Agri-science Mr. Bailey

How many breeds can you name?

• Clydesdale• Quarter horse• Morgan• American Paint• Thoroughbred

• Appaloosa• Arabian • Tennessee Walker• Palomino• Mustang

How did horse get here?

• Actually they were already here!

• Horses started in America and spread to Europe and Asia

• They became extinct and then re-introduced by Columbus on his 2nd voyage

Why does the horse and donkey have the same terminology?

• They are in the same scientific taxonomic family

• Equus

• Ancient Greek word meaning “quickness”

What were the first domesticated horses used for?

• Ridden

• Milk

Horse milk is still drunk today in the Middle East

What did horse domestication help improve?

• The domestication of horses advanced:

Communications Transport Food production Warfare

How long is the gestation of a horse?

• Gestation - carrying of an embryo or fetus inside a female

• 11 months

A horse is fully grown when it is 3-4 years old

We measure the height of horses with sticks and tapes

Wither

How did early horse traders measure horses?

• Early horse traders used their hands

• They would count hand-widths from the ground to the horse’s withers

• 14.2 hands, 14 hands and two incheshuman hands are generally 4 inches wide

What do horses eat?

• Short juicy grass and hay

• Extra high energy foods:obarley, oats, maize, chaff, bran or

processed pony nuts

• Horses have small stomachs and need to eat often

Horse Digestion System • Horses are not ruminant animals

• They have a simple stomach (one or non-ruminate) like humans but can digest cellulose

How old can horses get?

• An average life span for a horse is around 20 -25 years

• Horses’ age can be told by the wearing of the teeth

Can I eat a horse?• Yes!!

• USDA has passed a law making horse slaughter legal again after a 5 year ban

• They were shipped to Mexico and Canada

Exit Slip 1. What was the first domesticated horse

used for?

2. Define gestation?

3. Horses average life span is?

4. What did horse domestication help improve?