Massage Benefits For Horses

Muscular System Of The Horse ... Moving a bone results in either flexing or extending a joint. Skeletal muscles are usually arranged in pairs so that they oppose each other (they are "antagonists"), with one flexing the joint (a flexor muscle) and the other extending it (extensor muscle)...

Equine Coat Color ... While most horses remain the same color throughout life, a few, over the course of several years, will develop a different coat color from that with which they were born... Basic coat colors Genetically, all horses start out as either chestnut, called "red" by geneticists, represented by the absence of the extension gene ("e"); or black based on the presence of the extension gene ("E")...

Horse Training ... Today, most horse training is geared toward making horses useful for a variety of recreational and sporting equestrian pursuits... Horses are also trained for specialized jobs from movie stunt work to police and crowd control activities, circus entertainment, and equine-assisted psychotherapy...

Horse Tack ... It is important that the saddle be comfortable for both the rider and the horse as an improperly fitting saddle may create pressure points on the horse's back muscle (Latissimus dorsi) and cause the horse pain and can lead to the horse, rider, or both getting injured. There are many types of saddle, each specially designed for its given task...

Veterinary Medicine ... Veterinary medicine is widely practiced, both with and without professional supervision. Professional care is most often led by a veterinary physician (also known as a vet, veterinary surgeon or veterinarian), but also by paraveterinary workers such as veterinary nurses or technicians...

Gray Wolf ... Though once abundant over much of Eurasia, North Africa and North America, the gray wolf inhabits a reduced portion of its former range due to widespread destruction of its territory, human encroachment, and the resulting human-wolf encounters that sparked broad extirpation. Today, wolves are protected in some areas, hunted for sport in others, or may be subject to population control or extermination as threats to livestock, people, and pets...

Horses In Warfare ... Throughout history, mules and donkeys as well as horses played a crucial role in providing support to armies in the field... Horses were well suited to the warfare tactics of the nomadic cultures from the steppes of Central Asia... Europeans used several types of war horses in the Middle Ages, and the best-known heavy cavalry warrior of the period was the armoured knight...

Horse ... Related to this need to flee from predators in the wild is an unusual trait: horses are able to sleep both standing up and lying down... Horse breeds are loosely divided into three categories based on general temperament: spirited "hot bloods" with speed and endurance; "cold bloods", such as draft horses and some ponies, suitable for slow, heavy work; and "warmbloods", developed from crosses between hot bloods and cold bloods, often focusing on creating breeds for specific riding purposes, particularly in Europe...

Horse Behavior ... Nonetheless, because their physiology is also suited to a number of work- and entertainment-related tasks, humans domesticated horses thousands of years ago, and they have served humans ever since... Through selective breeding, some breeds of horses have been bred to be quite docile, particularly certain large draft horses...

Stable Vices ... Rather than refer to the behavior as abnormal, it has been suggested that it be described as "behavior indicative of an abnormal environment." It was once thought that stable vices may be learned by observing other horses who already have the habit, but studies on the topic to date have failed to establish this as a cause... Box stall designs that keep the horse from reaching its head out prevent harm to other animals, but some horses may attempt to bite a handler when the person enters the stall...

Equine Nutrition ... Horses are non-ruminant herbivores of a type known as a "hindgut fermenter." This means that horses have only one stomach, as do humans... Therefore, unlike ruminants, which digest fiber in plant matter by use of a multichambered stomach, horses use microbial fermentation in a part of the digestive system known as the cecum (or caecum) to break down the cellulose... In practical terms, horses prefer to eat small amounts of food steadily throughout the day, as they do in nature when grazing on pasture...

Horse Markings ... On a gray horse, markings visible at birth may become hidden as the horse turns white with age, but markings can still be determined by trimming the horse's hair closely, then wetting down the coat to see where there is pink skin and black skin under the hair. Types of white markings Facial markings Facial markings are usually described by shape and location...

Canter ... However, just as people find it easier to write with one hand or the other, most horses have a "better side", on which they find it easier to lead at a canter...

Horse Grooming ... Dandy brushes can usually be used on the legs, but many horses object to a stiff brush being used on the head... Mane brush or comb: Horses with short, pulled manes have their manes combed with a wide-toothed plastic or metal comb... Although many horses are quite healthy without daily brushing, lack of hoofcare can result in various problems, which if unattended, can result in short or long-term soundness issues for the horse...

Trot (horse Gait) ... From the standpoint of the balance of the horse, the trot is a very stable gait, and the horse need not make major balancing motions with its head and neck. This is a common gait that the horse is worked in for dressage, due to its many variations...

Circulatory System Of The Horse ... Yellowish: a bright yellow tinge may occur if the horse has high levels of beta-carotene in his diet, such as horses that eat a good deal of alfalfa hay... The "X factor" The X factor is a gene found on the x-chromosome of horses that causes a larger than average heart...

List Of Horse Breeds ... Horse breeds Horses are members of Equus ferus caballus that generally mature to be 14.2 hands (58 inches (150 cm)) or taller, but many breed registries do accept animals under this height and classify them as "horses," as horse characteristics include factors other than height... A–C Abaco Barb, see Barb horse Abtenauer Abyssinian horse Aegidienberger Akhal-Teke Albanian horse Altai horse Altèr Real, see Lusitano American Cream Draft American Indian Horse American Paint Horse American Quarter Horse American Saddlebred American Warmblood Andalusian horse some bloodlines also called Pura Raza Española (PRE) or Pure Spanish-bred Andravida horse Anglo-Arabian Anglo-Arabo-Sardo, see Sardinian Anglo-Arab Anglo-Kabarda Appaloosa "Appendix," see American Quarter Horse AraAppaloosa, also called Ara-Appaloosa, Arappaloosa or Araloosa Arabian horse Ardennes horse, or Ardennais Arenberg-Nordkirchen Argentine Criollo, see Criollo...

Skeletal System Of The Horse ... Ligaments of the upper body include: Nuchal and supraspinous ligaments: the nuchal ligament attaches to the dorsal surface of the cervical vertebrae. Its dorsal section extends from the occipital protuberance of the skull (the poll) to the withers, then narrows to become the supraspinous ligament...

Respiratory System Of The Horse ... The nasal passages contain two conchae on either side, which help to increase the surface area to which the air is exposed. Additionally, the sinuses within the skull are able to drain through the nasal passage...

Feral Horse ... Feral horse herds, like those of wild horses, are usually made up of small bands led by a dominant mare, containing additional mares, their foals, and immature horses of both sexes... However, in a given closed ecosystem such as the isolated refuges in which most feral horses live today, to maintain genetic diversity the minimum size for a sustainable free-roaming horse or burro population is 150-200 animals... Feral horse populations Horses which live in an untamed state but have ancestors who have been domesticated are not true "wild" horses; they are feral horses...

Equine Coat Color Genetics ... Chestnut, black, and bay are considered the three "base" colors that all remaining coat color genes act upon. There are a number of dilution genes that lighten these three colors in a variety of ways, sometimes affecting skin and eyes as well as hair coat...