Where did the horse originate?

Horses originated in North America. At the time of early horses, all of the continents were joined together,except Australia. This is how horses spread throughout the world. No early horse fossils were ever found in Australia.

It is now thought that there were a lot of small horses and ponies that lived in Europe and Asia. These ponies developed according to their environment. The ponies and small horses that live in the wild and in wet areas were smaller. The ponies that live in areas with a lot of grass for grazing are larger.

Ever since horses were domesticated in the Middle and Far East around 3000 B.C., they have not only been breeding with horses of their own herd but with horses from all over the world. That is how the horse breeds of today were made.

Who were the first men to use horses?

The first men to use horses were probably the tribesmen that roamed the treeless plains of Central Asia. These men probably wore the skins of animals they have hunted as clothes. These people made spears and arrowheads to hunt with. they kept small herds of tough ponies. They used these ponies of their meat, milk, and skins.These men were the first people to discover how to harness them and probably the first to ride them.

How were horses used in the past?

Horses were mainly used for transportation. Horses pulled chariots, farm carts, European Chaise, covered wagons, Charabancs, and others. Some horses were used in war. Draft horses would help shrimp fishers drag their nets through the water. They were also used for pulling heavy loads such as coal, oil, and lumber. Out in the west horses were, and still are, used for herding and cow-cutting cattle.

Some ponies were used in mines to help the people who worked in the mines pull the carts through the tunnels. These ponies were called "Pit Ponies". Over 70,000 pit ponies worked in the coal mines in Britain! Now there are only about 100 left. Pit ponies were usually breeds such as the Shetland ponies.