Equine Production and Health Management

Equine Production and Health Management

• A broodmare is a female horse used for breeding purposes.
• A colt is a young male horse, usually up to the age of three years.
• Equitation refers to horsemanship, the art of riding on horseback.
• A filly is a young female horse, usually up to the age of three years old.
• A foal is a young horse of either gender, below one year of age.
• A gelding is a horse that has been castrated while young.

Domestification

• Domestication is changing the natural behavior of an animal to suit human needs.
• Horses were first domesticated around 50,000 years ago, initially for food, and later for labor around 2,000 BCE in Mesopotamia.
• Horses replaced asses and oxen in pulling chariots due to their speed and strength.
• The use of horses in war led to the serious study of equitation.

Hippology and War

• Hippology is the study of horses, including their behavior, breeding, and training.
• The use of horses in war led to the development of mounted cavalry and the study of equitation.

Domestication and Early Use

• The nose ring was replaced by the snaffle bit, invented by the Romans around 1500 BCE.
• Stirrups and saddles were still unknown at this time, with riders relying on their legs and balance to stay mounted.
• As chariotry declined around 700 BCE, riding skills improved, and mounted patrols increased, leading to the development of horsemanship.

Spread of Horses

• Horses were taken to foreign countries by the Roman military, and the Arabs began to study horsemanship.
• Horses were first brought to the Americas by Columbus in the 1500s, leading to the development of new breeds for specialized needs.

Horses in the Southeast US

• Large plantations in the southeast US created a need for saddle horses, leading to the rise of horse racing as a popular sport.
• The "Golden Age of the Horse" spanned from the 1890s to the early 20th century, with a record high of nearly 21.5 million horses in the US in 1915.

The Horseless Carriage

• Henry Ford's production of affordable automobiles in 1908 led to the age of mechanization, decreasing the need for horses as a means of transportation.

Replacing the Horses

• By the 1950s, the number of automobiles and tractors surpassed the number of horses, with horse numbers reaching an all-time low of 3.1 million in 1960.

The Horse Today

• Today, most horses are light horse breeds popular for pleasure riding and recreation, with Texas, Oklahoma, and California having the highest horse populations.

The Future of the Horse

• Horse populations are rebounding as they become more popular for recreational riding, with the need for horses for recreation and sport driving the future of the horse industry.