Re: Number of vertebrae a horse has.

["Susan Garlinghouse" <suendavid@worldnet.att.net>]

> Rose Raymond keishastar@aol.com
> I did a search of the archives, but didn't find anything, so am asking
here.
>
> I need information (with sources) about how many vertebrae a horse has.
Arabians have always been said to have one less vertebrae than other breeds,
but recently I read that this was disproved.
>
> Please to respond to keishastar@aol.com.

Horses have a total of 51-57 vertebrae---7 cervical, 18 thoracic, 6 lumbar,
5 sacral and 15-21 caudal.  This is per Pasquini, Spurgeon & Pasquini's
Anatomy of Domestic Animals.  I'm not sure if it has been "disproved", as in
clinical trials, about Arabians having one less---sometimes they do,
sometimes they don't.  Can't give you references on that score.

Susan G