In nature, the most beautiful animals are horses, especially wild ones. The most attractive among them are mustangs. A lot of stories are composed and films about these freedom-loving, beautiful and strong animals were made.
What are they, mustangs - wild horses? How do they live in the wild? You can learn about all this and their habits in this article.
How did the Mustang story begin?
Mustangs are wild horses whose fate has evolved for a long time and is not so simple. Their story has many sad and tragic moments. Once in America, about 10 thousand years ago, all horses became extinct.
Then, in the 16th century, new horses were brought into America by the Spanish conquistadors. At first, the Indians did not want to recognize strange animals unknown to them: they killed and ate all the horses that came to them. But soon there was awareness of the value of such an animal as a fast and powerful vehicle and a great helper in battle and hunting.
The Indians, unlike the Europeans, rode horses without saddles, and the horses learned to obey even the whisper of the rider, as well as a clear response to each movement of the owner. The Indian practically merged with his indispensable friend into a single whole.
Thus, moving from one tribe to another, horses began to spread almost throughout the United States. But there were cases that the horses ran away from a man and broke free. And the Indians themselves often threw sick, tired and limp animals to their fate.
Over time, herds of wild mustangs began to appear on the vast expanses of the prairies. The word mustang is most likely derived from mestenos (Spanish). This is the name of the sheep that fended off the herd. So there appeared free and surprisingly beautiful horses in nature.
On the further free life of the Mustangs
Due to the fact that there were no dangerous predators, nothing interfered with the peaceful and free life of large herds of wild mustangs. Their numbers grew so fast that in the mid-19th century, approximately 2 million mustangs roamed the vast expanses of America.
At the very beginning, the blood of the Arabian and Andalusian horses flowed in their veins, but gradually the noble horses more and more often crossed with other breeds. Only the most hardy horses with excellent health survived in the wild.
Mustang Description
The height at the withers of the mustang is from 135 to 155 centimeters.
Due to the mixed origin (blood of Andalusian and Arabian, local horses), the appearance of the mustangs can be completely different. The best representatives of this breed have strong hooves, strong legs and a folding muscular physique.
The weight of the mustang reaches 500 kg. The following suits differ among them: piebald, red, bay, appaloosa and others.
Differences Mustangs from domestic horses
Mustang is an animal that has, as it turned out, an amazing history of origin.
It is generally accepted that it all started with the fact that domestic horses became wild for certain reasons. There is a version that this is why they got the name "Mustang" (translated as "wild" or "stray"). Whatever the case, many features of that domestic horse have survived in the wild today.
The fusion of different stripes by crossing them occurred in connection with the movement. So, the migration of Spanish and French horses, brewed to the emergence of a completely new offspring with an admixture of blood of friezes, ponies and heavy trucks. In the selection process only the strongest and most enduring ones survived, which are later used for horse riding and heavy transportation.
Mustang is an animal whose primary difference from its ancestor (domestic horse) is its high speed, endurance, tremendous strength and unpretentiousness in content. Of course, there is a negative difference - the domestic horse, in contrast to the freedom-loving mustang, is more malleable in training. Mustang is unbridled and rebellious, he can perceive a person as a master, but only as a person whom he will respect. And outwardly the Mustang is different from a domestic horse, in size it is smaller.
Interesting Mustang Facts
Mustang is an animal with many features that are impossible to talk about in one small article. Here are some of the interesting facts besides the above:
• If earlier there were about 2 million heads, then after the merciless hunting of people for horses for meat and skin, their number has greatly decreased and amounts to about 20 thousand.
• There is a coin in Nevada with the image of a mustang (face value of 25 cents).
• The US government has put the Mustangs under legal protection.
• The mustang mare several days before giving birth usually separates from its herd and seeks temporary shelter. A newborn baby begins to walk a few hours after birth, and a few days later they return to the herd together.
Black horse
Mustangs can also be black. A beautiful horse is a black horse, which is always valuable. Usually, such a suit is preferred by purposeful and domineering people by nature. Such a horse has black with a bluish tint.
It is believed that the horse of A. the Great is a representative of this particular suit. A beautiful and powerful physique, royal look and formidable character combined this black horse in itself.
Mustangs have only four fundamental colors: gray, bay, black and red. Other species emerged from the black suit, for example, smoky-black.
