Pony Admirer

I've always been passionate about animals. I don't know that I can tell you why except that it feels internal. Not that it can't be acquired, I don't think that, but it's always been natural for me. I can truly say that animals make life better! WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A PONY AND A HORSE? According to the book, ponies can be up to and including 14.2 hands high, horses are 14.3 hands and above. A "hand" is four inches, originally named for the breadth, not length, of a human hand. In practice, ponies usually also have stockier frames than horses, are more resistant to bad weather and cold, are smarter (sometimes even smarter than their rider!) and therefore a lot more annoying, and a lot stronger for their size than horses. A Shire, the biggest breed of draft horse, can only pull its own weight, but a Shetland pony can pull twice its own weight. There are breeds like Falabellas, American Miniature Horses, Caspians, and more, that are actually small horses, according to the second distinctions listed here, but their size brings them within the pony range. There are also breeds like the Icelandic Horse, which, despite its name, is more a pony than a horse, and, finally, there are many horse breeds in which certain specimens of the breed may be under the height limit, but are still considered horses, because of their breeding. I personally know a purebred Arabian horse who is only 13.2 hands high, as a result of her mother being malnourished while pregnant. So, as you can see, the science of horse vs. pony is far from exact. Even so, I hope I clarified a few points for you.