Are Thoroughbred Horses Getting Longer?

[dave1949]

Watched the Kentucky Derby yesterday. As the horses were walked past the camera going into the start gates, I noticed how long, lean and tucked up their torsos looked compared to the obviously powerful hind quarters.

I don't pay much attention to horses, but have they changed through breeding over the years to be longer in the middle?

It was a great race to watch.

Probably a dumb question, but it made me curious.
Dave.

 

[tallyho8]

Sometimes when I am watching something on my new wide screen TV, I will think it looks too tall or too fat and then I realize I have it in the wrong format and changing the format makes it look normal again.

Of course if you are used to looking at quarter horses and apps then the thoroughbreds will look a little longer and leaner.

Personally, I thought that this years Kentucky Derby was the most boring one in years but the best one to pick a long shot in because there were no stand-out horses.

 

[grsthegreat]

you mean like this??

 

[moored4]

you mean like this??

That is a Texas Stretch Limousine!!:laughing:

 

[texasjohn]

They are bred for one thing, speed. When you select for only one characteristic, all the others can go crazy. Examples being temperament of the animals, making them hard to control. And, anything that contributes to the single trait will by design be selected for.... thus, you see the leg bones in race horses getting lighter and lighter (speed) but weaker (break more easily).

It's possible that the length is getting longer, but you would have to go back and compare racing horse backbones from 500 years ago to modern ones. It wouldn't be visible by eye. This kind of genetic change takes huge amounts of time to make truly significant changes.

For example, the modern wild mustangs are supposedly the same as what the early Spanish explorers turned loose....and look a lot like modern performance quarter horses.

Doubtless, this will get TBN horse people riled up!!!

 

[dave1949]

you mean like this??

Yes! :laughing: Actually, it looks like a lot of back out behind the jockey. I realize the jockey is sitting on or near the withers, but still....

Dave.

 

[dave1949]

Sometimes when I am watching something on my new wide screen TV, I will think it looks too tall or too fat and then I realize I have it in the wrong format and changing the format makes it look normal again.

Of course if you are used to looking at quarter horses and apps then the thoroughbreds will look a little longer and leaner.

Personally, I thought that this years Kentucky Derby was the most boring one in years but the best one to pick a long shot in because there were no stand-out horses.

Could be the TV does something. I thought it was a good race just because of the way the winning horse came on strong into the last stretch and kept the gas pedal down. Just amazing to watch.

I noticed there were a bunch of horses in the 7-1 and 9-1 odds range, I think the odds on favorite was 5-1 at the start of the race, and that horse didn't place - I think.
Dave.

 

[dave1949]

They are bred for one thing, speed. When you select for only one characteristic, all the others can go crazy. Examples being temperament of the animals, making them hard to control. And, anything that contributes to the single trait will by design be selected for.... thus, you see the leg bones in race horses getting lighter and lighter (speed) but weaker (break more easily).

It's possible that the length is getting longer, but you would have to go back and compare racing horse backbones from 500 years ago to modern ones. It wouldn't be visible by eye. This kind of genetic change takes huge amounts of time to make truly significant changes.

For example, the modern wild mustangs are supposedly the same as what the early Spanish explorers turned loose....and look a lot like modern performance quarter horses.

Doubtless, this will get TBN horse people riled up!!!

They remind me a bit of greyhounds, could be because they are young horses, the backs are still pretty level.

The hind quarters look out of proportion to the girth of the waist or whatever that part of a horse is called. No doubt that look is accentuated by how bulked up the rear is from training. I think I read somewhere that in the physiology of a galloping horse, the guts are actually pumping the lungs which aids in getting more air with less effort.

It only took about 30 years to breed German Shepard dogs to look like a cross between a dog and a hare with the hind legs all squatted-looking. Dog geneticists say all common dog breeds really need some out-cross breeding since all their medical faults are becoming concentrated through in-line breeding.

Those wild mustangs are beautiful horses considering they fend for themselves and never had vet care. The climate and vegetation must agree with them. Maybe they should out-cross thoroughbreds to mustangs to get a hardier animal.

That should rile up the both the horse and dog TBN folks
Dave.

 

[jayste]

Maybe they should out-cross thoroughbreds to mustangs to get a hardier animal.

That should rile up the both the horse and dog TBN folks
Dave.

Dave, not riled up but you pretty much described how the Quarter Horse breed came into existance. :thumbsup:

 

[dave1949]

Dave, not riled up but you pretty much described how the Quarter Horse breed came into existance. :thumbsup:

That's interesting.

I was at a dog show last month and a researcher gave a talk about tracking some of the common inherited problems in dogs using DNA. They are starting to get a handle of some of them like hypothyroidism, polyneuropathy, hip dysplasia and cancers.

The problem is, there's no stud dog or b*tch you can select within a given breed that doesn't carry one bad genetic marker or other due to always breeding from within the breed lines. After they explained it, I can see the only genetic fix is out-breeding - choose a similar dog but different breed, the less common the better. The pups from that litter are then breed in-line. Usually takes about 3-4 generations before they come true to type.

Scary and wonderful at the same time where DNA and genetics research is headed.
Dave.