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Level 4
Credits 6
Purpose People credited with this unit standard are able to: identify anatomy and identify and evaluate conformation of a horse's head, neck, body, and legs; assess and evaluate a horse's action; and demonstrate knowledge of managing a horse’s conformational faults.
Subfield Equine
Domain
Status
Status date
Date version published
Equine Health
Registered
17 October 2008
17 October 2008
Planned review date
Entry information
31 December 2013
Open.
Accreditation Evaluation of documentation and visit by NZQA and industry.
Standard setting body (SSB) Primary Industry Training Organisation
Accreditation and Moderation Action Plan (AMAP) reference 0018
This AMAP can be accessed at http://www.nzqa.govt.nz/framework/search/index.do.
Special notes
1 Legislation relevant to this unit standard includes but is not limited to the Health and
Safety in Employment Act 1992, and its subsequent amendments.
2 Candidates must not contravene the Code of Recommendations and Minimum
Standards for the Welfare of Horses ( Wellington: Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry,
1993), which is available at http://www.biosecurity.govt.nz/animalwelfare/codes/horses/index.htm.
3 This standard requires candidates to identify and evaluate the conformation of six horses’. Evaluation includes determining each horse’s strengths, weaknesses, suitability for purpose, and identifies management techniques used to maximise horses potential and minimise risks associated with conformational faults.
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Element 1
Identify equine anatomy and identify and evaluate conformation of a horse’s head, neck, body, and legs.
Range breeds selected from – hot blood, warm blood, cold blood; uses selected from – equestrian, harness, galloper.
Performance criteria
Points of the horse and external body parts are identified by name and location. 1.1
1.2 Head and neck conformation are identified and evaluated in accordance with breed and use.
Range head – size, set; nose – shape; eyes – size, set, appearance; nostrils – size; mouth – shape; throatlatch/jowls – size, shape; neck
– length, shape, set.
1.3 Body conformation is identified and evaluated in accordance with breed and use.
Range chest – width; shoulder – slope, muscle; withers – height, balance; body – shape, depth; back – length, shape; hips – level, width; rump
– shape, muscle; stifle – shape; girth – depth; loin – length, width, musculature; hip and croup – slope, length, level.
1.4 Leg conformation is identified and evaluated in accordance with breed and use.
Range gaskin – length, muscle; forearm – length, muscle; cannons – length, bone; knees
– size, set, shape; joints – size, shape; hock – size, shape; hindleg/frontleg
– angle, shape, stance; pastern – length, slope, shape.
1.5 Hoof conformation is identified and evaluated in accordance with breed and use.
Range symmetry, size, shape, balance, health.
1.6 The overall balance of the horse is identified and evaluated in accordance with breed and use.
Range may include but is not limited to – symmetry, length-height proportion, levelness of topline, depth of heart girth to leg, centre of the horse, top-to-bottom line ratio, square, thirds, equal lengths.
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Element 2
Assess and evaluate a horse’s action.
Performance criteria
2.1 Description identifies ways in which straightness of action can be assessed.
Range walk and trot up, walk and trot past, walk and trot away.
2.2
2.3
Assessment of a horse’s action identifies straight action.
Assessment of a horse’s action identifies variations of straight action.
Range dishing, paddling, plaiting, crossfiring, forging, over reaching, speedy cutting, scalping, brushing.
2.4 Evaluation identifies relationship between conformation and action.
Element 3
Demonstrate knowledge of managing a horse’s conformational faults.
Performance criteria
3.1 The ways in which conformational faults affect the structure, function, and usefulness of the horse are described.
Range Performance, appearance, stress on body and legs, action, soundness.
3.2 Description identifies conformational faults which may respond to management techniques.
3.3
Description identifies management techniques used to maximise horses’ potential and minimise risks associated with conformational faults.
Range may include but is not limited to
– remedial veterinarian/farriery work, ongoing farriery treatment, training techniques.
Please note
Providers must be accredited by NZQA, or an inter-institutional body with delegated authority for quality assurance, before they can report credits from assessment against unit standards or deliver courses of study leading to that assessment.
Industry Training Organisations must be accredited by NZQA before they can register credits from assessment against unit standards.
Accredited providers and Industry Training Organisations assessing against unit standards must engage with the moderation system that applies to those standards.
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Accreditation requirements and an outline of the moderation system that applies to this standard are outlined in the Accreditation and Moderation Action Plan (AMAP). The
AMAP also includes useful information about special requirements for organisations wishing to develop education and training programmes, such as minimum qualifications for tutors and assessors, and special resource requirements.
Comments on this unit standard
Please contact the Primary Industry Training Organisation standards@primaryito.ac.nz if you wish to suggest changes to the content of this unit standard.
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New Zealand Qualifications Authority 2020