American Farriers Journal
American Farriers Journal is the “hands-on” magazine for professional farriers, equine veterinarians and horse care product and service buyers.
“The anatomist has to observe….to picture…the body not as a surface but as a [three-dimensional] space, in order to understand which he must in his imagination walk through the anatomical elements and perceive what lies behind them.”1
My first task in beginning this series on the anatomy and function of the equine hind limb is to teach the anatomy that underlies the conformation of the horse’s hindquarter.
There is no better way to learn anatomy than to enroll in a class where drawing is required. I have participated in and taught such classes, both for university students and general public.
A hundred years ago, this was the way anatomy was taught, and whether the students were hopeful of becoming veterinarians, medical doctors, anatomy professors or paleontologists, they were required to turn in a notebook of their drawings before receiving a passing grade.
Let me add from the outset: I don’t want to hear anyone exclaim “but I can’t draw,” because all normal human beings can draw.2 In any exercises I might suggest, the expectation is just that you give your best effort; an…