Horse Gestation Period: How Long are Horses Pregnant?

 inches). Anything under 14 hands tall is considered a pony, which is just

 another word for a small horse. Horses even bigger, like Shire horses, and horses even smaller, like miniature ponies, are still considered horses. More than that, all of today’s horses are genetically the same species. So, no matter the size, horse gestation has a consistent length. 

Behavior

Like sheep, cows, and even goats, horses are herd animals. They’re incredibly social, and in the wild, rely on the safety of the herd to avoid predators like wolves, bears, and mountain lions. Domestic horses rarely have to worry about avoiding predators, but they still retain a strong herd instinct. 

Horses don’t eat a variety of foods, like dogs, and they don’t eat meat, like

 lions and tigers. Instead, horses evolved to consume a diet made up almost entirely of grasses and similar forbs. Because of their rough diet, horses’ teeth wear down rapidly. In fact, veterinarians, experienced owners, and breeders determine a horse’s age by the condition of its teeth.

How Many Days are Horses Pregnant?

Horse gestation is a little different than human gestation. Where humans are pregnant for almost ten months, horses actually have a 40-day variance in the length of their gestation. Horse gestation lasts anywhere from 320-360 days. That means horses can be pregnant for anywhere from 10.5 months to a full year. 

Horses don’t have babies at just any time of year, though. Mares go into estrous (during which they can become pregnant) about every 21 days, but