..... Click the link for more information. . (Other so-called wild horses are feral domestic horses or their descendants.) Adapted to plains environments, all Equus species, including the ass ass, hoofed, herbivorous mammal of the genus Equus, closely related to the horse . It is distinguished from the horse by its small size, large head, long ears, and small hooves. There are two living species: Equus hemonius, the Asian ass, and E.
..... Click the link for more information. and the zebra zebra, herbivorous hoofed African mammal of the genus Equus, which also includes the horse and the ass. It is distinguished by its striking pattern of black or dark brown stripes alternating with white.
..... Click the link for more information. , have lengthened foot bones ending in a single toe covered by a hoof, for fast running; teeth shaped for grinding grass; and intestinal protozoa for digesting cellulose. All species have tufts of hair on the tail, used against insects, and manes on the neck. Horses, zebras, and asses can interbreed, but the offspring are usually sterile. The offspring of a horse and a donkey (domestic ass) is called a mule.
A male horse is called a stallion, or if castrated, a gelding; a female is a mare; her offspring are foals—males are colts, females are fillies. A male parent is a sire, a female parent is a dam. A single foal is born after a gestation of about 11 months. Horses reach sexual maturity in about two years, but are not fully grown for about five years. The average life span is 18 years, but 30-year-old horses are common. The standard unit of height is a hand, equal to 4 in. (10 cm).
See horse racing horse racing, trials of speed involving two or more horses. It includes races among harnessed horses with one of two particular gaits, among saddled Thoroughbreds (or, less frequently, quarterhorses) on a flat track, or among saddled horses over a turf course with
..... Click the link for more information. ; equestrianism equestrianism, art of riding and handling a horse. Horseback riding was practiced as far back as the Bronze Age and was thereafter adapted to commerce, industry, war, sport, and recreation.
..... Click the link for more information. .
History and Breeds
The earliest known direct ancestor of Equus, the eohippus [Gr.,=dawn horse], 10 to 20 in. (25–50 cm) tall, lived approximately 50 million years ago in both the Old and New Worlds. Equus originally evolved in North America by the late Pliocene epoch, about three million years ago, spreading to all continents except Australia. Horses disappeared from the Americas for unknown reasons about 10,000 years ago, to be reintroduced by Europeans, c.A.D. 1500.
Many species of Equus arose in the Old World. Horses were probably first domesticated by central Asian nomads in the 3d millennium B.C. Horses were recorded in Mesopotamia and China (c.2000 B.C.), Greece (c.1700 B.C.), Egypt (c.1600 B.C.), and India (c.1500 B.C.). Horses were domesticated in W Europe no later than 1000 B.C. It is not known whether these early domesticated horses developed from a single wild race or from many local races.
Largely superseding the slower, less manageable ass, which had been domesticated much earlier, the horse's first known use was for drawing Mesopotamian war chariots. It was long reserved primarily for warfare and for transportation for the rich and well-born, while cheaper animals (e.g., oxen, mules, and donkeys) were used for lowlier work. Horses figured importantly in war and conquest in Europe, central Asia, and the Middle East for over 3,000 years. Early warriors rode bareback or with saddle cloths. The saddle saddle, seat or pad to support the rider on an animal, chiefly a horse. The saddles mentioned in the Bible are generally considered to have been saddlecloths. The ancient Greeks sometimes used saddlecloths, but they had no saddles and often rode bareback.
..... Click the link for more information. and the stirrup stirrup, foot support for the rider of a horse in mounting and while riding. It is a ring with a horizontal bar to receive the foot and is attached by a strap to the saddle.
..... Click the link for more information. were probably developed in China in the early Christian era, spread by Asian horsemen (such as the Huns), and adopted by Arabs and Europeans in the early Middle Ages. Arab cavalry conquered the Middle East and N Africa in the 7th cent. A.D. In the same period, armored knights were riding to battles in Europe. With highly developed cavalry tactics, the Mongols extended their 13th cent. empire from China to E Europe.
The Spanish conquistadors brought horses to the New World, where Native Americans soon acquired them from ranches and missions. The Plains Indians of North America quickly developed a horse culture that led to their ascendancy in numbers and power. Horses were used for hunting buffalo and other game, for warfare, and for pulling loads on a travois travois (trăvoi`), device used by Native North Americans of the Great Plains for transporting their tepees and household goods.
..... Click the link for more information. . Escaped Indian horses were ancestral to the mustang mustang [Sp. mesteño=a stray], small feral horse of the W United States. Mustangs are descended from escaped Native American horses, which in turn were descended from horses of North African blood, brought to the New World by the Spanish c.1500.
..... Click the link for more information. , the so-called wild horse of the W United States.
The two major groups of modern horses—the light, swift southern breeds, called light horses light horse, any breed of horse that is used primarily for riding or for light work such as pulling buggies. Light horses have their origin in the Middle East and N Africa.
..... Click the link for more information. , and the heavy, powerful northern breeds, called draft horses draft horse or work horse, any breed of horse that is suited to or used for drawing heavy loads. Draft horses originated in central Europe, where their domestication preceded the Roman invasion.
..... Click the link for more information. —are believed to have arisen independently. The small breeds called ponies pony, small horse, officially any horse under 14.2 hands (58 in./145 cm) high. Most ponies are of Celtic origin. They are noted for their extreme hardiness and gentle natures. Some ponies are only 26 in. (65 cm) high. See Shetland pony ; Welsh pony .
..... Click the link for more information. may derive from a southern, light horse or from a wild race.
Draft Horses
During Roman times the Gauls and other Europeans used horses of the heavy, northern type for pulling loads and other work. In the Middle Ages huge draft animals, over 16 hands (64 in./160 cm) high, were bred to carry armored knights as well as their own armor. As cavalry warfare declined, such medieval inventions as the horseshoe and the rigid horse-collar (see harness harness, comprehensive term for the gear of a draft animal, excluding the yoke, by which it is attached to the load that it pulls. Although harnesses are used on dogs (for drawing travois and dogsleds), on goats, and sometimes on oxen, the typical harness is for
..... Click the link for more information. ) made draft horses more useful for work. By the 19th cent. the draft horse had replaced the ox in N Europe and North America. Draft breeds common in the United States were the Belgian Belgian horse, one of the largest breeds of draft horses of pure European descent. It has a long history, antedating the Christian era, but became especially popular during the Middle Ages. In the 15th and 16th cent.
..... Click the link for more information. , the Clydesdale Clydesdale horse, breed of draft horse developed in Scotland. It closely resembles the Shire horse , although it is not as heavy. The Clydesdale is characterized by its graceful, springy step.
..... Click the link for more information. , the Percheron Percheron horse (pûr`chərŏn')
..... Click the link for more information. ; and the Shire Shire horse, a breed of draft horse native to central England. It is equal in weight to the Belgian horse and is usually slightly taller. Widely used as a war horse during the Middle Ages, it was well adapted to carry the excessive weight of armor worn by both horse
..... Click the link for more information. , also the most common draft horse in England.
Light Horses
Modern light horses, all descended in part from the Arabian horse Arabian horse, breed of light horse developed in Mesopotamia and N Africa, and probably the first true domesticated breed. Prized since earliest times for its superior beauty, spirit, speed, grace of movement, stamina, and intelligence, the Arabian has served as
..... Click the link for more information. , the oldest surviving breed of known lineage, include the Thoroughbred Thoroughbred horse, breed of light horse more properly known as the English running horse. As its name implies, it was the first pedigreed, or "thoroughbred" horse.
..... Click the link for more information. , celebrated as a racehorse; the American saddlebred horse American saddlebred horse, breed of light horse with great beauty, easy gait, and stamina; also known as the American saddle horse and the Kentucky saddler. It was developed primarily from the Thoroughbred and the Naragansett pacer.
..... Click the link for more information. , known for its easy gaits; the Morgan Morgan horse, breed of American light horse descended from a single progenitor—the famous Justin Morgan . Morgans are used as all-purpose light horses and are very popular on cattle ranches. Their average height is just under 15 hands (60 in.
..... Click the link for more information. and the quarter horse quarter horse, American breed of light horse that originated during the colonial era, partly from Arabian ancestry (see Arabian horse ). The name refers to the horse's reputation for speed at the quarter-mile distance.
..... Click the link for more information. , favored for riding and cow herding; and the Standardbred Standardbred horse or trotter, American breed of light horse developed especially for harness, or sulky, racing. Of Thoroughbred ancestry, it is similar in appearance to a thoroughbred but has shorter legs.
..... Click the link for more information. , or trotter, developed for light harness racing. The Appaloosa Appaloosa horse (ăp'əl
..... Click the link for more information. and the Pinto Pinto, Fernão Mendes (fĕrnouN` mĕn`dĕsh pēn`t
), c.
..... Click the link for more information. , much used in cow herding, are distinguished by their patterned colors. The palomino palomino horse, American light horse that, contrary to popular opinion, is not a breed but a color type. The palomino is a characteristic golden, creamy tan, with an almost white mane and tail. White stripes on the face and white stockings are common.
..... Click the link for more information. is not a breed but a color type. Among the small horses are the Shetland pony Shetland pony, smallest breed of horse , originating in the Shetland Islands some 200 mi (322 km) N of Scotland. The Shetland resembles a miniature draft horse and has long been used for working purposes.
..... Click the link for more information. and Welsh pony Welsh pony, breed of small horse of European origin. First bred primarily in Saxony, it later became localized in Wales. Although the breed is of ancient type, it presently bears traces of the Arabian horse and shows influences of the Thoroughbred horse .
..... Click the link for more information. . The terms cow pony and polo pony refer to the animal's use rather than its size or breed. Although little used for work today, horses are widely owned for recreational riding and show activities.
Classification
Horses are classified in the phylum Chordata Chordata (kôrdā`tə,–dä`–)
..... Click the link for more information. , subphylum Vertebrata, class Mammalia, order Perissodactyla, family Equidae.
Bibliography
See A. Hyland, Equus (1990); E. H. Edwards and C. Geddes, ed., The Complete Horse Book (1991); K. R. Ward, The American Horse (1991); J. Clutton-Brock, Horse Power (1992); J. Holderness-Roddam, The New Complete Book of the Horse (1992).
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