15 Fascinating Facts About Horses

01
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Horses Sleep Standing Up
three horses sleeping in sun. close up of head.
Daniel Valla Frps / Getty Images
Yes, horses do sleep standing up! They sleep laying down too, but only for short times. Learn all about the sleeping habits of horses.

02
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Horses Can't Burp
Horse skeleton, artwork
SCIEPRO / Getty Images
That's right! Horses can't burp, at least not the way humans do. They can't vomit or breathe through their mouths like humans do either. A horse's digestive system is a one-way street, unlike cattle and other ruminants who regurgitate food to re-chew it. Although they have a pretty efficient way of processing the tough fibrous foods that make up their forage, this long, one-directional system can cause problems that result in colic.1

03
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You Can Estimate a Horse's Age by Its Teeth
Angry Horse On Field
Kat Fo / EyeEm / Getty Images
While you can't tell the exact age of a horse by its teeth, you can estimate its age. Horses need proper equine dental care for their teeth, but sometimes a horse lives longer than its teeth do, so extra care is needed when feeding senior horses.

04
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Horses Can Live to Be More Than 30 Years Old
A horse standing near a fence
Image Source / Getty Images
One of the most common questions about horses is "how long does a horse live?" The answer may surprise you. Knowledge of horse nutrition, horse care, and veterinary medicine has increased. Because of this, just as human life expectancy has increased, so has equine longevity.

05
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The American Quarter Horse Is the World's Most Popular Breed
Quarter Horse with western saddle.
Kit Houghton / Getty Images
Appreciated by beginner riders and professional horsemen alike, the American quarter horse is the world's most popular breed. Learn more about the American quarter horse.

06
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Arabian Horses Have One Less Vertebrae Than Other Breeds
Rider atop a Native Arabian horse
Christof Koepsel / Getty Images
The Arabian horse is the foundation of many other light horse breeds. They also possess some unique characteristics. Arabian horses have one fewer vertebrae, rib bone, and tail bone than other horses.

07
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Horses Are Herbivores
Horses grazing in Canada, British Columbia, Tweedsmuir Park, Chilcotin region, Chilcotin Ark, Rainbow Mountains
Chris Harris / Getty Images
Humans are omnivores, lions are carnivores, and horses are herbivores. The way their teeth are formed, the position of their eyes, and the type of digestive system are all typical characteristics of herbivores.

08
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Horses Are Herd Animals
Group of Horses.
Arctic-Images / Getty Images
Horses in the wild live in small herds, and domestic horses feel more comfortable if they have companions too. It can be quite stressful for a horse to live alone.2 To keep your horse happy, it will need a (preferably equine) friend.

09
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Horses Were Domesticated by Humans More Than 3,000 Years Ago
Drawing depicting preparation of chariot, mortuary temple of Ramesses III, Medinet Habu, Thebes
De Agostini / C. Sappa / Getty Images
Dogs may have become domesticated around 14,000 years ago. Cats became human companions about 8,500 years ago. Humankind's relationship with the horse began a little more recently, around 6,000 years ago, although some evidence has come to light that horses may have been domesticated even earlier.

10
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Horses Are Measured in "Hands"
A woman and a girl measuring height of pony using measuring stick against withers
Bob Langrish / Getty Images
The standard measurement for determining the height of a horse is called a hand. A pony is an equine under 14.2 hands. The only equines not measured in hands are miniature horses, which are measured in inches or centimeters.

11
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Most White Horses Are Actually Gray
Two wild horses (Equus caballus) on coastal headland
Steve Coleman / Getty Images
Most of the white horses that you see were actually a much darker color at birth and gradually turn white. These "white" horses may start as bay, chestnut, or almost black. These horses aren't called white, but gray.

12
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A Horse's Resting Respiratory Rate Is About 8-14 Breaths per Minute
Veterinarian examining the horse
Alina Solovyova-Vincent / Getty Images
It's important to know the resting pulse and respiration rate of your horse. While the resting respiration rate of a horse can be as low as eight breaths per minute, that can quickly increase with work or distress.3 Learn your horse's resting pulse and respiration rate (TPR).

Continue to 13 of 15 below.

13
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Horses Are Not Native to North America
Rock painting of tarpans (ponies), c.17000 BC
Paleolithic / Getty Images
Every horse on the North American continent is a decedent of European horses. Even the horses that we regard as "wild" are actually feral horses, whose ancestors escaped from captivity. Horses disappeared from the Americas more than 11,000 years ago, and there is ample fossil evidence that the horse's ancestors lived here previous to that.

14
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A Baby Horse is Called a Foal
Nursing foal.
ElaiEva / www.freeimages.com/
What is the difference between a filly, a colt, and a foal? It all depends on gender and age. Generally, a foal is a baby horse. After it is weaned from its dam, it is called a weanling. But, horses remain fillies or colts until they are two years of age.

15
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The Original "Horse" Was the Size of a Golden Retriever
Close-up of a phorusrhacos (Phorusrhacos longissimus) chasing Eohippuses
DEA PICTURE LIBRARY / Getty Images
The original horse was no larger than a golden retriever. Diminutive Hyracotherium may have looked more like a small goat or deer than a modern-day horse. Hyracotherium lived during the Eocene Epoch about 50 million years ago.