Did you know that camels pee on their legs? Now, that makes sense why they smell so bad! People who love to have camels and horses have one question in their mind.
Can a camel scare horses?
Well, camels live peacefully with horses, but still, horses don’t quite love their company. Horses get easily scared by the camels because they smell terrible as they pee on their legs, and it doesn’t smell perfect.
In this blog post, I will discuss the friendship of a camel and a horse. Let’s start the article.
Camels vs Horses
Camels and horses are both domestic fits for every farmer and most Arabian countries, where both mammals are considered a symbol of wealth.
But as we go deeper into studies, we found interesting information about camels and horses.
An Overview About Camels
A camel is the best friend for deserted areas but also a great domestic mammal. Camels mainly serve for racing and traveling purposes.
The exciting fact about camels is that the biggest population of camels is found in the Arabic countries.
A camel attains a height of over 3 meters and weighs almost 2500Kg. A camel costs up to $2000, while the price hikes for a racing camel. Some maniac Arabs buy camels worth millions when they stake on race. Camels serve for meat, and the milk has heavenly health benefits.
Thus, camels are very useful for domestic purposes.
An Overview About Horses
The loyalty of a horse stands second after dogs. Horses are warm-blooded mammals and can sleep with their eyes open!
Horses have an average height of 1.5 to 2 meters but weigh only up to 500kg. Horses are less expensive than camels, but they are widely used in racing and source million-dollar revenue for the economy. Turkish people ate horses at some point, but now horses are not seen as edibles.
Are Camels and Horses Friends?
Would that be a crazy idea to put camels and horses together?
Camels smell terrible because they pee on their legs. The stinky urine chemical makes them smell bad to the horses, who have a powerful sense of smell. That’s why a horse gets easily scared by a monotonous animal with a pungent smell.
So if you’re planning to buy a horse and a camel, prepare a separate space for both animals to prevent staying up all night due to the noises.
Are Horses Afraid Of Camels?
I remember my Arabic friends asking me for advice on keeping both camels and horses. They even complain that the camels are scaring the horses.
I studied the behavior of camels and horses and found:
Horses are not afraid of camels that they will harm them. They have a powerful nature-gifted smell that detects the pungent camel urine, which gives the horses chills and is afraid to go near the camels.
Why Are Horses Afraid Of Camels?
While horses being used in battles for ages, they are a symbol of bravery. But we see horses getting scared of the camels.
Why would a horse be afraid of camels?
Horse victors on the battlefields, but it would be afraid of all the strange things. So, greeting a camel will scare them off, but the basic reason is that they don’t like irritating and puking urine smell and run away from camels.
But if a horse gets used to living with a camel, things go differently and don’t run away from camels.
Do Camels Scare Horses?
An ancient historian Herodotus from 400 B.C, was the first person to disclose why camels are bad choice to live with horses.
Herodotus said that camels scare the horses because they pee on their legs, and hence, they get so filthy and stinky that horses are frightened to go near them. That’s why camels have been used as a weapon to distract horses in thymbra battle.
So, camels scare horses by their irritating and bad smell.
Do Camels Frighten Horses?
Camels are sweet mammals and are loved by most Arabs. The Arabs even pay high amounts to buy the best breed of camels. But, one animal which is not fond of camels is the horse.
Why does a horse dislike horses?
Horses are gifted with nature’s best gift; a strong sense of smell. They can smell from distant places. It is believed that horses have over 200 Million Olfactory bulb receptors. So, they smell the puke and repellant smell of camel’s urine and can get frightened from camels easily.
Are Camels Faster Than Horses?
Camels and horses both have their prime importance. But when it comes to speed, camels are behind horses.
So, how fast do a camel and a horse run?
A camel can run just 20 miles per hour when it is highly trained. But a horse on the other side runs faster with speed up to 30 miles per hour. Trained horses run even faster with proper diet care. But horses can’t beat camels in deserts, and they run with wider hooves and less pressure on toes.
The bottom line is, horses are cheetahs of land, and camels are the Bugatti of desserts.
Do Horses And Camels Get Along?
Camels and horses have been some of the ancient mammals seen throughout human civilization. People have been used them as meat, rides, and battlefield weapons.
But, can horses and camels be friends?
Horses have a different nature, and they are easily scared by alien objects. To horses, camels are horrifying animals with a stinky urine smell, and that’s why horses hate camels and prefer to live separated from them.
But, if you keep a camel clean and wash it every day, a horse may not get terrified by it the way it could get by its stinky urine. So, a horse can get along with a camel if it’s clean.
Why Are Horses So Fearful?
Horse owners would know how hard it is to train a horse and deal with its skittishness all the time.
A horse is always prey (prey means other competitors could attack it in the wild). So, it avoids every weird thing which can harm it. That’s why horses are so fearful.
But, there’s nothing a horse can’t learn with training. Experienced equine owners efficiently train their horses to react to different stimuli.
They practice different exercises, in which they expose the horses to other animals repeatedly so that they get used to the stimuli and don’t react to that things anymore.
The phenomenon is also known as conditioned reflex type 1 to train horses to get less fearful.
Amazing Facts About Horse and Camel Behavior
Although both horses and camels belong to the same class of animals, the Mammalia have some spicy and interesting facts I would like to share with you guys.
| Camel | Horse |
|---|---|
| Some Camels have two humps! | Horses are fearful, as they are prey mammals |
| Camels close the eyelids during a sand storm | A horse has 205 bones and 40 teeth |
| Camels are stinky due to urine and scare the horses | The equine is a clean animal |
| Camels run faster in deserts | Horses have greater speed than camels on land |
| Camels have over 2500Kg weight | Horses weigh up to 500kg only. |
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Are Horses Stronger Than Camels?
It is no wonder that camels outweigh horses. But, weight does not define power and strength.
A horse is stronger than a camel and will have more stamina to run on land. But on a desert trip, camels survive 100 miles without having water.
Can A Camel Beat A Horse?
There’s no competition between a camel and a horse. Both of these animals have their distinct qualities, and they have prime importance globally.
Camels weigh about five times than horses, and horses are scared of the camels. It’s not because they can’t fight horses, but the camels smell terrible, so horses run away from camels.
Who Would Win In A Race A Camel Or A Horse?
If there were a race between a horse and a camel, a horse would beat camel on land and get beaten by the camel in the desert.
Are Camels Easier To Ride Than Horses?
One can easily ride on camels, as they don’t run faster on land. The average speed of a camel is about 20 miles per hour.
But horses, on the other hand, demand a good time to spend with so you can ride a horse. So camels are easier to ride than horses.
Conclusion
A comparison between horses and camels has a conclusion that camels survive without water for 100 miles in the deserts but have a pungent smell to irritate the horses that they are scared to come closer to the camels.
But hygiene is the essential thing everyone can take care of, but horses are primarily the prey mammals and run away from every big terrifying object they think could harm them in any way.
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