In this article, I will take you through 50 Most Frequently Asked Questions about Horses. For thousand of years, horses are the primary means of transport for travelling long distances. Apart from that, it has also been used in war extensively for many decades. Even now you will find horses as a means of travel in many remote places. Along with this, some of the horse based sports like Horse racing and Horse Polo are quite popular.

The relation between humans and horses are flourishing since ages. Horses are known to be smart and loyal to the humans. Hence it is worth knowing more about this wonderful creature. Here we will cover some of the most frequently asked questions about this animal.

50 Most Frequently Asked Questions about Horses

Also Read: 50 Important Questions on Pigeons You Should Know About

1. How long do horses live ?

Ans. The average horse lives for 25 to 30 years.

2. Do horses sleep standing up ?

Ans. Yes, Horses has this unique ability to doze while standing up. It is all because of their specialized leg which enables them to sleep standing up. They're able to do this through the stay apparatus, a special system of tendons and ligaments that enables a horse to lock the major joints in its legs. The horse can then relax and nap without worrying about falling.

3. How much does a horse weigh on average ?

Ans. An average horse weighs 900-2,000 pounds, depending on size and breed.

4. Why do horses need shoes ?

Ans. Horses wear shoes primarily to strengthen and protect the hooves and feet, and to prevent the hooves from wearing down too quickly.

5. How fast can a horse run ?

Ans. The average racehorses speed is approximately 40 to 44 mph (64 to 70 km/h).

6. What do horses eat ?

Ans. Horses are naturally grazers, they eat little and often. Their natural diet is mainly grass, which has high roughage content.

7. Can horses swim ?

Ans. Yes, horses are very good swimmers. It is due to their huge lungs, which enables them to naturally float. Horses have a natural instinct to swim when they hit deep water and readily perform a paddle like action, not too dis-similar from a trotting action.

8. What is a baby horse called ?

Ans. A baby horse is called a foal until it is twelve months old.

9. How much weight can a horse carry on its back ?

Ans. An average adult light riding horse could comfortably carry about 20 percent of their ideal bodyweight.

10. What is a group of horses called ?

Ans. A group of horses is called a herd.

11. Where did horses originate from ?

Ans. Most experts agree that horses originated in North America approximately 50 million years ago.

12. How far can a horse travel in a day ?

Ans. On average, a healthy horse can travel around 25 to 35 miles a day.

13. How many stomachs does a horse have ?

Ans. A horse has only one compartment in its stomach, that is it has only one stomach.

14. How do horses mate ?

Ans. Horses mate like many other mammals mate – through courtship, followed by the stallion (male horse) mounting a receptive mare (female horse).

15. What are horse hooves made of ?

Ans. The hoof wall is made of a tough material called keratin that has a low moisture content (approximately 25% water), making it very hard and rough.

16. What is a female horse called ?

Ans. An adult female horse is called a mare.

17. What is a gelding horse ?

Ans. A gelding is a castrated male horse or other equine, such as a pony, donkey or a mule.

18. What sound does a horse make ?

Ans. The sound that a horse makes is called a neigh. A horse's happy neigh is sometimes a greeting to other horses.

19. How tall are horses ?

Ans. The average horse measures between 13.3–17.3 hands tall (or 1.4–1.8 metres).

20. How many breeds of horses are there ?

Ans. There are more than 350 breeds of horses are there.

21. What is founder in horses hooves ?

Ans. Founder is the common name for laminitis, a condition of the hoof in horses.

22. What is a male horse called ?

Ans. A male horse is called a stallion.

23. What is a cutting horse ?

Ans. A cutting horse is a stock horse, typically an American Quarter Horse, bred and trained for cutting, a modern equestrian competition requiring a horse and rider to separate a single cow from a herd of cattle and prevent it from getting back to the herd.

24. How many horses are in the world ?

Ans. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAOSTAT) estimates that the number of horses in the world is 58,832,221.

25. Which is the largest horse species in the World ?

Ans. The world's largest horse breeds are all draft breeds such as the Shire, Belgian, Clydesdale, Percheron, and Suffolk Punch.

26. Which is the smallest horse species in the World ?

Ans. The Falabella holds the title of the smallest horse breed in the world.

27. How smart are horses ?

Ans. Horses are considered to be one of the most intelligent animals on earth, due to their ability to learn quickly and remember things for a long time. They can also solve problems and figure out how to get what they want. For example, a horse may know how to open a gate in order to get out of a pen or field

28. What causes colic in horses ?

Ans. A common cause of colic in horses is obstruction of the large intestine by dried digested food, sometimes mixed with sand.

29. Do horses sit ?

Ans. Horses can't bend their rear legs and sit on the ground, it's anatomically impossible. Their weight would cause them to crash into the ground and possibly injure themselves.

30. What is strangles in horses ?

Ans. Strangles is an infection caused by bacteria called Streptococcus equi. It is highly contagious and the infection can be spread by horse-to-horse contact or by humans, tack, drinking troughs and other environmental factors.

31. How many teeth do horses have ?

Ans. On average, horses have between 36 and 42 teeth.

32. How much hay does a horse eat a day ?

Ans. The average thousand-pound horse who relies on hay for all their forage typically eats fifteen to twenty pounds of hay per day.

33. What is a draft horse ?

Ans. A draft horse is a large horse that has been bred to do heavy work, such as plowing, farming, forestry, and hauling large loads.

34. What is a gaited horse ?

Ans. A gaited horse is one that can perform one or more gaits other than walk, trot, canter, and gallop.

35. What is a lame horse ?

Ans. A lame horse is a horse suffering from an abnormal gait or stance called Lameness. It is the condition of Locomotor system dysfunction which is most commonly caused by pain, but can be due to neurologic or mechanical dysfunction.

36. What is a sheath on a horse ?

Ans. The sheath is a pocket of skin that protects the penis when the horse is not breeding or urinating.

37. Can horses see in the dark ?

Ans. Horses have excellent night vision. Horse eyes are large, they have a large pupil, and this allows ample amount of light to enter even in dark situations. On a night lit by a partial moon or stars, horses can see just as well as people can in full daylight.

38. Do horses have fur ?

Ans. All horses have hair growing on their lower legs that can grow long enough to slightly cover the top of the hoof, but only a few breeds can grow this long.

39. How long can a horse go without water in heat ?

Ans. A horse deprived of water in heat may not survive for more than 48 hrs.

40. How long can a horse go without water in Winter ?

Ans. A horse deprived of water may only live up to 3 or 6 days.

41. What is Coggins in horses ?

Ans. Coggins is a blood test to identify if a horse is a carrier of Equine Infectious Anemia, a viral disease found in horses.

42. What is the biggest horse in the world ?

Ans. The biggest horse in history was a Shire horse named Sampson, who stood at a towering 21.25 hands (7 ft 2.5 in) and weighed 3,360 lb (1,524 kg).

43. How long have horses been around ?

Ans. The earliest known horses evolved 55 million years ago and for much of this time, multiple horse species lived at the same time, often side by side, as seen in this diorama.

44. How many bones does a horse have in its body ?

Ans. Horses typically have 205 bones.

45. How much water do horses drink a day ?

Ans. The average horse will drink 5 to 10 gallons of fresh water per day.

46. How much land does a horse need to graze ?

Ans. In general, most horses require at least one to two acres of land per horse. In areas with lush grass and plenty of rainfall, one acre may be sufficient.

47. What is a horse tranquilizer ?

Ans. It's called xylazine, though it's better known by its street name, "tranq". It's a non-opioid sedative used in veterinary medicine, typically with horses.

48. What is Cushing's disease in horses ?

Ans. Equine Cushing's disease (ECD) is a chronic progressive disease of the intermediate pituitary gland of older horses.

49. What is EPM in a horse ?

Ans. EPM is a neurologic disease that horses get from eating infected opossum feces. Incoordination, muscle atrophy and loss of feeling around the body are a few signs of illness.

50. What is warm blood horse ?

Ans. Warmbloods are a group of middle-weight horse types and breeds primarily originating in Europe and registered with organizations that are characterized by open studbook policy, studbook selection, and the aim of breeding for equestrian sport.