Caitlind L. Alexander - Horses: Tame and Wild

HORSES

A LearningIsland.com

15 - Minute Book

Editor: Jennifer Robinson

Pictures by Clipart.com

Smashwords Edition

(c) Copyright 2013 Caitlind L. Alexander. Allrights reserved.

Published by LearningIsland.com. All rightsreserved.

This e-book is licensed for your personalenjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away toother people. If you would like to share this book with anotherperson, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. Ifyou're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was notpurchased for your use only, please purchase your own copy from anyof several online e-book stores. Thank you for respecting the hardwork of this author.

Horses: Tame and Wild / Caitlind L.Alexander

Summary: A brief look at the lives of wildand tame horses.

1. Horse. Juvenile Literature. 2. WildAnimals Juvenile Literature.

Words: 2181

Reading Level: 3.5

Ages 6 to 10

What is a Horse?

There are many different kinds of horses inthe world. Some are short. Some are huge. Some come in one color,and some come in many colors. But they are all beautiful.

All horses have long, thin legs and a biground body. They have a long, curved neck and a big head with largeeyes.

Horses have been a help to man for thousandsof years. In that time, we have changed the horse into the kind ofanimal we want it to be. Man has bred horses for many years.

To breed a horse means to help horses havethe kind of babies we want them to have. Some people wanted a verystrong horse. They would mate the strongest horses they could findwith each other. This meant they would often have a very strongbaby.

These babies would be mated with even biggerhorses until they got the biggest and strongest horse they couldmake. These horses are called Clydesdales. They can reach 72 inches(183 cm) high and they can weigh up to a ton (910 kg). A few malehorses can get even bigger than that!

Some people wanted small horses. They wouldbreed the smallest horses they could find. After many years, theymade a horse that was only the size of a big dog. These are calledminiature horses. They are only about three feet (one metre)tall.

Miniature horses have been around a longtime. In the 1600s, the king in France had tiny horses as pets.This happened about the same time that the pilgrims first came toAmerica.

Some of these tiny horses were meant to bepets, but others were meant to work. A small horse could go downinto a mine and haul out coal or dirt. They could go into placesthat the other horses were too big to go.

Sometimes horses were bred to be fast. Thesehorses were used on the race track. Other horses were bred to be aspecial color or to look or walk a special way. Some were even bredto act a certain way, like being gentle around children.

There are over 300 different kinds of horsesin the world today.

A male horse is called a stallion. A femalehorse is called a mare. A baby horse is called a foal if it isstill drinking its mother's milk. If it is eating grass, it iscalled a yearling, a colt or a filly. The boys are called colts andthe girls are called fillies.

Some people like to call a young horse apony, but horse people do not. To them a pony is a type of smallhorse. A pony is a horse that never gets taller than about 58inches (147 cm), even when it is full grown.

Horses are measured from the bottom of theirfoot (without their shoes) to the spot where the last hair is ontheir mane.

The word "hand" is used to measure a horse.A "hand" is 4 inches (10 cm) tall. That means a horse that is 10hands high is really 40 inches (100 cm) tall.

Most horses are in one of three groups."Hot-blooded" horses are made to be fast. They are often morespirited and harder to handle. "Cold-blooded" horses are oftenslower and more gentle. These horses were made to haul heavy loadsor to do other work.

Then there are horses that are a mix betweenthe hot-blooded and the cold-blooded horses. These are called"warm-blooded" horses. They are fast and strong.

Horses are covered in fur. Their fur helpsto keep them warm when it gets cold at night. A horse's fur worksso well that they can even stay out in the rain or snow for a shorttime. They don't like to, though.

The fur doesn't stop their skin from feelingthings. A horse can feel a fly land on it!

Horses also have a long tail. The top partof the tail is made of bone and muscle. The bottom part is justhair hanging down from the top

Horses use their tail the way we use ourarms and hands. They use them mostly to swat at flies or otherinsects that are bugging them.

They will also use their tail to talk. Whenthey hold their tail down, they are saying that everything is fine.When they hold their tail up, they are saying that they areexcited. They also hold their tail up just to go to thebathroom!

Horses have big eyesthat can turn in their heads. Since there is one eye on each sideof their head, they can see almost all the way around them atonce.

Horses can see verywell. They see better than we can, but they don't see all thecolors that we do.

Horses can also hearvery well. A horse's ear can turn to the front or the back. Thatway they can tell where a sound is coming from.

They also have agood sense of smell.

All of thesethings help to keep horsesalive in the wild.

Horses like to live with other horses. Wildhorses often live in groups called herds. The herd works togetherto help keep all of its members safe. It also helps to raise thebabies and teach them what they need to know.

Most horse herds have one male and severalfemales. They will also have their babies in the herd. When theyrun, the herd will be led by a mare. The stallion will run behindthe herd.

Tame horses also like other horses aroundthem. They like to talk and play with the other horses. If thereare not other horses near it, tame horses will often like to bearound people more.