October 7, 2007 @ 4:57 pm
Horse Age Question
I have an old horse so am often asked how long horses usually live for and how old this is in human years. I always thought the ratio was about 3 to 1, so I usually say my 21 year old horse who is semi-retired is approx 60 in human years.
However I came across a horse to human age conversion on the internet which uses a ratio of 2.2 to 1, so this makes my horse mid-forties (and makes me think he maybe shouldn’t be semi-retired). There are also a number of reported cases of horses living into their 40s and 50s, so maybe this ratio is correct.
I have also read that you can’t use a straight conversion ration as it varies with the age of the horse.
I’d be interested to know of other horse owners views on this.
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3 Responses to “Horse Age Question”
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October 9th, 2007 at 11:15 pm
I think it can be affected by breeds as well. I’m not sure there is a simple answer. I think you just have to look at the individual.
I know that the legendary Khemosabi died when he was 33. They were still riding him daily and he was still settling mares and he looked great. You would never have guessed his age by looking at him.
October 24th, 2007 at 3:32 pm
I found an article on horse age this week which stated the ratio as approx 3.5, which is in line with my view of the ratio and puts my horse in his 70s in human years, which I think is fairly accurate.
November 12th, 2007 at 11:57 am
I agree with risingrainbow, I do think it varies partly based on breed. Some are definitely hardier than others, as a rule.
At the therapeutic riding facility where I volunteer, there’s a 39 year old pony, who while retired, is still in very good health. There are some in their late 20s who seem even older than he does. I’ve always heard that 30 years is an average life span for a horse, but some can live quite a bit longer and some shorter. I believe the oldest a horse has ever lived is 52.