Horse

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Q: My mare has quite the sense of humor! After plucking my phone out of my jacket pocket and dropping it on the ground, she stretched her neck out and opened her mouth like she was laughing at me, then smacked her lips together. Was my horse laughing? Is it normal?  A: While you’re far from the first person to be “pranked” by a mischievous horse, animal behaviorists haven’t identified a behavior in horses equivalent to human laughter. That doesn’t mean horses can’t feel amusement—but if they do, they likely communicate it through horse-specific body language rather than audible sounds.  The neck-stretching, mouth-opening gesture you saw in your mare sounds like what some vets and trainers refer to as a “release.” Although it resembles a human yawn, this behavior signals the release of stress, not drowsiness.  To better understand behaviors that might be mistaken for horse laughing, we spoke with Katherine Houpt, VMD, PhD, professor emeritus of behavior medicine at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York; and Natalie Lord, DVM, a large and small animal veterinarian at Four Paws – Cuatro Patas in Austin, Texas. 

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What’s in a name? When it comes to horse names, plenty! In the United States, racehorses must be registered with The Jockey Club, which has extremely strict naming requirements. For example, your show name must be completely original, having never been used by another registered horse. Racehorse names also can’t be more than 18 characters long, use only initials, or contain the name of a famous person or trademarked brand without their approval. These restrictions lead to those memorable Kentucky Derby names, such as Carpe Diem, Oscar Nominated and Imawildandcrazyguy, to name a few. When it comes to pet horses, however, you’re free to pick any name you’d like. There’s plenty of inspiration out there, from your breed’s history to their unique coat color, from modern pop culture to the cowboy history of the Wild West. Where to start? Find the perfect pick with our list of the 200 best horse names. Giddy up!

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