Celebrate The Year Of The Horse With These Hay-mazing Facts About Horses

The Lunar New Year began on Tuesday, marking the start of the Year of the Horse. To celebrate, we’ve picked some of our favourite facts about horses. Plus, learn how Stikins® name labels are perfect for protecting the property of your little ponies!

Celebrating The Year Of The Horse

2026 is the Year of the Horse. Horses have been an important part of human life for thousands of years. They feature in many myths and legends from around the world. In stories, they often have magical powers like super strength or speed, the ability to speak and carry messages, and the ability to travel across worlds. Horses are commonly associated with dreams (or night-mares), freedom and adventure, and the elements of water (like the Each-uisge and Kelpie) and air (winged horses like Pegasus and Sleipnir). The centaur (half-human, half-horse) is thought to represent the perfect combination of human intelligence and animal strength.

To celebrate the new year, we’ve reined in our favourite facts about these amazing creatures. Did you know that:

• There have been some amazing record-breaking horses. The oldest horse, Old Billy (born 1760 in Lancashire), reached 62 years old (the average is 25-30 years). Sampson (born 1846 in Bedfordshire), later named Mammoth, was both the largest horse (at 2.19 metres tall) and the heaviest horse (at 1,524kg). The smallest horse was Thumbelina, a dwarf miniature horse, who measured just 44.5cm (and weighed 26kg). Huaso, a Chilean horse, made the highest jump by a horse in 1949, reaching 2.47 metres. The fastest horse is A Long Goodbye who reached a top speed of 55 miles per hour in 2005 (most horses reach 25-30mph, while racehorses can exceed 40mph).
• There are around 60 million horses worldwide and they are found on every continent except Antarctica. There are over 300 horse breeds, thought to descend from just two ancient breeds (the Arabian and the now extinct Turkoman).
• Horses probably evolved in North America. Their earliest known ancestor (Eohippus) was a forest-dweller that probably looked more like a deer or goat and was no larger than a golden retriever. Over 10,000 years ago, horses disappeared from North America. Modern North American horses are descended from groups that moved into Europe.
• Horses can sleep standing up or lying down. Their bodies have a special group of muscles, tendons, and ligaments (called the stay apparatus) that lock their legs in place while they sleep. Horses sleep for 2-3 hours a day; most of this is done standing up for around 15 minutes at a time. They also need to lie down for full restorative REM sleep, which they do for around an hour or two every few days.
• Horses spend most of their day (16-18 hours) grazing for food. They have three pairs of salivary glands, which produce up to 40 litres of saliva every day.
• Horses cannot burp or vomit! They have a highly controlled one-way digestive system that will not allow food to travel back up into their mouths.
• On average, horses have one less bone (205) than humans (206). Like humans, horses have 7 bones in their neck and their hooves are made of keratin – just like our hair and nails. Arabian horses have one less lumbar and tail vertebrae and one less pair of ribs.
• Horses have 36-40 teeth, which take up more room in their heads than their brains. Some horses, mostly males, develop additional canine teeth, while some horses develop wolf teeth. Wolf teeth helped earlier horses chew their diet of twigs and leaves. Now that horses are grazers (eating mainly grass), they no longer need these teeth.
• Horses have a 350 degree field of vision – with two small blind spots immediately in front of and behind them. They have monocular vision, which means their eyes move independently and can look in completely different directions.
• Some horse breeds grow moustaches. This thick patch of hair is highly sensitive and allows horses to better detect objects in front of them and to distinguish between different types of grass.
• Horses are usually measured in hands; one hand equals 4 inches. The height of a horse is measured to the highest point of the withers where their neck meets their back. Height is a key factor in determining if an animal is a horse or a pony. Horses are 14.2 hands or taller, while ponies are under 14.2 hands tall. The exception to this rule is miniature horses, which are measured in centimetres or inches.
• White horses are usually actually grey horses. They are born with dark skin and dark hair; over time, their hair turns white. True white horses are born with pink skin and white hair. A white horse with non-black patches of colour is called a skewbald. The name for a white and black horse is a piebald.

Protect Your Little Ponies’ School Kit From The Lost Property Box With Stikins® Name Labels

It is a fact that every parent comes to know – kids lose their kit! The only way to keep kit out of the lost property box is to add a label. While traditional name labels require hours of sewing or ironing, Stikins® label everything in seconds.

We use a unique adhesive, which allows our name labels to simply stick on and stay on. You can label school uniform, shoes and bags, P.E. kit, lunch boxes and water bottles, and other items with one pack of labels. Simply peel each label carefully from the backing sheet and apply firmly – job done!

You should apply Stikins® onto the wash-care label of clothing and fabric items and onto the side wall or beneath the tongue of shoes.

We print our bright white labels with a bold black font that is clear and easy to read for kids of all ages. At just 30mm wide by 15mm high, they fit neatly and discretely onto items of all shapes and sizes – with plenty of room for your personalisation.

We print and post name labels every week day up to 3pm. If you order by 3pm between Monday to Friday, we’ll despatch your order same day. Order after 3pm or over the weekend and we’ll post your order on the next working day. Delivery is free and we use Royal Mail’s first class service as standard.

So, don’t lose your kids’ kit to the lost property box. Order Stikins® name labels today and get everything labelled up – faster than a racehorse!