December 13th: National Day of the Horse

In the USA, horses are celebrated today in the National Day of the Horse. 10 things you might not know about horses:

1. Horses have the largest eyes of any land mammal, and they have three eyelids. They have good eyesight, but cannot focus their eyes they way humans do. They use the lower parts of their retina to look at distant objects and the upper parts to look at things up close. So the key to what a horse is looking at is the angle at which it is holding its head.
2. Horses have an excellent sense of smell. When you see a horse curl its upper lip and bare its teeth, it is not smiling or laughing, but employing something called a flehmen response. Basically, it is smelling you. It will be able to detect whether you are nervous around it.
3. They also have excellent memories - better than that of an Elephant. They will remember people who treat them kindly and resume friendship with these people after years of separation. They will also remember places where they had an unpleasant experience and will become nervous if taken to those places again. They can also learn how to untie themselves, open stable doors and grain bins, and once they've learned to do these things, they never forget.
4. The oldest horse on record was called Old Billy and he died in 1822 at the age of 62. Most horses love for 25-30 years.
5. Most wild horses are not wild, but domesticated horses which went feral at some stage. The only true wild horse is the Asian Wild Horse. Horses are not native to North America or Australia and they didn't exist in those places until settlers brought them.
6. Arabian horses have one fewer vertebrae and one less rib than other breeds. Legend has it that the Arabian horse was created by Allah, ‘out of a handful of the southern wind‘.
7. Horses can't burp, vomit or breathe through their mouths, and they do not have a gall bladder.
8. The name 'Philip,' and the feminine variant, 'Philippa,' mean 'lover of horses.'
9. There are many traditions, superstitions and even laws about the naming of horses. Names may be connected with a horse's pedigree, which is why some racehorse names seem rather odd. Calling a horse "Winner" is a no-no because superstition dictates that if you do, that horse will never win, and naming them after family members can cause problems if the horse does not turn into a winner. The Jockey Club of Louisville limits name length to 18 characters; forbids names that are obscene, racist, or too similar to actively competing horses; and does not allow names that are entirely made of numbers. If a horse gets famous enough, its name might be pulled from use altogether.
10. If you see a horse with a red ribbon tied to its tail, approach with caution, as this is a sign to indicate that this horse kicks.