Horses are noble animals, and it’s easy to see why is that so. In fact, besides of being called noble, horses are also known as the original man’s best friend since anywhere from 4000 to 2000 B.C. They’ve taken humans everywhere they wanted to go for ages, even to battlefields. Yet, there are so many things we still don’t know about these beautiful and majestic animals that many of us adore and are glad to see running. If you thought you know everything about horses, wait until you read these bizarre facts about them.
Let’s get started!
Farm horses
- Horses have the largest eye of any land mammal on our planet.
- Horses can run within hours after birth. Their strong legs only need a couple of hours to adjust to the new environment, and they’re ready to go.
- When horses show their teeth and they look like they’re laughing, it’s not like they’re telling jokes to each other. This behavior is called flehmen. The special nose-moving technique is something unique to horses.
- Horses see better yellows and greens than violets and purples, but they’re not colorblind as many people thought.
- Their teeth take up a larger space in their head than their brain.
- Males have 40 while females have 36 teeth.
A horse
- Horse hooves are made from the same protein as the human hair and fingernails.
- In 1872, Leland Stanford (1824-1893) made a bet that at some point in the gallop all four of a horse’s legs are off the ground at the same time. Eadweard Muybridge (1830-1904) proved him right by using a series of 24 cameras and photographing a racehorse named Sallie Gardner.
- Horses can do something that we all wish we can, sleep lying down and standing up. Wouldn’t it be amazing to take a nap standing while you rid back home from work?
- A horse named ‘Old Billy’ reportedly lived 62 years in the 19th century.
- Between the years of 1867 to 1920, the number of horses grew up from 7.8 million to 25 million. It’s believed that this is due to the development of the automobile industry.
Having fun in the herd
- Horses can see nearly 360 degrees at the same time because their eyes are nearly on the sides of the head.
- Horses communicate their feelings through facial expressions using their eyes, ears, and nose.
- Sounds are extremely important in horse communication and they almost have an entire language that they use to “talk” between each other or to other live beings. For example, whinnying and neighing sounds are elicited when horses meet or leave each other. Stallions, typical only for adult male horses, are used as mating calls, and all horses use snorts to alert others of potential danger.
- An adult horse’s brain weights 22 oz, about half that of a human.
- Horses are not capable of vomiting.
- Believe it or not, there is only one species of domestic horse, while there are around 400 different breeds that specialize in everything from pulling wagons to racing.
- Horses have better night vision than humans, though it takes them longer to adjust from light to dark than it takes humans.
- Haflinger was the first cloned horse made in 2003 in Italy.
A horse
- The favorite taste of horses is sweet. If they can, they will always reject bitter and sour food.
- They produce more than 10 gallons of saliva per day.
- It takes 9-12 months to re-grow an entire horse hoof.
- Horses that have pink skin can get sunburn.
- Horses are one of the most social animals in the animal kingdom, and they get lonely when kept alone. They also mourn the passing of a companion.
Horses are beautiful animals that we should love and protect. Good luck!
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