Last Updated on April 13, 2022 by Allison Price
You didn’t know how tall your horse would grow when it was young. Perhaps you have experienced what it’s like to be a 150 cm tall horse and not know how it will look as an adult. Perhaps you don’t know if your foal will be a pony of category 1 or 2. We understand the issue and have a few solutions.
HORSES DO NOT GROW IN THE SAME PLACE.
Horses grow faster if they are fed well. Young warm-blooded horses can reach their maximum weight at age 2-3 years. A number of Danish researchers have reached this conclusion (Staun and al. 1989). It is important to note that horses may not reach their maximum height. Jorgen Finderup Consultant at LandbrugsInfo.dk explains that the horse should follow a healthy growth curve.
The height of a foal at its withers when it is born is a good indicator of how tall it will become as a full grown horse. There are many other ways to calculate this, some more precise than others.There are several ways to measure your horse. Use the one that you find works for you. Foto: Pixabay.
METHOD 1 : MULTIPLY THICKNESS OF THE YOUNG HORSE BY 1.1
Jorgen Finderup, Consultant at LandbrugsInfo.dk explains that a one-year-old horse will be 60% its full-grown weight and 90% its full grown height. He also has 95% of his full-grown bone growth. It depends on the breed of horse. It is also important to feed the horse, as previously mentioned.
If you wish to group all horses into the same category, multiply the horse’s 1 year old whither measurement by 1.1. This will give you an estimate of how tall the horse will be when it is fully grown. This method will give you an estimate of how tall a horse will be as an adult. A horse who is 148cm as a 1-year old will become 162-163cm as an adult.
WITHER MEASURE AS 1-YEAR-OLD x 1,1 = WITHER MESURE AS A GROWN-UP
METHOD 2 – MEASURING THE LENGTH OFF THE HORSES LEGS
Henning Staun (Professor IN Veterinary Science at KVL), along with a few other researchers, calculated in 1995 the relationship between horses’ legs as foals and their height as young horses. You can see the results of these calculations below.
| Length of the leg at 0,5 Years | The whither measurement at 2,5 Years |
| 80-85 cm | Ca. 160 cm |
| 86-88 cm | Ca. Ca. |
| 89-93 cm | Ca. Ca. |
METHOD 3 – USE “GYPSY MEASUREMENT”.
To determine the height of your horse, you can use what’s called a “gypsy measurement”. It is actually based on the exact same measurement as above but gives you a more precise result. This method requires that your horse be measured as close as possible to its one-year anniversary. A string and possibly an extra hand are required.
Here’s how it works
1. Grab a leash, and place the end just below the foal’s elbow with your left hand. (Or have someone else hold it).
2. Holding the end of your leash at the foal’s elbow, gently guide the leash towards the code. Your right hand should be around the leash, just below the code joint of your horse.
3. Now, move the portion of the leash you are holding with your right hand, next to the horse’s code, 180° around, straight up in the air so it reaches above the horse’s lance mark.
4. You can now use a tape measure, or a bar gauge, to measure the distance between the ground and the point you are holding the string. This is your foal’s height.
