Cristina Antón

Listening

HORSES
Horses are domesticated mammals. Like other mammals, they’re warm blooded, covered in
hair and feed their babies milk.
Humans began domesticating horses around 6.000 years ago. Although most horses live
closely with humans, some horses live in the wild. There are feral horses, which are
domesticated horses which now live in the wild, and wild horses, which are horses that have
never been domesticated. There are more than 300 breeds of horse in the world today. The
most popular breed is called the American quarter horse.
Horses are herbivores, which means they only eat plants. They generally eat grass or hay,
but fruits or vegetables can enhance their diet. Sometimes people give horses a block of
salt, which they enjoy licking, especially in the summer months. It is also important for
horses to have access to plenty of water.
Horses can run very fast and have an excellent sense of balance. Their legs are so strong
and stable that they can sleep standing up. They don’t always sleep standing up, though.
They can also sleep laying down. Horses are herd animals, which means in the wild they
live in small groups. Domestic horses also feel much more comfortable when they are
around other horses. Just like humans, it helps them feel safe and secure. It is stressful for
a horse to live alone.
Female horses are called mares. They carry their babies for 11 moths before giving birth.
Baby horses are called foals, and they are able to stand and run very soon after being born.
Most domesticated horses start their training around age 2 or 4. By the time they are 5
years old, they are considered mature adults. Horses live on average for 25-30 years.
There are variety of other terms used to describe horses at various ages. A colt is a male
horse under the age of 4: a stallion is a non-castrated male horse about the age of 4. A
castrated male horse of any age is called a gelding.
In many countries, when we measure the height of a horse, we don’t use centimetres or
inches, we use a unit of measurement called ‘a hand’. This is roughly the size if a breadth
of a man’s hand. This unit of measurement can be traced back to the ancient Egyptians, so
sometimes we say ‘This horse is 14’5 hands’.
Horses originally came from the middle east in Asia, they’re not native to North America.
This means that all the horses in North America originally came from Europe. North
American horse breeding though trough the past several hundred years has greatly
diversified the species. Horses and humans interact in various ways. They compete in
sporting activities together; horses help humans with police work and recreational activities.
Historically, horses were also used for warfare. Horses are great companions and friends to
humans, and we should do our best to treat them kindly, take good care of them and make
sure they’re happy and healthy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qOXNIhaoNas
Cristina Antón
Listening

1. Answer the following questions.

1. When did humans begin/start domesticating horses? Around 6000 (six thousand)
years ago.
2. How many breeds of horse there are in the world today? 300 (three hundred)
3. Do horses like to live by their own? Justify your answer. Yes, because they live in
herds/they’re herd animals.
4. How long takes for a mare to give birth? It takes 11 months/Mares take 11 moths
to give birth.
5. What is a foal or a colt? A colt is a male horse under the age of 4.
6. Which unit of measurement is used for horses? A hand
7. Where do horses originally come from? The middle east in Asia.

2. Match each word with its definition.

Wild horses c a. They are warm blooded, covered in hair and feed their babies milk.
Mammals a b. Domesticated horses which now live in the wild.
Feral horses b c. Horses that have never been domesticated.
Herbivores g d. A group of animals, especially hoofed mammals, that live together
or are kept together as livestock.
Stallion f e. Female horse.
Herd d f. Non-castrated male horse about the age of 4
Mare e g. An animal that feeds on plants
Gelding h h. Castrated male horse of any age.

3. Which tense is used in the following paragraph? Justify your answer.

‘Horses can run very fast and have an excellent sense of balance. Their legs are so strong
and stable that they can sleep standing up. They don’t always sleep standing up, though.
They can also sleep laying down. Horses are herd animals, which means in the wild they
live in small groups. Domestic horses also feel much more comfortable when they are
around other horses. Just like humans, it helps them feel safe and secure. It is stressful for
a horse to live alone’
a. Present continuous.
b. Present simple.
c. Present perfect.
d. Past perfect.