Facts about horses and equestrian sports. The most interesting facts about horses in the world. Excellent sense of smell and memory

It is believed that for the first time ancient man tamed a wild horse about 5500 years ago, and this happened on the territory of Northern Kazakhstan. During the coexistence side by side with frisky horses, people have discovered many amazing facts related to these unique animals from the Equidae family of the Oequids order. So what is interesting about these creatures?

Origin

Beautiful and stately stallions trace their history from an unsightly ancestor, whose name is Eohippus. This creature, which lived on Earth about 60 million years ago, looked like a hairy dog. Even the hooves of the animal were not yet actually hooves, but were thin paws with fingers at the ends. The growth of Eogippus, who inhabited Western European lands, barely reached 1 m. This creature had an arched back, a short neck and a small head. The animal ate soft leaves and fruits, because. his teeth were completely different from strong and powerful teeth modern horses. Therefore, the Eohippus did not chew the food they got, but rather rubbed it with their jaws.

After 20 million years, the climatic conditions on the planet changed, in connection with which the appearance of Eogippus was also transformed. To be more precise, several new and independent species arose at once - mesohippus, parahippus and anchiteria. All these animals were united by the fact that they no longer ate fruits or succulent leaves, because. the arrival of cold weather forced them to abandon these rare delicacies and get used to dry, tough grass. This led to the development and improvement of the chewing apparatus. The surface of the Earth firmly hardened, in connection with which, mesohippus, parahippus and anchiteria began to rely mainly on the middle fingers, which ended in hooves. The creatures also became larger in size - they already reached 1.2 m in height.

The ancestor, in whose appearance one can already find all the signs inherent in modern horses, was the hipparion, who lived about 5 million years ago in the Upper Miocene era. The remains of this animal were found in several areas at once - this is Europe, and Asia, and even America, where ancient creatures fell along the narrow isthmus that once connected America and Eurasia at the place of the Bering Strait.

Three-toed species were finally supplanted by one-toed species, the limbs of which ended in keratinized and strong hooves. The use of the foot as a support turned out to be more untenable, because in this way the animals could not run fast, therefore they became the prey of ancient predators, in particular, wolves. At the same time, hipparions and their closest descendants, the pliohippus, learned not only to run with their hooves, but also to use them for survival - for example, for loosening snow and getting grass. It was these creatures that subsequently populated the planet and left behind rich offspring in the form of wild forest horses.

Hearing

Several interesting facts are immediately connected with the acute hearing of horses. With its help, animals can recognize high-frequency sounds (up to 25 kHz) that humans cannot hear - it is only able to pick up sounds with a frequency of up to 20 kHz. In turn, low-frequency sounds, such as a dull hum, etc., reach the ears of horses faster than they reach the ears of humans. All this is necessary for the animal in order to respond to danger in time. The horse can also turn each ear individually in the direction of the stimulus to focus on a particular sound. But if the horse is angry, he begins to hear worse, because. his external auditory canal is obstructed by the tense pressing of his ears to his head.

Horses are even known to be connoisseurs of music! Animals like to listen to calm melodies, while loud and heavy songs make them feel anxious and restless.

Hearing is a vital biological sense not only for the horse itself, but also for its owner. It is by capturing the intonation of the voice and recognizing the spoken words that the horse reacts to commands given to it or to its own nickname. Even in a dream, this odd-toed mammal does not stop moving its ears, which indicates the tireless work of the auditory organs!

With the help of acoustic perception of the world, horses are able to anticipate natural disasters - earthquakes, landslides, avalanches, rising groundwater, etc. then distant signals and sounds not yet distinguishable by human hearing.

Dream

The next interesting fact about horses has to do with how they rest and sleep. If you watch a pet during the day, you will notice that from time to time it falls into a state of brief and light half-sleep, which lasts from several minutes to half an hour. At the same time, the horse does not lie down on soft grass, but remains on its feet and simply closes its eyes.

There is a scientific explanation for this - the whole point is that natural instincts and habits are especially strong in horses. A long time ago, these mammals simply could not afford to lie down and sleep for several hours, because. such shortsightedness could cost them their lives. As a result, the horses learned to doze off on their feet, because in this way they could always rush off and escape from danger.

A full sleep of a horse in most cases also takes place on its feet, even though average weight an adult equals 400 kg! So that this does not cause discomfort and pain to the animal, nature has provided its body with the ability to “pinch” the joints. Thanks to this mechanism, the load exerted by the body weight is distributed evenly, and knee joints- are blocked. The horse ceases to feel excessive heaviness.

In some cases, when the horse feels the need for a full sleep, as well as confidence in the safety of the environment, he lies down on the ground and falls into a deep sleep. As a rule, this happens when the animal is in the company of its fellows. Horses are creatures that lead a herd life in the wild, so it is important for them to feel the presence of representatives of their own species nearby. Only a few hours of this state is enough for an adult to fully replenish its strength. In addition, excessive lying in a prone position is fraught with problems, because after 6 hours the horse may experience pulmonary edema.

It is interesting! It has been scientifically proven that when sleeping lying down (i.e. in deep sleep phases), horses are able to dream. This becomes obvious from the quiet snorting and the involuntary movements that they make with their ears, jaws, hooves, imitating running, etc.

Mind and ingenuity

Horses have accompanied man throughout history, not only because they served as a means of transportation or help in the household. Since ancient times, people have discovered that these odd-toed mammals have the ability to learn and a lively mind. Chronicles and chronicles are familiar with the nicknames of many horses, which acted as indispensable "partners" for their owners - emperors, generals, kings, scientists, etc.

Bucephalus

The favorite horse of Alexander the Great, king of Macedonia from the Argead dynasty, was called Bucephalus. An interesting fact is that, according to legend, at the age of 10, the future great ruler became the only person who could tame and saddle this incredibly obstinate and wayward horse (at that time the latter was already 11 years old).

The stallion and his owner were together until Bucephalus was 30 years old - then, after all the battles and battles passed, the horse fell due to old age and heat. In honor of the faithful horse, which throughout his life was distinguished by a noble disposition and ingenuity, Alexander the Great even founded the city and gave it the appropriate name - Bucephalus.

The most interesting thing is that this settlement exists in the world to this day in Pakistan, but today it is called Jalalpur.

Savrasy

Another horse is also known, which in everything corresponded to its owner - we are talking about Savrasy, Subedei's faithful companion. This man was an ally of Temujin-Genghis Khan and one of the greatest Mongol commanders. As contemporaries of the military leader recalled, the horse always followed the orders of its owner and understood all the words addressed to it.

The loyal and brave horse even sacrificed himself when necessary. One day, she and Subedei got stuck in a quagmire. The commander managed to jump out of the saddle and escape, but the animal forever dragged the swamp.

Several interesting facts are connected with a horse named Clever Hans. This horse, which lived in Germany at the beginning of the 20th century, gained worldwide fame as one of the most intelligent and intellectually developed animals in history! Its owner was Wilhelm von Austin, a school teacher of mathematics. At that time, the public was especially fascinated by the Darwinian theory, in which animals were represented as beings endowed with reason. In this regard, von Austin decided to test the intellectual abilities of his horse.

What was his surprise when it turned out that Hans really has abstract thinking and outstanding natural talents! Wilhelm gave them a finished cut, namely, he developed in his horse such skills as the ability to add, subtract, multiply, divide, perform operations with fractions, indicate the exact time and date, and also perceive by ear both individual words and whole statements in English. German. At that time, the level of development of Hans corresponded to the level of development of 14-year-old children.

With his "teacher", and later with the general public, for which von Austin began to organize free street performances with his ward, Hans communicated by tapping his hoof. This is how he answered the questions. Despite the fact that the answers were not always exceptionally correct, in most cases, Clever Hans still coped with the task.

In the homeland of Clever Hans, in Germany, scientists became very interested in the phenomenon of this horse and decided to study its intelligence more closely. A specially convened commission conducted a whole series of practical experiments. Questions to Hans were asked not only by his master, but also by other people. He was blindfolded so that he could not see the questioner and could not receive possible clues from him. The questions were of different types - for some of them the person himself knew the correct answer, while for others only observers could answer.

The final statistics showed that when the tasker (who, as a rule, was still Von Austin) knew the correct answer, the horse coped with the task in 89% of cases. But if Wilhelm himself was in the dark about the issue, Hans coped with the task only 6% of the time!

This allowed the German psychologist Oskar Pfungst to conclude that in reality the animal did not have a unique intelligence, but was able to correctly interpret various expressions of “social communication”. In other words, Clever Hans did not receive any special prompts from his master, however, over the years of communication and interaction, he learned to “read” his behavior, facial expressions, gestures and postures. Tapping out the answer with his hoof, the horse watched the reaction of both his owner and the people around him in order to understand when to stop.

Apparently, Hans was very sensitive to emotional human reactions, such as excitement, tension, relaxation, a sharp glance thrown, etc. Although Pfungst released a study exposing the mathematical and linguistic abilities of Clever Hans, he admitted that this horse can still be must be considered a phenomenally intelligent creature! Von Austin himself categorically rejected the results of Pfungst's scientific research and continued to travel around the country with Hans until his death in 1909.

Horses have been helping people for many centuries to transport people, heavy objects and mail, as well as to sow bread. Now they can be seen with your own eyes, only in the zoo, in the circus arena and on the TV screen. To pay tribute to these kind animals, here are the most interesting facts about horses.

The horse is laughing

horse laughter

Probably many at least once, but saw how the horse "smiles". It happens like this: the upper lip is bent and the horse's jaw is completely exposed. But this is a common chemical reaction called Flehmen's syndrome.

Animals do this to "smell" a person: while lowering their heads and bending their lips, their sense of smell increases. By the way, the Flehmen reaction can most often be found in horses.

horse industry

Despite the fact that it is much more difficult to see a horse in Everyday life than an expensive racing car on a city street, the horse industry is quite developed in the world. Stallions not only make life easier for farmers, but also participate in competitions, sports competitions(show jumping, horse racing, etc.). In many parks, you can ride a horse for a small fee or let a child sit on it. The breeding of riding horses is also very popular: it brings good money. On the this moment there are about 60 million horses and horses. Of these, one in 12 horses lives in the United States. The equestrian business generates almost $40 billion in net income per year.

Horse business brings big profits

Horses in police service

For the first time, state authorities began to use horses for law enforcement in the middle of the 17th century. The mounted police became independent in 1806 in the capital of Great Britain. The success of the police officers from foggy Albion was so great that a few months later the USA picked up the idea to organize their own equestrian outfits.

The best police horses are castrated horses - geldings. These animals were huge and calm, which is important for performing nervous work.

The policeman, on horseback on a gelding, was presented to the citizens in the form of a distant relative of Themis (goddess of justice) and inspired confidence. Today, there are few mounted police outfits and they are used to organize order at rallies and all kinds of actions.

Police horses are especially popular in England and the USA.

horse look

Horses have the largest eyes of any mammal. For comparison, the human eye is 9 times smaller than a horse's. The structure of the eye is radically different from ours: in horses of the third century, one of which serves to clean the retina. The latter perform different functions: the lower retina can be called binoculars, and the upper magnifying glass. By observing the behavior of the horse, it is easy to know where he is looking. So if the head is lifted up, then this means that the animal is trying to see something on the horizon. If the head is lowered, then the focus of the horse is a nearby object.

horseshoe

Horses began to be shod in the Middle Ages. This was done in order to protect the keratin layer of the hoof. Without a horseshoe, a horse that is harnessed to a plow or harness experiences serious pain. With a metal knob, depreciation is significantly increased and the horse is able to develop high speed and perform heavy work. In general, a mare without shoes is the same as a runner without shoes. Now there are many horseshoes made from a variety of materials. Racehorses are often dressed in aluminum "sneakers".

An unshod horse can damage its hooves

Horse nicknames

Horses are never called human names. The choice of nicknames is approached with all seriousness, especially when it comes to racing breeds. A breeder will never name his horse "Champion" or "Winner" because with such a name he is unlikely to come first in the race.

Another thing is to call the horse "Officer" or "Warrior".

Horse hybrids

In the last century, scientists began work on crossing certain types of mammals with horses. So, the union of a mare and a donkey is a mule, and a horse and a donkey is a hinny. Hybrids look pretty funny, and sometimes completely ridiculous.

Mules are very hardy and unpretentious

horsemeat

As mentioned earlier, horses not only made life easier for the owners, but sometimes saved her. There are many examples when, due to circumstances, horses were put under the knife. You don't have to look far for an example: Napoleon's troops ate horses in burned-out Moscow, just like the soldiers of Field Marshal Paulus in Stalingrad. In the second half of the last century, many nations did not cease to disdain horsemeat. For example, the French like to eat not only meat, but also the insides of an animal (kidneys and heart). At all times, only the United States was negative about the use of horse meat.

In conclusion, we list short but interesting facts about horses:

Horses have an excellent memory: they will never forget their owner if he treated them kindly and gently.
In terms of intelligence, mounts are not much inferior to primates.
The easiest way to determine the age of a stallion or horse is by the condition of the teeth. By the way, the expression “don’t look a gift horse in the mouth” appeared in the 4th century.
The sixth sense is developed many times better than that of a person, so it is worth listening to the attached one.
They, like people, take care of their children. If in many animals the mother takes care of the newborn, then in horses both the mare and the horse, and even slightly grown stallions, can perform this function.
Horses prefer classical music to hard rock or electronic music.

Humans and horses have much in common, despite their anthropological differences. It is worth taking care of each breed of the only representative of the horse family, so that future generations can see these beautiful animals with their own eyes.

With the invention of the automobile, the main means of transportation of past centuries, the horse seemed to be forgotten by people. But this unique animal has other amazing abilities, and simply radiates incredible energy, because of which a person is attached to it forever. The following interesting facts about horses - the best of that certificate.

Horses are not only unusually hardy and beautiful creatures but incredibly smart. And this fact is scientifically proven. Of all animals, they rank fifth in terms of intelligence, overtaking even dogs.

They distinguish between the actions of their master:

they know when it is necessary to submit their will to him;
feel aggressive behavior;
understand when they are afraid;
recognize an intoxicated person.

At the same time, regardless of the breed, they are very loyal and quickly make friends with people who will never be left in trouble.

Another feature is that horses can recognize their brothers even in the photo. Repeated experiments have shown that, looking at the image of another horse, the horse begins to neigh and sniff at the picture.

In addition, these animals have different signals for each other, which are transmitted by changing the timbre of their neighing.

An interesting fact that horses are intelligent animals has been known to people since ancient times. So, in a war with a horse, a commander from the army of Genghis Khan consulted. He, like a man, he told about plans and strategies, watching the reaction.

One of the wisest men in history, Julius Caesar, did not hesitate to consult with his horse about government issues right in the Senate building.

King Richard the Lionheart took his horse to all battles, where the devoted pet repeatedly defended the owner from enemy spears and died on the battlefield.

Well, who hasn’t heard about Bucephalus, the beloved horse of Alexander the Great, who also died in the battle. An entire city was named after him.

horse doctor

Another interesting fact about horses is that these beautiful creatures can heal. There is even an official definition - hippotherapy, i.e. rehabilitation through horseback riding.

What is being treated?

One of the main diseases that horses treat is cerebral palsy. Sitting on the back of a horse, a person receives certain impulses directed at him. nervous system and musculoskeletal system. Each of his movements repeats the work of the torso of a walking person, which is also used to treat problems with the spine. Equestrian sports give an excellent load on the muscles and improve overall health.

Communication with horses is prescribed for children with autism. They help young patients develop communication skills, relieve anxiety and reveal self-confidence.

For adults, horses can also help get rid of stress and phobias, and prevent other diseases. For example, those who work with horses all their lives are much less likely to catch colds, develop diabetes or depression.

Your own doctor

The horse can help itself. Have you all seen how they sometimes roll on the ground? They do this in order to restore their strength by stimulating blood flow.

The uniqueness of the senses

There is no animal that can compare with the memory, sight, smell and touch capabilities of a horse.

scent

Memorizing and capturing smells for any breed of horse is not difficult. Even when blinded, the horse will be able to navigate the terrain, thanks to its unique sense of smell, overcoming impressive distances, distinguishing between edible food, etc.

By smell, the mare recognizes her foal, and the horse recognizes the mare's hunting.

Memory

Horses easily remember events and are able to establish a causal relationship between them. By the way, thanks to this ability, they are easy to train.

Also, the four-legged remember resentment and neglect, for which they can take revenge after a while.

Vision

No less interesting in horses is vision:

they see not only what is happening before their eyes, but also objects on their sides and behind them;
they distinguish all colors except blue and red;
in the dark, they see just as well.

Hearing

Horses have musical preferences. They like calm melodies, but loud and heavy music is not for them.

Their hearing apparatus is so developed that the sounds reaching them are also amplified.

Touch

The most sensitive in horses are called lips, hooves and skin, as well as hairs on the lips and muzzle. They understand the mood of others, from anger to love.

Other fun facts

In conclusion, we give other most interesting facts about horses regarding their life, behavior and other things.

About the horse's hoof

The hoof of a horse is keratinized skin, which, despite its rough structure, is an unusually sensitive part. It is intertwined with many blood vessels and nerve endings. When walking, the horse presses on the hooves, as a result of which they, like mini-pumps, begin to pump blood into the legs.

If you do not wash and shoe the hooves, they become deformed and begin to cause pain to the horse.

By the way, the hoof is also the weapon of the horse. An angry animal can strike in such a way that the injury is fatal. Most of all, you should be afraid if an unshod horse beats. It is said that such a blow can certainly kill.

Where are they the most?

China is the leading country in the settlement of horses. For this reason, the Chinese horse name "Zhu Han" is the most common in the world.

Friends and Enemies

The animal world is filled with friends and enemies. The last thing for horses are bees. Only 30 bee stings will lay down a young and strong horse on the spot.

But horses make friends with cats and dogs. Cats boldly climb onto their backs, rubbing against their legs. A cat's purr is a song for a horse's ear.

Guides and guards

Mounted police are at the disposal of many states, not because of the lack of other Vehicle. Mounted patrols can pursue criminals in places where a car or motorcycle cannot pass. Various obstacles for horses are not a problem, but to catch up with a running person is “just a spit”.

Of course, such "servants of the law" are trained to be brave, not to pay attention to the crowd of people during the persecution, not to be afraid of the sounds of an explosion, etc.

Plus, horses often become guides for blind people, replacing dogs. There are several explanations for this. First, they live longer than dogs, 30-35 years. Secondly, dog hair can cause allergies, but there can be no such problem with horses.

Miniature representatives of the Falabella breed are better than anyone for this role: they go to the toilet in the right place, do not have a strong odor, and are suitable for keeping at home.

They are also trained before they are allowed to serve: they learn commands, road signs and signals, train their memory, etc. They sew special shoes that suppress the sounds of their steps.

Other

Continuous chewing and absorption of food is necessary for the horse to feel good.

The character of a horse is determined by some by its color. For example, blacks are the fastest and strongest, redheads are the most capricious.

The impressive mass of the horse will not allow it to stand on three legs, therefore individuals are often euthanized if they break a leg: the bone grows together for a long time, and the animal begins to slow down in development.

By the way, cocoa horses prefer coffee: in the course of experiments, every fourth out of five mares chooses a bucket of coffee, not cocoa.

Most importantly, all horses are selfless and friendly creatures. Perhaps that is why they are revered as sacred animals by more than 23 nationalities of the world.

1. Due to the special structure of the legs, horses are very well adapted to high-speed running.

2. Their digestive system is designed to constantly process food. Therefore, they eat plant foods, almost continuously, but in small portions.

3. They have excellent flair and are better than any compass oriented in any weather, and at any time of the day: early morning or late at night.

4. Horses have the finest hearing: they are able to pick up sounds that a person cannot hear. Them auricles are designed in such a way that they not only capture sound waves, but even enhance their effect.

5. Horses feel and understand danger very well.

6. Unlike most animals, they see the world in color, not black and white, but they do not distinguish between blue and red colors well.

7. A horse, like a dog, has an excellent sense of smell, so old individuals with poor eyesight are guided only by their subtlest sense of smell. They also recognize by smell: their saddle, harness, from a great distance they distinguish between edible and inedible herbs.

8. They have a very strong sense of touch. The most sensitive in this regard are the hooves and lips.

9. The horse is also able to heal itself. For example, after a long work, she happily lies around for several minutes, that is, she gives herself a massage that restores blood circulation.

10. Among horses, there are often cases of affection and friendship.

11. By the horse's body movements and posture, you can learn about his mood and intentions.

12. Very effective weapon they have a kick with their hind hoof, but they use it only as a last resort.

13. They are able to see everything that surrounds them both in front and behind, since the angle of view is almost 360 degrees.

14. Horses are scared to death of bees, a few dozen of these bites can kill an adult.

15. Reliably known maximum life expectancy for a horse was 62 years, but on average it is up to 25 years.

16. According to statistics, death from a blow with a bare hoof of a horse occurs more often than from a blow with a shod.

17. Horses from New Zealand have a water-repellent coat.

18. People who work with horses have 50% less diabetes than others.

19. Horses communicate with each other using body movements, as well as voices. For example, a horse uses a low, soft neigh to get a friend's attention.

20. Horses lack a collarbone, unlike other mammals.

21. A horse's pregnancy lasts an average of 340 days. In most cases, one, rarely two foals are born. A few minutes after birth, they can move around on their own.

22. At the age of three, the horse is capable of breeding

23. The smallest breed is their "falabela" maximum height 75-76 cm, but the smallest among them was a stallion whose height is only 35 cm, with a weight of 9 kg

24. The heaviest stallion is considered to be a Belgian heavy truck breed, who was born in 1928. His height was less than two centimeters - 2 meters, and his weight was almost one and a half tons.

25. Most horses in the world are in China

Horses are unique animals. Each horse is individual, each needs its own approach, its own training plan (if it is a sports horse), personal diet, etc. And if you properly care for them, how beautiful they are! Many facts about horses are no less interesting and unique than the animals themselves.

So, horses are distributed all over the world. They adapted and adapted to completely different climates and new breeds of horses appeared, with different density and long manes, different colors, builds and characters. For example, in horses living in New Zealand, the wool repels water. Also, the horse is a sacred animal among 23 peoples. Further more interesting facts about horses.

The longest tail.

The longest tail of an 11 year old horse listed in the record book is 3 m. 81 cm.

mustachioed horse

Apparently he is the most mustachioed horse in all the British Isles. And maybe all over the world.

The vegetation on his face, according to the owners, began to grow intensively in the last five years. Alfie really doesn't like it when people touch his mustache with their hands or when they want to comb or cut it. Some breeds of horses grow mustaches, but the owners do not allow them to come into such a neglected appearance as Alfie, and he does not let anyone with scissors in his hands.

Horse caretaker 20-year-old Hayley Kokstit says that Alfie is an incredibly stubborn animal and is truly proud of his mustache. He has character.

When I first saw him, it was rather strange to see his mustache. But he won't let them do anything. You have to be just a crazy daredevil if you want to approach him and touch his mustache. At the same time, he is very vulnerable and easily frightened, but he works very well as a riding horse. I've heard of horses with whiskers, but I think my Alfie has the longest whiskers a horse could grow.

Horses have hairs above the upper lip to help determine the condition of food, their freshness and texture, but only Friesian horses have truly thick mustaches.

It is believed that the communication of people with horses has a positive effect on the human nervous system. Horseback riding is very useful, especially for people whose work is connected with a computer, mental activity. Stress is relieved and the load is distributed to all muscle groups.

Longest lived.

The longest-lived horse in the world is a stallion named Billy, born in Great Britain (Wolston), in 1760 and lived for 62 years. All his life Billy did hard work: towed barges. The owner of the stallion claimed that it was a very strong horse with excellent health and docile character.

For a Finn, the word "horse" will be offensive, and for a Turk, it will be insulting to be called a horse. Between coffee and cocoa, the horse usually chooses coffee. People who interact with horses are 50% less at risk of developing diabetes. Most high jump horse was recorded in 1949 and amounted to 247 cm. One horse can bring 1-2 foals in one birth. Horses are divided into breeds, but they are also classified into groups depending on the height of the withers and weight. The smallest horse breed is the Argentine flobela (height - 35 cm, weight - 1 pood). The largest breed of horses is the English Shire breed (height - up to 2 m, weight - up to 1600 kg). A sports horse can reach speeds of up to 70-80 km / h.

The most fast horse in the world.

The fastest horse in the world and the best of its breed is a thoroughbred stallion named Beach Rackit. When running for a distance of about 410 meters, he developed a speed of 69.69 kilometers per hour. This record was recorded in Mexico City.

The sense of touch, smell, hearing and vision in horses are many times more developed than in humans. Horses are mortally afraid of bees. A whole swarm can kill a horse. The heart of a horse weighs 4-8 kg. The normal temperature of a horse is 7.5-8.5 degrees Celsius. The maximum duration of a horse is 62 years. But on average, horses live 25 years. In August 1983, the most expensive horse in the world was sold. Its cost was 40 million dollars. It was a purebred American stallion. The stallion Alfie lives in Glostenshire, he is 15 years old. He distinguished himself by the fact that he has a chic golden mustache growing 18 cm long. Wild horses very often doze off. They do this for most of their lives. Akhal-Teke breed horses are one of the most expensive and popular breeds in Russia.

The longest mane.

The owner of the longest mane in the world was a thoroughbred stallion from the breed of Oregon long-haired wild horses named Linus. The length of his mane was more than 3 meters.

The biggest horse in the world

Meet Poe, a horse named after writer Edgar Allan Poe. From the ground to the ears - three meters. Weight - 1360 kilograms. Its owner, Canadian farmer Sherin Thompson, wants to invite representatives of the Guinness Book of Records to fix the record.

The horse daily eats two bales of hay, almost five kilograms of grain and drinks 75 liters of water. Every day. Every day. Oh my God.

And this is another giant - the English stallion Duke. Also the size of an elephant :)

The smallest horse in the world.

There are three competing for this title. known to the world dwarf horses: Tumbelina (a horse that was listed in the Guinness Book of Records in 2006), foal Einstein and a horse named Bella. So who is rightfully worthy of bearing the title of "The smallest horse in the world"?

Tumbelina, she is Thumbelina, was born in 2001. At birth, her weight was about 4 kilograms. This event took place on an American farm breeding miniature horses.

Thumbelina belongs to the breed of miniature pygmy horses. But in size, it turned out to be almost 2 times smaller. Unlike ponies, miniature pygmy horses look just like regular horses and have the right natural proportions.

Now the growth of the record holder is 43 centimeters, and she weighs 26 kilograms. According to farm owner Mike Goslin, the reason for the birth of such a small horse was a special dwarf gene.

She is quite healthy, except for a slight problem with the hind legs, which are disproportionately smaller than the body and head. Tumbelina can even become pregnant and give birth to a foal. But this is too risky, as complications can occur during pregnancy. In 2006, the expert commission of the Guinness Book of Records recognized this red horse as the smallest in the world. She carried her title with her head held high until 2010.

This year was marked by the birth of two miniature horses at once, which can move Tumbelina from her podium. On April 23, 2010, a foal named Einstein was fit, and a month later, Bella's horse.

Einstein was born in Barnstead, New Hampshire, England on a miniature horse farm called Tiz Miniature Horse. This Pinto foal at birth weighed only 2.7 kilograms and was 36 centimeters tall. This gives him the right to compete for the title of "smallest horse". Now he weighs 28 kilograms.

But Einstein has a worthy rival - a horse named Bella. Her owner, Alison Smith, founder of the Center for the Conservation and Breeding of the Smallest Horses in North Dakota, claims that her pet is also worthy of getting into the Guinness Book of Records. At birth, her weight was about 4 kilograms, and her height was 38 centimeters. It's still a little more than Einstein's measurements, but according to Alison, Bella belongs to the breed of miniature, not dwarf horses, so among her breed she is the smallest horse in the world. But, to her regret, the Guinness Book of Records does not distinguish between breeds.

Thus, at the moment, the smallest horse in the world is a foal named Einstein (if he does not outgrow Tumbelina).

One of America's laws says that an unmarried woman who rides a horse on a Sunday can be arrested. Another law forbids a newlywed man to ride a horse alone until the first anniversary. And that's not all the strangeness of America.

And a few more facts. More often people die from the blow of an unshod horse than from a shod one. Scientists say that in the dreams of a horse there is a color scheme. Horses began to be tamed only 4000 years ago. You can tell the age of a horse by its teeth. The Arabian horse is valued for its uniqueness and purity throughout the world.

The largest horse.

The stallion is the largest horse in the world Belgian breed, a bay-roan suit named Brooklyn Supreme. At the age of ten, this stallion weighed almost 1.5 tons, and the height at the withers was about 2 m. Brooklyn Supreme wore the largest horseshoes in the history of horse breeding weighing 13.6 kg.

In general, horses have made a great contribution to the life and development of people's working activities, greatly facilitating some of its aspects. The above provided interesting information about horses - only a small part of these amazing animals.