6.15: Common Names of Joints

Some joints in animals are given common names that tend to be confusing. For example:

1. The joint between the femur and the tibia on the hind leg is our knee but the stifle in animals.
2. Our ankle joint (between the tarsals and metatarsals) is the hock in animals
3. Our knuckle joint (between the metacarpals or metatarsals and the phalanges) is the fetlock in the horse.
4. The “knee” on the horse is equivalent to our wrist (ie on the front limb between the radius and metacarpals) see diagrams 6.6, 6.7, 6.8, 6.17 and 6.18.

Diagram 6.18 - The names of common joints of a horse

Diagarm 6.19 - The names of common joints of a dog

Contributors and Attributions

• Ruth Lawson (Otago Polytechnic; Dunedin, New Zealand)