Shire Horse Size Guide report
Have you ever seen a horse as big as an elephant? Is there such a big horse in the world? This kind of horse is called the Shire horse, and it is one of the most famous draft horses in the world, that is, horses mainly used for plowing and pulling goods); it is also one of the largest horse breeds in the world. Shire horse was an important tool for early British agriculture, industry, and transportation. This horse breed can pull a weight of 5 tons.
The Shire horse is a descendant of a strong war-horse, introduced to England by William I in the Middle Ages to be ridden by warriors on the battlefield. The Sharma first appeared in England in 1066 as a traditional thoroughbred horse.
For centuries, Shire horses have been the right-hand men for British people, both in peace and war. There was a large population of Shire horses in the 18th and 19th centuries when the number of Shire horses in Britain exceeded 1 million. However, the number of Shire horses declined sharply after World War II. Let's find more interesting facts about this precious horse breed, including its average size and appearance.
Shire Horse Size and Appearance
The coat color of Shire horses is generally black, bay, brown, grey, and a small number of Shire horses are white. The coat is beautiful and shiny, and the posture is elegant and noble. The body and neck of the Shire horse are very slender, the shoulders are broad and powerful, and it has particularly well-developed and strong muscles, especially its two hind legs, which are very thick. The horseshoes of Shire horses are also very distinctive. Its hooves are covered with long, fine hair that looks like it's wearing a pair of fluffy boots. These hairs can protect the horse's hoof from resisting the severe cold and avoid Injury from wood, stones, and other sharp objects on the ground.
The horse with the highest shoulder height in the Guinness Book of Records is held by a Shire horse called "Radar," with a shoulder height of 2.02 meters. The heaviest horse in the Guinness Book of Records is a Shire horse called "Duke." When it was five years old, its weight reached 1 ton, constantly rising.
Average Size of Shire Horse
The shoulder height of an adult Shire horse is 16-19 hands (1.63-1.95 meters), and the head height can reach 2.5 meters or even higher when standing naturally. The weight of an adult Shire horse is about 900-1,100 kilograms. Due to their large size, this breed has held the title of the largest horse and tallest horse in the Guinness Book of World Records. Shire horses eat more than four times as much as normal horse breeds. Shire horse has a typical lifespan of 24-28 years.
Quick Facts | |
---|---|
Common Color | black, bay, brown, grey |
Shoulder Height | 16-19 hands (1.63-1.95 m) |
Head Height | 2.5 m |
Average Weight | 900-1,100 kg |
Lifespan | 24-28 years |
Final Words
Despite the burly and mighty appearance of Shire horses, they are very docile, even a little timid. Because of their large size, Shire horses are cumbersome in action, have poor reflexes, and have slower speeds than other horses. Nowadays, Shire horses are widely used in agricultural production and daily life. They can be used to pull plows; many breweries and food factories in the UK also use Shire horses to draw or haul objects. Shire horses have a very gentle temper and are very easy to train.