How many bones does the hock have?

• A. 7
• B. 6
• C. 5
• D. 4

Answer: (B)

The hock is made up of the tarsal bones that form the joint, counted to reflect how many distinct bones you can feel or palpate. In this common farrier/CF context, it’s counted as six: the talus (the topmost tarsal that articulates with the shinbone) and the calcaneus (the heel bone) in the upper row, plus four bones in the lower row—the central tarsal bone, the first tarsal bone, the second tarsal bone, and the fourth tarsal bone. The third tarsal bone is not counted separately here because it is typically fused with the central bone or considered together with it, which reduces the total to six. Some texts count seven by treating the third tarsal bone as a separate bone, but the standard counting used in this question yields six.