Where it is
Between the elbow and the carpus (wrist).
- Layer
- Exterior and regions
- System
- Body regions
- Region
- Forelimb
What it is and what it does
The forearm is the segment between the elbow and the wrist. It has two bones, the radius and the ulna, lying side by side: the ulna sits behind at the elbow and on the outer side at the wrist, the radius in front. In the standing dog, the forearm is nearly vertical.
The two bones are not fixed the same way: the ulna is attached firmly at the elbow and loosely at the carpus, the radius the other way round. For the forearm to rotate, the two bones must be able to roll past one another, while the muscles and ligaments between them keep the segment intact. Dedicated muscles do the rotating: the supinator turns the upper surface of the paw outward, the pronator teres and the pronator quadratus turn it inward.
In anatomical description, "radial" and "ulnar" are synonyms for "medial" and "lateral" in the forearm, after the position of the two bones.
Worth remembering
In the standing dog, the forearm is nearly vertical.
Names
- Also called: antebrachial region.
- Latin term: antebrachium.
- In Romanian: Antebrațul (Romanian page).