11 Things You Probably Didn’t Know About Horses
By M. C. Oliver & with the help of Tori Huber (she actually told me 9 out of 11 of these facts)
Some of these might be a little weird but from what I’ve herd:
1. Horses are rather competitive creatures. Although this competitiveness is more focused on herd dynamics rather than actually winning.
2. Most horses need a companion.
3. The oldest horse 62 (Tori is pretty sure his name was Old Billy).
4. Horses have one less bone than humans - 205
5. Their depth perception is very poor. Tori has a horse who is afraid of puddles (a common horse thing) because to them it looks like a giant hole.
6. Horses sleep standing up and laying down. According to Britannica, “It takes a bit of work for horses to get up, which makes them vulnerable to attacks by predators. To protect themselves, horses instead doze while standing. They’re able to do this through the stay apparatus, a special system of tendons and ligaments that enables a horse to lock the major joints in its legs. The horse can then relax and nap without worrying about falling. When horses need deep sleep, however, they lie down,” (see full citation below).
7. Males have more teeth than females. Males have 40 teeth while females only have 36.
8. In a herd, there’s always a leader.
9. According to Denise Cummins (and a movie I watched), she says, “The leader of the herd among wild horses is the mare with the most common sense, the one who inspires trust in her herd members.” Although, there are a lot of times the leader is a bully.
10. Horses can be cloned - although it’s very unhealthy.
11. They can only breathe through their nose.
12. Bonus fact! Did you know horses can’t throw up? According to the Equine Institute, “Horses cannot throw up due to their unique physiological traits. Specifically, the structure of a horse's digestive system plays a crucial role in prohibiting the act of vomiting. One key feature, the esophageal sphincter, is a strong muscular valve that tightly seals the stomach's entrance from the esophagus. Its strength and the angle at which the esophagus connects to the stomach make it virtually impossible for horses to vomit.”
Isn’t God so clever? Thank you for reading!
Works Cited:
Hamer, Stacy. “Can Horses Throw up? Understanding Equine Digestive Health.” The Equine Institute, April 26, 2024. https://equineinstitute.org/blogs/horse-care-tips/can-horses-throw-up-understanding-equine-digestive-health.
Tikkanen, Amy. "Why Do Horses Sleep Standing Up?". Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Oct. 2019, https://www.britannica.com/story/why-do-horses-sleep-standing-up. Accessed 12 June 2025.
