To wonder how the hell horses stand up

[mayaknew]

Just stuck the dressage on.

How the hell are horses able to hold all that weight on those skinny wee ankles.

They look like they defy the laws of physics. 🐎

Sorry for the jumping pic- that got put on by mistake... 😳

I love the horse dancing.

How do those massive moose and elk keep their bodies and heads up with those huge antlers. Nature is weird.

Whatever you do, don't google cleaning a horse's sheath

@Sarahlou63 I obviously did that.
And am eating.

@k1233

Horses - 500kg butterflies So insanely delicate for such a large animal. They can't vomit, so that's a bit of an issue.

That's insane! Rabbits can't vomit either, and eat similar food to horses, and you often see them chilling in fields together...

Conclusion- horses MAY JUST BE giant rabbits

@Sarahlou63

Whatever you do, don't google cleaning a horse's sheath

I dont even know what a horses sheath is 😳 do I want to know?

And they have to have an equine podiatrist on a regular basis. Farriers make loads lol

My horse has a medical condition the means he needs his sheath cleaned weekly. We call it Saturday de-smegging

@k1233

Horses - 500kg butterflies So insanely delicate for such a large animal. They can't vomit, so that's a bit of an issue.

That’s the thing, they look like such big strong beasts that people dint realise all the things that can go wrong Especially when you think it’s fun to feed a random horse you come across - it’s not for the owner!!

@mayaknew - a horse's sheath is on its willy.

[quote iklboo]@mayaknew - a horse's sheath is on its willy. [/quote]
Ahhhhh!!!! Now I feel stupid 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Delicate bloody creatures. I’ve heard of 2 that literally stood up and broke a leg recently. This often means they’re euthanised, as was the case for these 2.

The not able to be sick is awful, my poor horse needed tubing-both ends-recently due to colic/a bloc. I’m very lucky he’s alive.

Yeah, please feed random horses! It can, as I’m sure people have heard, literally kill them.

Jeeeeez I know nothing about horses, and I've now just watched a Youtube vid of a vair naicely spoken American woman cleaning her horse's willy and narrating EXACTLY how you go about it.
I DID NOT KNOW PEOPLE HAD TO DO THIS.
Thank you thread. I feel a bit sick now.

www.bing.com/videos/search?q=cleaning+a+horse%27s+sheath&docid=608018140604927645&mid=C46A656D67A75CE47693C46A656D67A75CE47693&view=detail&FORM=VIRE

Horses can pick their way down really steep rocky slopes, very delicately. They're ridiculously agile.

God I watched that horrific Panorama programme last week about what happens to race horses when they stop winning andI cant stop thinking about it and wonder if the dressage horses have the same fate 😟

Many years ago I read that a horse jumping eg the Grand National, the pressure on their legs landing was the same as an adult human's forearms being used for the same thing with the weight of a horse attached. Doesn't bear thinking about and it is for this reason I think horse racing is cruel.

@MrsMoastyToasty, from what I've read human babies are born so useless because they're born kind of before they're ready. As we have advanced as a species, and our skulls have grown, our babies need to be born useless so that we can birth them otherwise we wouldn't fit them out. The size of our pelvis limits the maximum gestation of our babies and natural selection limits the size of our pelvis in favour of upright movement, whislt also favouring bigger brains.

Very off topic but it's one area that I find interesting.

I agree though that horses are pretty ridiculous. And similar to sheep and chickens in that they die very easily and tend to have little will to live.

@Apocalyptichorsewoman

And they need the horse dentist - this is my horse having his teeth rasped down. He isn't tied up - the rope is just slung over his shoulder...

Aw you're lucky, my horse needs sedated to get his teeth done. He's a complete idiot sometimes.

Just had to chuckle in remembering how often mine didn't stay on her feet. She forgot I was on her back once or twice and tried to roll with me on her back - once in a pond - that was fun! I learned to jump clear!

Horse ballet like ballerinas on pointe

There’s a business near me called something like the Bean Clean Machine. Some of the sheath beans are huge!

@TheNightWatch

God I watched that horrific Panorama programme last week about what happens to race horses when they stop winning andI cant stop thinking about it and wonder if the dressage horses have the same fate 😟

They don't. They are generally quite pampered right through the end of their days. If they won a great deal, their offspring are worth a lot. If they didn't quite have the temperament or agility to make it at the higher levels, they usually wind up with competitors coming up the ranks. Many of them become schoolmasters and are prized partners in lesson programmes.

Racehorses don't hold the same value, probably due to the super specific nature of the sport. Children can participate in dressage and it's possible to train and compete almost anywhere; not so for racing.

@TheNightWatch

God I watched that horrific Panorama programme last week about what happens to race horses when they stop winning andI cant stop thinking about it and wonder if the dressage horses have the same fate 😟

As a general rule no.

Horses capable of Olympic level dressage are incredibly rare - which makes them valuable and generally ensures they have a career post competition - mares and stallions can be bred, geldings can be used as schoolmasters to teach others and generally just love life.

The racehorse model is built on breeding a lot and maybe 1 in 1000 actually makes money (that numbers actually even higher for dressage but their are more people willing to run a mid-low level dressage horse as hobby than there is racehorses!)

Another factor is that it takes years to make a dressage horse, they’ve had a long and useful career and by the time they’re done you might only have 5-10 years left to take care of them before they die during which they can still make money from breeding/schooling.

Racehorses in comparison are largely done by 4 and then your faced with keeping a depreciating asset for another 25 years.

It’s not right, but I hope it helps explain.

Oh my god. I had no idea.

www.horseandhound.co.uk/features/cleaning-sheaths-the-bean-queen-665653