”; “ put her on the truck ”; “ we ’ ll keep her as breeder mare ”; “ how can we manage not to allow it to show ?”; “ how did we never notice ?”.
• Second , it is one of the main reasons for rejection in the marketing of two-year-old horses because they are either discarded at the stage of foal pre-selection for direct sales or auction , or the sale falls through afterwards , when the buyer carefully examines his / her purchase ( which in addition generates loss of prestige for the seller ). This is clearly apparent and becomes more frequent year after year because of the amount of auctions and in consequence , the menu variety offered to buyers . Little by little they become more demanding and conformation is the second item ( after pedigree ) that is taken into consideration when defining a purchase .
• As regards the sale of an adult horse , alignment defects are a good reason for objection , and so getting a rebate on the price .
All these factors are a huge loss of time and money for the breeder .
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