TheHorseInfoPage

Horseoutline.bmp The Horse Kingdom: Animalia Phylum: Chordata Class: Mammalia Order: Perissodactyla Family: Equidae Genus: Equus Species: E. caballus the offspring of horses, either male or female, up to one year old, are called foals male offspring, up to four years old, or until gelded female offspring, up to four years old, or until the first breeding mature female horse over four years of age, or younger if bred mature female horse that has never given birth, barren male horse, that has not been castrated (gelded) male horse of any age that has been castrated one year old up to two years old a foal that has been weaned - no longer has access to its mother’s milk (usually at about four to six months of age) - up to 1 year old any horse, any sex, over 9 or 10 years old Foal- Colt- Filly- Mare- Yeld Mare- Stallion- Gelding- Yearling- Weanling- Aged- Face Markings horsefacemarking.jpg Leg Markings Hair The horse's coat is short except for long hair called feather on the legs of some breeds. Horses kept outdoors or left unblanketed grow thick winter coats that are shed in spring. The long, coarse mane and tail are sometimes cut, clipped off, or thinned. Legs Horses have long legs with strong muscles and tendons. The forelegs carry 60 to 65 per cent of the body weight and absorb jolts, while the hind legs provide thrust. The hoof corresponds to the nail of a human's middle toe or finger; side toes have disappeared as such through millions of years of evolution. Members of the horse family are the only animals that step on only one toe of each foot. Black Black coat, mane, and tail. Brown, or Seal Brown Black coat with brown areas around the muzzle and the eyes, and the insides of the legs. Bay Brown shades, usually red- toned; black mane, tail, and lower legs. Chestnut, or Sorrel Brown shades, often yellow-toned; mane and tail the same color as the coat or lighter. Palomino Cream to dark gold; flaxen mane and tail; usually with white markings on face and lower legs. Colors White Pure white from birth (unlike a gray, which turns white with age); pink skin and blue or brown eyes. White horses are often called albinos. (They are not, however, true albinos—that is, albinos in the biological sense— because their eyes do not lack pigmentation.) The most common mixed colors and color patterns are: Gray Black skin, with black hair at birth; white hair gradually displacing the black as the horse ages. A dapple gray has just enough white hair to look marbled. Dun, or Buckskin Grayish yellow; black mane and tail, and usually a black stripe down the back; often with other black markings. Roan Uniform mixture of white and colored hairs. A strawberry roan has a mixture of white and chestnut hairs; a blue roan, white and black. Pinto or Paint White with irregular areas of color. If these areas are black, the horse is called piebald; if they are any other color, the horse is skewbald. Appaloosa Mottled black and white skin; white hair dotted with dark spots over part or all of the body. This color pattern is characteristic of the Appaloosa breed and of the Pony of the Americas. horselegmarkings.jpg horse's-eye.jpg andreas-horses-026-2.jpg horse1.bmp Horse