24 Horse Facts For Kids

1. The horse is a hoofed, one-toed mammal that is a member of the Equidae family.
2. Horses were domesticated by humans around 6,000 years in Eurasia (Europe and Asia).
3. Horses were first domesticated for their meat and milk and later as working animals.
4. Horses can be found worldwide in any location that has been settled by humans.
5. There are more than 58 million horses living worldwide.
6. Horses are herbivorous, which means they only eat plant material.
7. Horses are browsing herbivores who have adapted to foraging on grasses and other plants.
8. There are around 784 different horse breeds.
9. Horse breeds are vaguely divided into three different categories: hot bloods, warm bloods, and cold bloods.
10. A hot-blooded horse breed is bred for speed, stamina, and endurance.
11. A warm-blooded horse breed is bred to combine hot-blooded and cold-blooded breeds for specific riding purposes.
12. A cold-blooded horse breed is bred to be a working animal.
13. A male horse is called a stallion, a female horse is called a mare, and a juvenile horse is called a foal.
14. Horse breeds come in various sizes, with the smallest breeds under 30 inches and the biggest breeds over 60 inches
15. The most popular horse breed found worldwide is the American quarter horse.
16. The smallest horse breed in the world is the Falabella horse with an average height of 27.9 inches.
17. The largest horse breed in the world is the Shire horse with an average height of 70 inches.
18. The average horse breed can walk between 5 and 8 miles per hour.
19. The average horse breed can run between 25 and 30 miles per hour.
20. The fastest horse breed is the thoroughbred with an average running speed between 30 and 35 miles per hour.
21. The fastest recorded thoroughbred racehorse was Winning Brew at 43.97 miles per hour on May 14th, 2008.
22. The average lifespan for all horse breeds is between 25 and 30 years.
23. The horse with the longest lifespan was Old Billy, with the most accurate age estimate at 62 years old when he died.
24. A horse’s age can be estimated by examining his teeth.

Horse Pictures

If a picture is worth a thousand words, then the below images will be helpful for your research on horses. Below are six pictures of various horse species. These pictures should help you better understand the different types of horse breeds found around the world.

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