Sensibility to trouble (as in the phrase

• Loses vitality
• Ridge at the base of a horse'd neck, from which its height is measured
• Lose freshness, vigor, or vitality
• Wither, esp. with a loss of moisture
• The highest part of the back at the base of the neck of various animals especially draft animals
• US singer-songwriter accompanying Queen at the end of gigs

WordNet Word definitions in WordNet
n. sensibility to trouble (as in the phrase `wring one's withers'); "the lawsuit was wringing his withers"; "our withers are unwrung"--Shakespeare the highest part of the back at the base of the neck of various animals especially draft animals

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary Word definitions in Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
1570s, probably from a dialectal survival of Old English wiðer "against, contrary, opposite" (see with ) + plural suffix. Usually said to be so called because the withers are the parts of the animal that oppose the load. Compare German Widerrist "withers," ...

The Collaborative International Dictionary Word definitions in The Collaborative International Dictionary
Withers \With"ers\, n. pl. [Properly, the parts which resist the pull or strain in drawing a load; fr. OE. wither resistance, AS. wi[eth]re, fr. wi[eth]er against; akin to G. widerrist withers. See With , prep.] The ridge between the shoulder bones of a ...

Wiktionary Word definitions in Wiktionary
n. (context veterinary medicine English) The part of the back of a four-legged animal that is between the shoulder blades; in many species the highest point of the body and the standard place to measure the animal's height. vb. (en-third-person singular ...