Did you know that horses do not require much sleep? They only sleep a total of about 3 hours per day. They mostly sleep standing and may only lay down for a very short period of time, usually no more than about 15 minutes. The rest of the time, they will take little cat naps throughout the day while standing.
During the time that horses are laying down, at least one horse in the herd remains on it's feet being on "guard". Since horses are prey animals, they must be ready to … (8 comments)
The horse is considered to have the largest eyes of any land animal, except for the ostrich. Their eyes are set on the side of the head and have binocular vision. What does that exactly mean?
Horses are prey animals. Prey animals eyes are set on the sides of their heads so they have a bigger picture of the area. This allows them to see two different pictures: one with each eye. Their field of vision is wide, with two blind spots. This is so that potential predators … (10 comments)
Over the years, horses have been known to break high jumping records of over 8 feet or 2.4 meters. There is one unofficial record broken by King's Own, ridden by Freddie Wettach, Jr. on October 27, 1938. They jumped a record 8 feet 3 1/2 inches.
Why was this jump "unofficial"? Because it was not donein front of a public crowd.
The "official" high jump records were made by Chileno and Huaso. These 2 horses had tied at a height of 2.47 meters.
I have been involved in many aspects of horses for over 35 years. During those years, I have learned that horses are nothing but huge children on four legs.
The way I found out the similarity, was when I had children of my own. Training and working with horses was no different than training and working with children.
They both need guidance, discipline, and, they love to play. Sometimes they will get rough with each other. Other times they may get into things they shouldn't. They will even … (12 comments)
Some of you may be familiar with therapy horses used for those with special needs. But, did you know horses can be therapists for many of us in our daily lives?
Whenever I have had a stressful day, I head up to the barn. The horses will greet me with nickers and looking for treats. They sense when I need someone to talk to or to just be there for me. One thing about horses, they are good at keeping secrets. You can tell them anything in confidence. You … (4 comments)
When training horses, we must show them that we are good leaders. They are very willing animals and will only follow a good leader. Otherwise, they will take over the role of leadership.
How do you show a horse that you make a good leader?
By being totally honest.
How do you show a horse honesty?
By being consistent.
Every moment spent with a horse, it is being trained. There will be times, for example, a horse will decide to nibble at … (11 comments)
These ten commandments for horses is so true. We must treat horses with respect like any other living creature.
They are huge, powerful animals. Their size can hurt anyone, and they know it. Instead, they choose to be willing, understanding, friendly and loving animals that can be trusted.
Horses constantly communicate with us. It is our duty to learn their language to understand them.
Horses have so many lessons to teach us. If only more of us would learn from them and abide by these … (8 comments)
Many non-horse people and those that do not ride horses are under the impression that horseback riding is NOT exercise. After all, all the rider does is sit on the horse. Not so. In all honesty, it is exercise.
Riders that go out for a nice trail ride, that haven't ridden in a long time, can tell you that after the ride, their legs, for one, feel like rubber after dismounting.
To begin with, the exercise begins before the ride. This is when the … (2 comments)
Even though they don't have actual fingers for fingerprints, they do have what are called "chestnuts".
Chestnuts are small bony-type parts located on the insides of the horse's legs. On the front legs, they are located above the knee, and on the rear legs, below the hock.
Every horse's chestnut is different in shape, size and, as I mentioned before, fingerprint. No two are alike.
Horses tend to fully immerse themselves in what they are doing. On a sunny winter's day, you may find them sunning themselves. In the spring, you can see them enjoying each morsel of fresh green grass. When being ridden and worked, they are concentrating on understanding what is asked of them. At times, they may just decide to play. They don't seem to have any worries at all . . . . and they don't.
They are just thinking of being, not about what happened yesterday … (4 comments)
Horses are herd animals by nature. Each horse has it's place in the "pecking order" once a leader has been established in the herd.
There are 2 roles a horse can assume in the herd:
1- Showing respect for the leader 2- Being a leader to those under it in the pecking order.
If a horse is at the bottom of the pecking order, they will try very hard to dominate their human. The handler/owner must constantly establish leadership and respect with the horse, or … (12 comments)
Did you ever wonder why God created the horse? There are many different reasons why horses are here for us. Not only are they used for recreational purposes, but also to work in the fields, helping the farmer. They were used in war to help the soldiers fight battles and sacrificed their lives alongside them, protecting our freedoms.
Horses are used by police officers to patrol various areas and events. The horse's size is usually intimidating and a horse is able to … (0 comments)
Many do not realize that horses and humans have common parts of the body when comparing the bone structures of each.
The above U.S. Pony Club color-coded chart shows exactly which bone structure of the horse corresponds to the human counterpart.
For example, the horse's knee is the equivalent to our wrists. The horse's hock is the equivalent to our heels. What's really amazing, the tips of our fingers and toes are the horse's hooves. This means that the horse is walking on the tips … (10 comments)
Many people believe that horses can sense weather phenomena.
Horses seem to exhibit strange behavior just before storms, earthquakes, etc. occur. How do the horses sense them? It seems that horses can feel electromagnetic signals and hear ultrasonic waves of the approaching weather phenomena.
It was reported that before the major volcanic eruption of Mount St. Helens in Washington State, a herd of horses had safely migrated away from that area prior to the eruption.
I believe this to be true, because I have … (8 comments)
Sure, to a human or other animal, belly aches are not deadly, but to a horse, it can be.
In a horse, a belly ache is called "colic". This is a horse person's largest nightmare.
The reason it can be deadly, is because horses have small stomachs. This is why they continuously graze and can only eat small meals frequently. If a horse overeats, which can happen if … (2 comments)
- Many horses have a few inches of the mane behind the ears shaved off. This is known as the bridle path. It allows the bridle or halter to sit at the top behind the ears comfortably. - Many breeds have their manes shortened to a few inches. This is done by a hand-pulling process called "pulling the mane". The manes look neater when short and can then be … (34 comments)
I can hear it now. "Oh, come on. Horses are not birds. How can they have feathers?"
Ahhhh. But they do have feathers. At least that is the name for it.
Horse feathers are the long hairs at the bottom half of the horse's legs. Some horses have longer hairs than others.
Draft breeds, such as the Clydesdales, are well known for having feathers.
Even though horses are not birds, they still do have feathers.
… (2 comments)
horse facts: Horsey Friday Fun Facts - Flying Horses
- 09/19/13 11:29 PM
Horsey Friday Fun Facts - Flying Horses That's right! There are horses that are considered to be "flying". Actually it is called "airs above the ground".
What is "Airs Above The Ground"?
During times of warfare, horses were taught to do some extreme athletic maneuvers that involved coming off the ground. They were originally intended for warfare only. These maneuvers are called "Airs Above the Ground". They are still taught in the classic riding schools throughout the world, the most famous one being the Spanish Riding Shool of Vienna with the world famous Lipizzaner Stallions.
When I teach students riding, I can tell when they are tense, nervous, frightened, angry, etc. How can I tell? The horse tells me. By watching the horse during the lesson, I know the emotions of the rider.
Horses tend to react instinctively. They are also known to reflect human emotions.
For instance, if a handler is angry, the horse, in turn, will become angered and defensive. If the handler is calm and relaxed, the horse will be calm and relaxed. Same goes for when the handler is tense.
Did you know that you actually burn calories while horseback riding? That's right!
Below are the estimates of the number of calories burned per hour for a 150 pound person:
- Saddling, grooming and general riding for 1 hour burns 238 calories - Riding at the walk for 1 hour burns 175 calories. - Riding at the trot for 1 hour burns 450 calories. (For those that are out of shape, it will also include a lot of pain in the posterior and the legs.) … (7 comments)
Rural & Horse Properties & Farms in Lehigh Valley, Poconos and Eastern Pennsylvania.
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