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Breed registries for horses that typically produce individuals both under and over 14.2 hands (58 inches, 147 cm) consider all animals of that breed to be horses regardless of their height. [35] Conversely, some pony breeds may have features in common with horses, and individual animals may occasionally mature at over 14.2 hands (58 inches, 147 ...
Equus (/ ˈ ɛ k w ə s, ˈ iː k w ə s /) [3] is a genus of mammals in the family Equidae, which includes horses, asses, and zebras.Within the Equidae, Equus is the only recognized extant genus, comprising seven living species.
Equidae (commonly known as the horse family) is the taxonomic family of horses and related animals, including the extant horses, asses, and zebras, and many other species known only from fossils. The family evolved more than 50 million years ago, in the Eocene epoch, from a small, multi-toed ungulate into larger, single-toed animals.
Extinct equids restored to scale. Left to right: Mesohippus, Neohipparion, Eohippus, Equus scotti and Hypohippus. Wild horses have been known since prehistory from central Asia to Europe, with domestic horses and other equids being distributed more widely in the Old World, but no horses or equids of any type were found in the New World when European explorers reached the Americas.
A male horse is often gelded to make him better-behaved and easier to control. Gelding can also remove lower-quality animals from the gene pool. [7] To allow only the finest animals to breed on, while preserving adequate genetic diversity, only a small percentage of all male horses should remain stallions.
Free-roaming mustangs (Utah, 2005). Horse behavior is best understood from the view that horses are prey animals with a well-developed fight-or-flight response.Their first reaction to a threat is often to flee, although sometimes they stand their ground and defend themselves or their offspring in cases where flight is untenable, such as when a foal would be threatened.
A wide variety of horse colorations are seen. People in the different regions of Mongolia favor different colors of horses and breed accordingly. The Darkhad ethnic group prefers white horses, however most Mongolians prefer dun, bay, or black horses and shun white-colored animals. [15] Some horses are bred for the preferences of foreign markets.
Icelandic horses weigh between 330 and 380 kilograms (730 and 840 lb) [2] and stand an average of 13 and 14 hands (52 and 56 inches, 132 and 142 cm) high, although the shortest measured Icelandic horse was 113cm (11.1hh), and the tallest measured 157cm (15.3hh).