Fun & Interesting Facts about Horses
Horses are amazing creatures. Even if you never had the chance to ride a horse, you can spend your life researching about them and still have a lot to explore.
Here are some fun facts about horses you will enjoy.
- Horses can see almost 360 degrees around them
With just two little blind spots straight behind and straight in front of the horse, they almost have a vision of 360 degrees around them.
- The oldest horse ever lived about 62 years
On average, horses live around 25 to 30 years. However, the horse named Old Billy made a Guinness World Record for being the oldest horse who ever lived, nearly living 62 yrs old! Born in Woolston, Lancashire, United Kingdom, in 1760, Old Billy died on 27th November 1822.
- Horses can see in two directions simultaneously
A horse’s eyes can move separately from each other, allowing them to see two different things simultaneously. How to tell what your horse is watching now? Notice the ear on the related side.
- Horses can run as fast as 88 km/h
Although on average horses have a top speed of 64-70 km/h, the fastest horse in the record made a top speed of 88 km/h.
- Horses can not burp
Because of a severely strong valve present between their oesophagus and stomach, they cannot burp or vomit! If for any reason (although it's rare) a horse ever burps, it generally means a severe health issue.
- Horses can not breathe through their mouth
They are obligate nose breathers which means that they are able to breathe only through the nose not using the mouth as we can.
- Horses sleep standing up
Horses have what is known as stay-apparatus which is a condition of ligaments and tendons that lets the horse lock its legs in position so that it can rest without having to fall. While not sleeping they also use this function to relax when standing for a long time so that they don’t get exhausted. This lets them save energy when standing so that they are prepared to run or sprint when needed. However, it’s a myth that horses can't lay down – they indeed spend a little amount of time every day laying down. This helps with deeper sleep.
- Horses have super fast reflexes
If ever a situation arises while they have to fight, horses can make a powerful kick from a standing position in only 0.3 seconds, where humans take 1.6 seconds to react.
- Horses can see colours
Although in the past it was thought that horses are colourblind, now we know that this is not true. They can recognize a range of shades of green, blue and yellow. However, they cannot recognize the colour red.
- Horses are highly social animals
Because horses belong to the prey species, they confirm safety in a herd and make powerful social connections with one another. They use their senses to recognize other horses and pass time with the ones they built friendships with. In wildlife, one horse will guard standing to keep watch when other horses in their herd take time to rest, eat and sleep.