Do you know how big a horse’s heart is? Believe it or not, it is much bigger than you might think.
In this blog post, we will explore the size of a horse’s heart and why it is so important for them to have such a large organ.
We will also discuss how you can care for your horse’s heart and keep it healthy.
How Big is a Horse’s Heart?
The average horse’s heart weighs between nine and eleven pounds. That is about twice the size of a human heart.
Horses have very different anatomy than humans. Their hearts are located more to the left side of their body, and their lungs are much smaller in comparison. This allows their heart to have more room to grow.
The size of a horse’s heart is directly related to how much blood it can pump. And how much blood they can pump is determined by how active they are.
Why Do Horses Need Such Big Hearts?
Horses are very active animals and need a lot of oxygen to fuel their muscles. Their large hearts help them pump more blood to get their needed oxygen.
Horses also have a lot of muscles, and they use them frequently. This means their hearts have to work harder than the average human heart.
Fun facts About horse heart
There are many fun facts about horse heart. Lets see some major facts about horse heart.
Horse Heart Rate
A horse’s heart beats between thirty and forty times per minute when they are at rest. When they are running, their heart rate can increase to one hundred beats per minute.
All that blood has to go somewhere and horses have a very efficient circulatory system. Seventy percent of the blood pumped by their heart goes to their muscles. The remaining thirty percent goes to the rest of their body.
Horse Heart Weight
The weight of a horse’s heart is directly related to how big they are. The larger the horse, the heavier their heart will be.
A draft horse, like a Clydesdale, can have a heart that weighs up to fifteen pounds. That is almost three times the size of a human heart.
The largest heart ever recorded belonged to a Shire horse and it weighed twenty-one pounds. That is the size of a small child’s heart.
