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. 🐎

@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 😟

Mine are all ex racers. A lot of people rescue them and school them for dressage/jumping etc ☺️ Well that was my intention, they’re the laziest buggars ever so we’re happy just hacking.

Settles in. I love a horse thread.

Like a barrel atop four pogo sticks. I saw a really interesting documentary about it a few months ago - where the balance of strength & speed is, why different four legged animals are built so differently - what if a cow could run as fast as a horse.
I can't recall the name so sadly you will just have to take my word for it..!

@k1233

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

Yes!!

Horses are ridiculous. They’re a terrible design really.

They can’t be sick, they carry all that weight on proportionally tiny legs, some get very ill eating the very food they were designed to eat.

Their teeth grow constantly - one of mine has an extra tooth and as there’s nothing above it to keep it ground down, it has to be rasped every 3 months.

One managed to cast themselves in their own stable - rolled too close to the wall and then got stuck. Luckily she stayed calm and we were able to get her back over but FFS 🤦‍♀️

Both mine will hooley around their field at 100 miles an hour and I’m always panicking they’re going to do themselves an injury - I just don’t look anymore

More possibly unexpected facts if you don't know any horses.

Horses are much quieter than films and TV would make you think. Not into random whinnying and snorting.

Their noses feel like velvet. They also have wobbly squishable chins.

They fart a LOT and very often directly at people. On purpose.

The horse and the tortoise -

They fart a LOT and very often directly at people. On purpose

yes!!

They also fill their mouths up with water and then deliberately squirt it at you

My old lady finds it hilarious to wipe her nose around her food bowl and then wipe it on your shoulder and face.

They also seem to have surprisingly good aim when shitting - my oldie can also shit directly into her water drinker - I especially love it when she does that.

I read that they don't forget people or other horses that they love. This made me a bit sad as I know that they need to be moved around and sold on

@AndthreeTomsaredancing

I read that they don't forget people or other horses that they love. This made me a bit sad as I know that they need to be moved around and sold on

They don’t forget and do bond and they also don’t necessarily get moved on , I’ve owned horses for 40+ years and never sold anything . I will also add that they are by far the best animal to have a conversation with , they listen to all your problems and can get you through the darkest of times with their amazing listening skills .

@Hollyhocksarenotmessy

More possibly unexpected facts if you don't know any horses.

Horses are much quieter than films and TV would make you think. Not into random whinnying and snorting.

Their noses feel like velvet. They also have wobbly squishable chins.

They fart a LOT and very often directly at people. On purpose.

I love it when they do absurdly long farts that just go on and on and on, it's so funny because they are completely deadpan like "well that can't possibly be me farting because as you can see, I am busy grazing"

Being in Canada, I come across Elk quite a lot. But not Moose - I’ve been here ten years and only seen three. I have seen photos of how much damage a moose can do to a car. Drivers are often killed. They’re so big and tall - if you’re sat in a regular saloon car you’ll just see legs.

The local Elk herd walked through the wooded area behind my house the other day. If this one had got any closer they’d have joined me for coffee!

They’re really big!

All that weight on skinny and relatively weak front legs is why competing horses are so prone to breaking legs, especially when racing. Thoroughbreds are bred to have even lighter bones and then jump at speeds their legs can often not handle.

And there is no better feeling than a velvety horse nose!

Mine was particularly badly designed... breeder crossed a small Irish sports horse with a cob x tb show jumper.. he was a 16.3 middle to heavyweight build on teeny tiny spindly TB legs... he wore cob size boots and had less than 9" of bone in front... the cross was not repeated and he did not make a great age before his legs gave out

@Sarahlou63

You'll be blown away when I tell you that their hooves are actually their fingernails!

I thought that was common knowledge - I think what's more shocking is that horses legs are similar to just fingers below the knee!!

I was watching the dancing horses today and got to thinking. What they do in dressage isn't " normal" for a horse ( mind you, to my mind, running 100 metres in in ten seconds isn't normal to me). If they could think, do you wonder if they might think something like " I've got no idea why they want me to do this, it's fucking daft, if you ask me. But they seem to like it, and they do feed me well, so ok, I'll do it again. "

I was watching the dressage today too.

It’s amazing what they can teach those horses to do. But it looks very silly. I wonder if they feel a bit embarrassed? 🤔

@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 😟

No, or not usually. The racing industry is a bit of an outlier in that they breed thousands of horses each year and there's not enough homes for them once they're done racing.

A sport horse also generally has a much longer career unlike a racehorse who can be done by four or five.

@user1471453601

I was watching the dancing horses today and got to thinking. What they do in dressage isn't " normal" for a horse ( mind you, to my mind, running 100 metres in in ten seconds isn't normal to me). If they could think, do you wonder if they might think something like " I've got no idea why they want me to do this, it's fucking daft, if you ask me. But they seem to like it, and they do feed me well, so ok, I'll do it again. "

It's all natural movements, just refined. Watch any horse at liberty and you'll see them showing off doing much the same.

It's all natural movements, just refined. Watch any horse at liberty and you'll see them showing off doing much the same.

Mine's a damn sight better at flying changes IN the field than out of it, for sure.

Most of the movements are about a conservation and release of energy, and are absolutely found in their natural movement. It's putting them together and setting them to music that's not natural, but mine knows there's treats involved so he's pretty motivated!

@TheNightWatch
My friend bought an ex-racehorse mare literally the other day. She will be re-trained for riding, and they may breed from her in future as her pedigree is quite good.

I think it helps that all the corners have a leg. I have a table of similar construction and it seems quite sturdy.

[quote SomethingNastyInTheBallPool]Oh my god. I had no idea.

www.horseandhound.co.uk/features/cleaning-sheaths-the-bean-queen-665653[/quote]
I came here innocently looking for fancy horse dancing and left enlightened by horse smegma buildup [boak]

Love a horse thread 😂 they definitely do a lot of dressagey moves in the field compared with what they do with somebody sitting on them, but in my case that's quite a lot to do with the ineptitude of the person sitting on them 😂
I don't think anyone has mentioned their disproportionate reactions to scary things too- bin lorry, no worries, a wild rabbit (that doesn't bother them in the field) absolutely terrifying.

Ugh, that photo of the foal foot is disgusting! Is that real? How do they stand up when they have alien squid tentacles protruding like that?

I love a wobbly horse chin.