All the most interesting about horses, unusual facts
Ever since the time when a person first tamed a horse, he never ceased to constantly learn and discover something new about him. Interesting facts about horses are not familiar to everyone, because for most people, a horse is just a beautiful, majestic animal that has its own characteristics, but does not stand out from a number of other living creatures.
Interesting facts about horses
In fact, this is a misconception. If you look at the entire animal world, then very few living beings can compare in beauty and strength with a horse.
Physiological features
- Horses are herbivorous domestic mammals, but their body structure (unlike sheep or cows) is movement-oriented.
- Another interesting fact about the horse: it has a fairly flexible skeleton, consisting of more than 200 bones, so that the horse can perform jumps, gaits and tricks.
- The horse breathes exclusively with its nose, since it does not know how to do it with its mouth. If you close the horse's nose, he will die due to lack of oxygen.
- In a peaceful state, the respiratory rate is 15-16 breaths per minute. If the animal moves, then it increases 7-8 times to 110 breaths in 60 seconds.
- In 1 day, the lungs pump over 110,000 liters of oxygen.
- If you list all the pets, horses are truly unique: they have the largest hearts, weighing an average of 4 kg. At the same time, in representatives of the racehorse breed, the weight of the heart reaches 7-8 kg.
- Horses have very interesting thermoregulation: they sweat a lot. 80% of all heat is removed through the sweat glands, which are strewn with the skin of the ungulate.
Memory and sensation
Another interesting information about horses claims that horses, due to the combination of unique characteristics of smell, sight and memory, can perfectly catch a characteristic aroma and remember it for a long time. Researchers have recorded cases when a horse in a war returned home or when in search of an owner it traveled long enough distances.
If a person offends an animal, he will soon be overtaken by revenge for the pain inflicted. These mammals are excellent at remembering situations, and also understand causality. This is used by trainers who teach animals to perform spectacular actions for circus performances.
Sensitivity is another assistant that allows you to navigate the terrain. History knows a lot of situations when an animal helped children or adults to get out of difficult-to-pass places. Even these equids quickly capture the feelings and mood of a person.
Unique vision and hearing
Horses have excellent eyesight, of all mammals, they have the most voluminous eyes, due to which they see well at almost 360 ° C, that is, in front, on the sides and behind. This viewing angle allows the animal to prevent many unpleasant situations. Plus, horses see the world in color, however, without blue and red shades.In the dark, horses are good at recognizing a variety of objects.
There are also interesting facts about the horse: he has a good ear, and not only ordinary, but also musical. It can be so well developed that the animal determines which music is played and prefers a particular style. Most often these are calm compositions (classics). Individuals do not tolerate excessively loud music, this causes them anxiety. They are able to pick up sound and, if necessary, increase the volume, so animals hear much better than humans.
Differences between horses of different sex
Regardless of the breed, it is very easy to distinguish a stallion from a mare. Even the largest mares do not visually compare in size with stallions. Males have a wider chest, they are taller and much larger. There is also a difference in character: the mare is much more docile, calmer, while the males are bolder and faster excited in stressful situations.
Hooves
The most interesting facts about horses include hooves. The hoof is one of the unique and important parts of the entire body, which contains a large amount of keratinized skin.
The hooves completely take on the weight of the animal, therefore, during movement, a sufficiently large impact force is applied to them. Despite the external density, they are extremely sensitive, because nerve endings and blood vessels are concentrated in them, which is why the hooves need to be periodically examined and cleaned.
They also shoe the animal. This method of protection was invented in ancient times, when horseshoes were better known as "shoes". They were originally made from dry grass, but over time they have transformed into a modern look. The sizes, like the materials for the horseshoes, are different, but they all serve as a strong and reliable lining.
Skeleton and scalp
Artiodactyls have extremely strong bones compared to any other ungulates or mammals.
Scientists, after conducting research, argue that the strength of a horse bone can be compared to the strength of a stone such as granite. But there is one negative point: if a horse breaks a bone, then in the wild, death awaits it, since the damaged areas are extremely slowly restored, and this dooms the animal to a lag in normal development.
The hair of these mammals is as strong as the skeleton. In ancient times, a bowstring was made from them. Now a wide variety of objects and devices are made from horsehair: grinding shafts, which are used in the glass processing industry, brushes, fishing line for fishing tackle, brushes, etc.
The smile from the horse
The most interesting facts about horses relate to their smile. Quite often you can see how the horse, raising its head, lifts its lip up. This sight cannot but evoke a response smile.
In fact, there is an explanation for this phenomenon, which is known in science as Flemen's syndrome. Thus, the animal tries to better smell the aroma caught earlier.
Sleep
The horse most often sleeps while standing. This is inherent in nature, because if the crow is in the wild, the most dangerous situations for the horse can occur at night. For example, an attack by predators on a horse herd. In such conditions, no horse can afford to sleep lying down. The horse has a special structure of the legs, therefore, in order to reduce the stress during sleep, it is able to block the joints (knee) and sleep for several hours.
When the stallion feels too tired and realizes that he is safe, he calmly lies on his side and falls asleep. If the equestrian sleep is not disturbed, the animal can dream.
The unseen doctor
Everyone knows that horses are the most unique representatives of the world of our smaller brothers, they have mastered many different professions.People often bet on equestrian sports, train blacks and use them in various exhibitions and performances, and in small villages horses are the main means of transportation, although their breeds are designed to fulfill different purposes.
Scientists have investigated another interesting point: the biofield of an animal can have a significant effect on the general condition of a person. More precisely, on the state of mind - if there is a black streak in life and depression overcomes, you need to walk for at least a few hours next to a fast pet. Today there is a whole scientific field called hippotherapy. She sanctifies the methods and methods of treating the patient while riding. Such training has a beneficial effect on diseases of the spine, helps to correct gait and posture. This therapy is primarily necessary for children.
Horses can self-medicate. After a busy and active day, she normalizes blood circulation and rhythm with the help of a specialized massage. And this is far from all the most interesting about tamed horses.
Main professions
Equestrian police squad
For the first time a similar trend emerged in the 19th century in England. Its convenience is explained by the fact that it is possible to walk on horseback in places that are very difficult to reach by car.
Today there are subdivisions in many states. The most famous representatives are the riders of law and order and the red uniforms.
Sportsman
Equestrian sport was so fond of people that it was included in the list of sports competitions at the Olympic Games.
Artist
In the cinema, theater, circus, many performances with the participation of an animal are staged, because the horses are smart and lend themselves well to training. For this, the horse is pre-trained so that he can perform various tricks as accurately and safely as possible.