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How good are a Horses Senses?

A horse has genetically and physically superior senses than those of human beings, as they are able to see better during the day and the night than a human, and have the largest eye of any of the land mammals, the side positioning of the eyes gives the horse a wide field of vision being at nearly 350 degrees. They are not color blind and they can see differences in major color changes, however they may have a problem between greens browns and grays. The horse has a good sense of hearing, as its ear can rotate a full 360 degrees, and their sense of smell is better than a humans (albeit not their strongest and best sense). They rely heavily on what they see and hear, so in some places horses are forced to wear blinders to keep them from being spooked. Their sense of balance is highly developed and hones to being extremely effective as their cerebellum is a highly advanced part of their brain (much more so than man’s, however our development was in the cerebrum, and thus makes our minds much more advanced as far as conative thought and problem solving go), and they are very acutely aware of terrain, along with placement of their feet at any one location at any time.

Their sense of touch is very well developed, and they can feel things that few people seem to be able to feel - they can feel even the lightest mosquito that lands on them, before it attempts to bite - and if it is in range of their tail they will swat at it, their sense of taste is keenly more developed than our own feeble human taste buds could imagine, and it has developed this way so that they can detect poisonous or spoiled foods easily - which they will immediately reject and spit out. In addition to having a great sense of taste, their lips are prehensile, meaning they can sort out small grains they do not want, while selecting the ones they do want to eat with great accuracy.
Mules are great animals and very friendly, but if you are looking for a pet friend, we believe that dogs are one of the best for your home.

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What are Stable Vices?

Stable Vices are a way of saying “the horse has a very bad habit” although the vice may be  nothing more than trivial in nature and easy to cure with more exercise.  However, many of them can become deeply psychologically scarring if not corrected early.  Stable Vices arise from insufficient exercise and being confined, something a horse is not naturally adapted to.  Vices can and will develop out of boredom, hunger, excess energy, isolation (loneliness), and sometimes can be learned by watching other horses or equines around them.  There can be dire health consequences for a horse if they are not addressed.  Most stable vices occur in horses who are kept in box stalls full time, whereas pasture horses rarely - if ever - develop bad habits on their own.  Horses who have vices may not be cured by having more room or pasture time, even if it is full time, and may need to be rehabilitated.  Vices can also return if a horse is put back in box stables.

The vices that cause the most problems are wood chewing, which can be from hunger or boredom, and may result in a further detrimental vice if left untreated or rehabilitated - cribbing.  Cribbing is when a horse grabs something with its teeth, arches its neck, and suck in air violently, needless to say this is harmful for the mouth and teeth and can also lead to colic and subsequent death.  When a horse is rocking back and forth in a repetitive fashion it is called Weaving, and happens to nervous horses or horses that don’t get out enough, and can lead to lameness eventually - along with the counterpart habit called circling, where a horse walks around in a circle and causes the same bad wear and tear on the hooves.  Some horses can get violent, and resort to wall kicking to relieve boredom - this can hurt the horse and damage the barn, and other horses can learn it from a horse who has this stable vice.  Biting is also one of the more dangerous habits, as the horse may bite people who pass by. Finally the horse may try to dig or paw with its front feet, and this is called pawing, it can lead to severe degradation of the hooves, lameness, and injury to tendons.

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What is a Kiang?

The Kiang is known as Equus Kiang, and is a part of the Equus genus, and they are native to the Tibetan Plateau, where they live at 4-7,000 meters elevation. They are the largest of all the wild asses and at one point were thought to be a subspecies of the Onager - but with recent molecular and genetic study have found to be their own species.  It has a convex nose, a large head, an upright mane, and it is white with brown.  There are three subspecies of the Kiang and are distributed in different areas, and have geographically distinct adaptations.  The eastern Kiang is the largest subspecies, the southern Kiang is the smallest, and the eastern are in the middle with a darker coat.  The entire species is considered to be un-threatened by man thus far, as its conservation status is “Least Concern” likely to the habitats it lives in and has adapted to - where human involvement is sparse and contact is intermittent due to the elevations they live at.

They live in herds and never scatter themselves, and are usually led by an old mare.  They are a synchronized species as they seem to do everything at the exact same time and on time, walking single file, eating and drinking, along with turning at the same time.  They do not groom each other and males usually are a solitary roamer, following packs only in mating seasons.  An unusual quality about the Kiang is that they are very good at swimming.  There inly predator is the wolf, and they usually are in maternal herds of five to four hundred, males are mostly solitary unless they band together in winter in what are called bachelor herds, and it is unusual to see more than ten in one of these herds.

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What are the differences between Donkeys and Mules?

Many people question as to what the difference between a donkey and mule is. The differences are mainly physical, and can easily be seen from those who know what to look for.

When concerning species, the donkey itself is a species. The mule, however, is a direct result from a male donkey (jack) and female horse (mare) mating. Interestingly enough, mules can not reproduce, since they are in fact sterile. Donkeys, on the other hand, can reproduce at will.

As far as physical differences go, mules are usually slighter larger than donkeys. This makes sense, because mules are a result of a horse and donkey mating, and the mule inherits genes from both animals, including the horse’s height. Also, the donkey has a distinct bray, while the mule will have a combination between a whinny and a donkey bray.

As far as usage goes, mules can be used in any application that horses can. From sports, harnesses, cutting, or roping, the mule can do many things the donkey can not. Since the mule is a hybrid, it gets traits from the donkey and can carry more weight than a horse, and has much more stamina. Another interesting feature that mules have is their ability to jump- up to a few feet from standing still in place, much more than a horse could do.

Even though mules have much more uses than donkeys, the downfall is that they can not reproduce as a result from being sterile. The American Donkey and Mule Society claims donkeys outnumber mules about 10 to 1.

Even with all of these differences, one can easily mistake a mule and a donkey. With this guided knowledge, you should be able to now tell a donkey apart from a mule, which can prove very useful in many situations.

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