Do horses snore?

Yes. Many horses snore on the occasions (usually every other day for about 40 minutes) that they lie down to sleep, probably because lying down puts some pressure on the respiratory system. (Horses do need to lie down to dream).

How many wild horses are there in America?

Trick question: The answer is none.

The American Mustang is not a wild animal. All of the "wild" horses in America are, in fact, feral horses. (The Chincoteague and Assateague ponies are even less wild, they're a managed herd).

Although horses evolved in north America, they became extinct here after crossing the land bridge into Asia, where they were domesticated. Every horse in North and South America is descended from animals brought over by European settlers. Some of them got free, and because the "Mustangs" were useful as remounts, they were allowed to live.

They are now semi-managed herds, with numbers controlled and select animals brought in and trained as working animals. They are not, however, "wild."

Part of a Mustang breeding herd in Arizona. Image source John Harwood via Wikimedia Commons.

Can horses receive blood transfusions?

Yup. Equine blood and plasma are sometimes transfused. Horses have 7 different blood types - more types than humans - and each type also has factors, and blood typing is often used in breeding. There are more than 400,000 different blood type and factor combinations in horses, which means blood can never really be completely matched, so blood transfusions in horses are risky. However, horses are also more tolerant of mis-matches, and a horse that has never received a blood transfusion generally does not react to even the most incompatible blood. This means that in an emergency it's often safe to give a horse whatever blood you have on hand - it's not as good as better matched blood, but it can save the horse's life. And there are equine universal donors too.

There are, however, no blood banks for horses. Horse blood can only be stored for about a month, and of course, a horse needs rather a lot of blood. So, donor blood is stored on the hoof - either in specific blood donor herds (generally permanently lame animals donated by their owners for the purpose) or through a blood donor registry much like with humans. The vet might also test other horses owned by the owner of the sick or injured horse.

Why do trainers sometimes lower the pitch of their voice?

When working with horses, you might sometimes hear the trainer intentionally lower the pitch of hers or her voice. Why do we do this?

It's the "mommy" voice. A mare lowers the pitch of her vocalizations when communicating with her foal. So, a vocalization at a lower pitch, especially one obviously lower than the person's "normal" voice can have a greater impact on a horse and elicit a better response.

What kind of trees should you plant in a paddock?

I mentioned in a previous post that acorns are quite poisonous to horses. There are quite a few other trees which are - plums, peaches, cherries, etc, as well as scarlet maple and sycamore maple.

What kind of trees do we plant around horses? Obviously, it depends on the location, but willows make good shade trees. Weeping willows are particularly good because the trailing branches are kind of fun for animals to play with and around. Ash trees are another good choice, as are magnolias. Birch and lime are popular in England.

Why do horses yawn?

Not for the same reasons we do! Humans yawn to get a sudden intake of fresh air, but horses do not breathe through their mouths.

So, why do they do it? There are several reasons.

One is just to stretch their jaw muscles, which is why some horses yawn when unbridled. Horses may also yawn when their "arousal state changes" - which is a fancy way of saying when they first wake up. This might also be more a stretch than anything else.

Yawning can also be a sign of abdominal pain, and a horse that suddenly starts yawning a lot should be checked for colic.

How many eyelids do horses have?

Three. Like a number of other animals, horses have nictitating membranes, a third eyelid which is transparent and can protect the eye while still allowing some visibility. This means horses can blink without actually visibly blinking. It helps protect a horse's very large eyes from trauma. Unfortunately, horses are very prone to cancer of the third eyelid, which can result in needing to remove it.