Like dogs, horses have been accompanying humanity for several centuries, throughout which they have not only kept us company, but have also made it possible toproductive, economic and cultural development of our societies. Due to their imposing beauty, their great intelligence and sensitivity, horses have managed to adapt to the most diverse activities and sports, and their breeding is now widely spread throughout the world.
After so many centuries of coexistence, we still have much to learn about these splendid animals, their behavior and way of life. On this occasion we invite you to continue reading this new article on our site to discover how horses reproduce and to know everything about pregnancy in mares and the birth of the foals. Can you come with us?
The reproduction of horses
With the arrival of spring, the increase in heat and the availability of natural light stimulates receptor centers in the brain of horses that "command" an increase in the production and release of sex hormones.
Consequently, mares go into heat, presenting symptoms such as a swollen vulva, a possible mucous secretion and will be receptive to males. In turn, the male horses will experience peaks of sexual activity when they perceive that the females are fertile, through the detection of the pheromones that they release in their urine during the zeal
This marks the beginning of the reproductive season for horses, which can last until the last weeks of summer, or until the beginning of autumn. One of the most curious and recognized aspects of horse reproduction is the elegant and complex courtship carried out by males to win the acceptance of females and mount.
But there are also many curiosities and essential data to take into account to understand how horses reproduce and how foals are born. Next, we will look in more detail at some key points about the behavior and sexual cycle in mares and male horses, culminating in the birth of their offspring after an average gestation of 11 months.
Sexual maturity, heat and riding horses
The onset of reproductive age in horses usually coincides with the onset of puberty, which occurs later in females. While male horses become sexually active between 14 and 18 months of life, females may experience their first heat between their 15 and 24 months of life.
However, a horse or mare is not considered to have reached sexual maturity until it is 4 years old, age at which that they are fully prepared to give rise to strong and he althy offspring. But how often do mares go into heat? And the male horses, do they go into heat?
Mares present seasonal ovulation cycles that occur in the warmer seasons of the year and with greater availability of light. For this reason, mares generally go into heat every 21 days during spring and summer. During the fertile cycles of the mare, the bleeding can last between 5 and 7 days, but the female is only ovulating in the last 48 or 24 hours of each fertile period. In general, a mare remains fertile until she is 15 years old, when her last heat usually occurs. But this may vary depending on the breed, metabolism and he alth status of each female.
In turn, males remain in constant heat since they become sexually active, but they present peaks of greater sexual activity than coincide with periods of heat in mares. Male horses are fertile throughout their lives, so they can breed and sire offspring throughout the year, as long as they find a fertile mare to mate with.
As we will see in more detail in the next section, mating and fertilization in horses takes place through mounting, as in the vast majority of mammals.
How do horses mate?
Mating in horses begins with courtship performed by males to attract and please females before proceeding to mount them. Approaching the fertile female, the male assumes a imposing and haughty posture, slightly arching her neck to highlight the muscles of her chest and shoulders. Then he energetically emits neighs that are deeper and longer than usual.
The last step of the courtship of the horses is the most spectacular and recognized, consisting of the execution of a kind of dance in circles that the male performs to capture the attention of the female and show his intention to mate with her. We observe that, to execute this " courtship dance", the male significantly lifts his hooves off the ground, while turning on his own axis.
If the female is receptive, the male will continue the conquest ritual by caressing her neck with his snout and gently rubbing against his body to slowly and carefully proceed to sniff his tail, his rump, his hind legs and his genitals. If all goes well, the female will spread her tail to show that she is ready to mate and the male will proceed with mounting The courtship is much longer than the ride the horses, which usually lasts only a few minutes.
Mare's gestation
Like almost all mammals, horses are viviparous animals, that is, fertilization and the development of offspring occurs inside the womb of the females. The mare's pregnancy can last between 10 months and 1 year, depending on the breed of horse to which each female belongs and the particularities of her organism, since each horse has a unique metabolism. Likewise, we can say that the pregnancy time of an average mare is about 11 months, after which the pregnant female will give birth to a single foal.
During pregnancy, females need special care to preserve their good he alth. Feeding a pregnant mare is a key aspect, since her body needs to receive the energy and essential nutrients for the correct development of the offspring, so it is normal for her appetite to increase Your diet should be more energetic and rich in easily assimilated proteins, vitamins, minerals and fibers, so it is recommended to incorporate fresh and natural foodsto supplement nutrition during the mare's pregnancy, such as high-quality hay, alfalfa, oats, or heat-treated legumes.
Likewise, it is important for a pregnant mare to maintain a balanced physical activity during pregnancy to avoid being overweight, losing mass muscle and consequent complications in childbirth. To avoid the risk of spontaneous abortions, it is not recommended that pregnant mares be ridden after the fifth or sixth month of gestation, since from this stage the offspring enter accelerated developmentinside your belly. And logically, a positive environment and the accompaniment of a specialized veterinarian will be essential care during the mare's gestation.
How are horses born?
As they approach the tenth month of pregnancy, mares begin to prepare for the birth of their foals, which usually occurs during the night or early morning, when it is possible to enjoy greater tranquility. Females generally give birth quickly after about 15 to 20 minutes in a calm, positive environment. But as they are very sensitive and alert, mares can postpone delivery if they perceive any threat in their environment.
Foals are usually born during the spring, when the weather is favorable for their development and there is abundant grass available for feeding the mares. As is common in horses, the calves are able to get up just a few minutes after birth and quickly seek out their mothers to feed on their milk.
Newborn horses are lactating, that is, mother's milk is the only food capable of fully meeting their nutritional requirements, and be completely assimilated by your digestive tract. During their first six to eight months of life, the foals will be suckled by their mothers and, little by little, they will begin to incorporate new foods into their diet during the weaning period.
A curious fact about the birth of horses is that the legs of newborn foals are already almost 90% of their height in his adulthood. Consequently, the offspring are unable to reach the ground to feed on the grass, which could be an evolutionary adaptation considering that the body of newborns is not capable of digesting food other than breast milk.
To finish we share with you a video that shows how horses are born:
