D10 The Development and Future of the Horse Industry in the US Some of the pictures and text contained in this material have copyright restrictions limiting their use. Use of this information is for example only and should not be reproduced without the permission of the owner.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 2 History & Development of the Horse  The horse was believed to have originated in North America where horse bones were found in Hagerman Idaho Fossil Beds. Philohippus was the first single toed (hoofed) horse and is thought to have existed about 5 million years ago.  About 8 thousand years ago Philohippus became extinct in the western hemisphere until Spanish brought horses to the new world in the 1400’s.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 3 History & Development of the Horse  The horse was originally a 5 toed animal that evolved into a single toed animal.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 4 History & Development of the Horse Hyracotherium mya Miohippus mya Merychippus mya Equus 5 mya

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 5 Przewalski Horse

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 6 Przewalski Horse  The Przewalski horse (Equus przewalski poliakov) is the last remaining wild species of horses. All other horses are either domesticated or descended from horses which were once domesticated.  It was originally believed that the Przewalski horse was discovered by the Russian explorer, Colonel Przewalski, for whom it is named, in 1881.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 7 Przewalski Horse  Some authorities feel strongly that the Przewalski horse is the ancestor of all modern breeds.  Others point out that it is a different species from the domesticated horse, having 66 chromosomes as compared to the 64 of the domestic horse.  They further point out, that while crosses between the Przewalski and domestic horses result in a fertile hybrid, the offspring has 65 chromosomes. Subsequent crosses result in 64 chromosomes and bear little resemblance to the Przewalski.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 8 Przewalski's Horse  Przewalski's horse is similar to the domestic horse though it has a smaller, more robust build, upright mane, and a low-set tail.  These horses have a dorsal stripe, a shoulder stripe, barring in their legs, and lighter coloring on their muzzles and bellies.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 9 History of Horses and Mules in The United States  In 1519 Coronado set out for north America with 150 horsemen.  DeSoto’s expedition followed with 237 horses in 1539  By 1547, Antoni De Mendoza, the first governor of New Spain (Mexico) had 11 haciendas and over 1500 horses.  The horse population continued to grow rapidly up through the late 1800’s and early 1900’s when it reached its peak in 1915 at 21 million horses.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 10 The Horses Contribution to Agriculture  During the 1800’s and early 1900’s, horses were used mostly for riding and pulling light vehicles.  Oxen were the preferred draft animal on the farm.  An ox costs half as much as a horse, requires half the feed and could be eaten when it died or was no longer useful.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 11  However, oxen worked half as fast as horses and their hooves left them virtually useless on frozen winter ground.  They were also unsuitable for pulling the new farm equipment developed in the 19 th century.  Agriculture continued to become more sophisticated. In 1868, our nation’s first veterinarian college opened at Cornell University.  With the use of the horse, a farmer could produce three and four times as much wheat and corn than was produced just twenty years prior to the use of the horse. The Horses Contribution to Agriculture

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 12  One horse could do the work of ten, men while its cost for room and board was about half the cost of one man.  It was the horse that first lead American agriculture as the world leader. During our peak, the US horse population was 21 million in 1915, we had 1 horse for every four people compared to Great Britain with 1 horse to 26 people, France with 1 horse to 10 people, and Germany with 1 horse to every 13 people. The American farmer could do much more work than could be done under European agriculture conditions. The Horses Contribution to Agriculture

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 13  By the end of the century, the average farm had 10 horses which worked 600 hours per animal per year.  The average farm in 1790, was 100 acres. This figure nearly doubled over the next sixty years. By 1910, 500 acre wheat farms were not uncommon. The Horses Contribution to Agriculture

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 14 A New Horse Pursuit-Recreation  As horses grew in popularity, formal new recreational events started to occur.  The first Kentucky derby was run on May 17,  In 1883, the first national horse show began at Madison Square Gardens in new York city.  The first rodeo with paid attendance was held in Prescott Arizona on July 4 th 1886.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 15 The Mechanical Revolution Takes a Hard Hit on Horse Numbers  A transition from horse power to gas powered vehicles occurred during the early 1900’s.  The new trucks were 10 times faster, took less room to store and eliminated the problem of manure disposal.  Due to the industrial revolution from 1915 to 1960, the horse saw a dramatic decrease to an all time low of only 3 million horses in the US.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 16 World Horse Populations  Today the world horse population is about 60 million horses.  The United States only has about 8 % of the world’s population of horses and less than 1 % of the world’s population of donkeys.  Asia is the highest with 27 % of the world’s population of horses.  Next is south America with 25 %  Mexico is third with 10%.  The US and Africa tie for forth with 8%  Europe follows with 7%

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 17 Economic Contribution in the US  Today the horse industry has seen a continual increase in popularity, and the US horse population is estimated between 6 million and 8 million horses.  The industry contributes $16 billion annually to the economy. This represents about 16 % of the gross national product.  Breakdown of the 16 billion:  13 billion is spent on the development and maintenance of horses.  3 billon is spent on horse related spectator sports.  508 million is generated as farm income from the sale of horses and mules.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 18 Economic Contribution in the US  Horse racing is the third largest spectator sport in the US behind baseball and auto racing.  Each year it attracts over 70 million people who wager over 13 billion on the races.  Rodeos continue to grow with over 800 rodeos held each year.  In our national forests, horse back riding is the third most popular activity, involving about 24 million visitors each year.  Nationally the number of 4-H horse and pony projects is about double the number of 4-H beef projects

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 19 Economic Contribution in the US  As a family pet, the horse ranks fourth behind the dog, cat, and pet bird.  The number of horse shows have nearly doubled in the past 20 years.

Infovets Educational Resources – – Slide 20 Top 10 Horse Producing States  Texas  California  Oklahoma  Colorado  New York  Ohio  Michigan  Pennsylvania  Washington  Kentucky