Horses vs Ponies | 台北市立動物園資訊網

Ahorseisahorse,ofcourseofcourse—exceptwhenit'snot.Horsesandponiesaremembersofthesamespecies,Equuscaballus.Thecreaturessharealotof ...

A horse is a horse, of course of course—except when it’s not. Horses[1] and ponies are members of the same species, Equus caballus. The creatures share a lot of similarities. In general, you can ride them, drive them, and most importantly, pamper them like spoiled pets[2]. Horses and ponies alike have shaped human society, letting people make agricultural and industrial advancements and helping civilizations wage wars and fight battles[3].

They aren’t quite the same, though. As any barn rat will tell you, the main difference between a horse and a pony is height[4]. Horses are measured in hands, with one hand equaling 4 inches. An equine that measures 14 hands, 2 inches at the withers (the ridge between their shoulder blades) is considered a horse, whereas those that fall below this threshold are known as ponies.

"The height of an individual horse or pony w...