Horse Facts for Kids
Equus caballus · EK-wus kuh-BAL-us
A big, strong animal that gallops, carries riders and pulls carts.
- 🏃 20 to 30 mph32 to 48 km/h1
- ⚖️ 701 to 1,000 lb318 to 454 kg2
- 📏 4.3 to 5 ft1.3 to 1.5 m2 tall
- 🎂 30 years30 years3
- 🍽️ plants
- Not on the Red List (Not assessed)
A horse is big and strong. It eats grass and hay. It can walk, trot and gallop on its hooves.
A horse stands on one big toe on each foot, covered by a hard hoof. Its eyes are on the sides of its head, so it can see almost all the way around. Horses can doze standing up, because their legs lock in place.
People have ridden horses and used them to pull carts and ploughs for a very long time. The wild horses of the American West, and of islands like Assateague, come from horses that got loose from people long ago. Horses live in groups called herds and talk with their ears, tails and soft snorts. A horse's teeth keep growing all its life as grass wears them down.
How big is a horse?
Horse in numbers
| Length | no checked number yet |
|---|---|
| Height at the shoulder | 4.3 to 5 ft1.3 to 1.5 m2at the shoulder; most wild horses of the American West: 13 to 15 hands |
| Weight | 701 to 1,000 lb318 to 454 kg2most wild horses of the American West: 700 to 1,000 pounds |
| Top speed (running) | 20 to 30 mph32 to 48 km/h1a full gallop: about 20 to 30 miles per hour |
| How long it lives | 30 years30 years3most horses live up to |
| What it eats | grass and hay |
| Where it lives | farms and ranches, and wild herds in the American West and on islands like Assateague |
| What kind | Mammals |
| Is it in danger? | Not on the Red List (Not assessed) |
A number we couldn’t find on a page we trust says so, instead of guessing.
Wow!
- A horse can doze standing up.
- Each foot is one big toe with a hard hoof.
- Its eyes see almost all the way around it.
Compare the horse
Friends and neighbours
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DogThree questions
Books about the horse, free at the library
Ask a grown-up to tap the button: it shows where to borrow a book about the horse for free.
Where these numbers come from
- USDA Forest Service, a trail guide for horses (full gallop), checked 31 October 2026.
- Bureau of Land Management, about wild horses and burros, checked 31 October 2026.
- National Park Service, Pipe Spring: horses, checked 31 October 2026.
- Wikidata, Horse (Q726), checked 30 October 2026.