Carol Camp

Evaluate the conformation of these 2- and 3-year-old Tennessee Walking Horse geldings and place them in your order of preference. Then see how your choices match up with our expert judge’s.

Camp studied animal science at Middle Tennessee State University and is the founder of the Pleasure Tennessee Walking Horse Association of Tennessee. She trains horses and coaches amateur riders at her facility, Canaan Farm, in Franklin, Tennessee. Camp holds judge’s cards with the National Walking Horse Association, the United Mountain Horse Association, Rocky Mountain Horse Association, and Walking Horse Owners’ Association. She’s judged the United Mountain Horse World Championships, the NWHA National Championship Show, and the Rocky Mountain Horse International Championship.

Walking Horses are difcult to judge in photographs because movement is just as important as conformation; a horse should be smooth and gaited in addition to having quality structure. A Walking Horse should also have good bone. A medium-boned horse will have sturdy feet and legs that’ll keep him sound without inhibiting movement.

His head should be proportionate with his body and have a straight or slightly convex-nose prof le. His neck tie-in should be high, and his neck should be upright. Te slope of his shoulder should be at a 45-degree angle from the scapula to the humerus bone. His legs should be more forward-set than is typical for other breeds. T is is likely to make travel easier, as the horse will be predisposed to a long, reaching stride.

A Walking Horse should have a strong, short back and level topline. Elevated hip height is a major fault in the breed. A horse should also have a longer underline than topline. Tere should be maximum length from the point of his hip to the point of his hock, with a long hipbone that’s set far into his back. He should have a gentle slope to his croup, rather than a fat and level croup, with a high-set tail. He should also have short cannon bones. His front cannons should be perpendicular to the ground, but slight toe-out deviation is acceptable. His rear cannons don’t need to be completely perpendicular to the ground. Tey can have some forward slope, but shouldn’t be so angular as to be considered sickle-hocked. Slight cow-hock conformation also isn’t as great a fault in this breed as in others. →