Standard Anatomical Position — the animal stands on all four limbs, head facing forward, eyes & nose horizontal.

Directional Terms (must memorise):
• Cranial / Rostral = toward the head (rostral is used in front of the eye).
• Caudal = toward the tail.
• Dorsal = toward the back (top).
• Ventral = toward the belly (bottom).
• Medial = toward the midline.
• Lateral = away from the midline.
• Proximal = near the body trunk (in limbs).
• Distal = far from the body trunk.
• Palmar / Plantar = back of forelimb foot / hindlimb foot (after carpus / tarsus).
• Dorsal (in limbs distal to carpus/tarsus) = front of foot.
• Superficial / Deep — relative to skin surface.
• External / Internal — relative to body cavity.

ANATOMICAL POSITION & DIRECTIONAL TERMS

The reference position for veterinary anatomy is the animal standing squarely on all four limbs, head looking forward, eyes/nose horizontal. All directions are described relative to this position, NOT relative to the observer.

1. AXIAL DIRECTIONS (along the body's long axis):
• Cranial — toward the head. Used for the trunk and limbs proximal to the carpus/tarsus.
• Rostral — toward the tip of the nose. Used inside the head only (e.g., 'rostral to the eye').
• Caudal — toward the tail.

2. DORSO-VENTRAL:
• Dorsal — toward the back/spine.
• Ventral — toward the belly/sternum.

3. MEDIO-LATERAL:
• Medial — toward the median (midline) plane.
• Lateral — away from it.

4. LIMB-SPECIFIC TERMS (proximal vs distal to carpus/tarsus):
• Proximal — closer to the trunk.
• Distal — farther from the trunk.
• Above carpus/tarsus, the front of the limb is called cranial and the back caudal.
• Distal to the carpus/tarsus, the front becomes dorsal and the back becomes palmar (forelimb) or plantar (hindlimb).

5. RELATIVE POSITION:
• Superficial — closer to the skin.
• Deep / Profundus — farther from skin.
• External / Internal — relative to a body cavity.
• Axial / Abaxial — toward or away from the central axis of a digit (used in cloven-footed animals — e.g. 'axial groove of the medial claw').
• Ipsilateral / Contralateral — same side / opposite side.
• Bilateral / Unilateral — both sides / one side.

6. MOVEMENT TERMS:
• Flexion — decrease joint angle.
• Extension — increase joint angle.
• Adduction — toward midline.
• Abduction — away from midline.
• Rotation — turning around long axis.
• Circumduction — circular movement.
• Pronation/Supination — rotating limb so palm faces down/up (mostly in dog & humans).
• Protraction/Retraction — moving limb forward/backward.