In addition, a horse's kick can transfer a force of more than 10 000 Newtons to the body, causing fractures of the skull or other bones as well as devastating damage to the intestines.
A kick to the arm or leg can cause a fracture, the bone will show deformity and the casualty will tell you where it hurts! A nasty kick to the chest or stomach could result in internal bleeding.
“Kicks by other horses remain the leading cause of fractures to long bones, such as the tibia and radius,” shared Catherine Whitehouse, M.S., of Kentucky Equine Research (KER). Kicks are also to blame for orbital fractures, coronary band wounds, and hematomas.
Horse kick injuries tend to be severe, because the transfer of energy from the end of the hoof, with a small cross‐sectional area, to a small field, leads to internal organic injuries that are more severe than predicted, similar to a handlebar injury.
A kick from a horse, if it catches you right in the abdomen, chest, or head, can definitely kill you. Being hit with a full-force kick is similar to being hit by a small car going 20 mph. The estimated force of a full-force kick is upwards of 2000 PSI.
Strongest Kick: Zebra — Kicks With About 3,000 Pounds of Force. Due to the power of its kick, a fully grown zebra is able to kill an adult male African lion with one blow. Between the well-known force behind the kick of a red kangaroo and a giraffe, you might be surprised to read that the zebra beats them both.
Fragmented wood caused by a kick can cut a horse; a horse could get his hoof caught in a kicked hole in a wall; and, if he succeeds in breaking down enough wall, he (and other horses) could escape their enclosure. “Imagine the horse that kicks through the wall that separates him from the feed storage room,” Fürst said.
A horse's kick is extremely powerful and can cause severe, even fatal injuries. Many riders have experienced broken bones, deep lacerations from a hoof, and even cardiac arrest if the kick landed on their chest. It is also extremely possible to suffer from head injuries that can be fatal if the impact was extreme.
Horseback riding accidents and injuries caused by horses carry a high risk of severe trauma. In addition, a horse's kick can transfer a force of more than 10 000 Newtons to the body, causing fractures of the skull or other bones as well as devastating damage to the intestines.
If he kicks out, don't panic. Just keep soothing him with your voice and stroking him, until you can stroke a little way down the leg without him lifting it. Then stop and let him rest. Chill-out time is a must to take the pressure off.
Because horses can not stay off their feet for long periods, broken bones do not have a chance to heal, and so often sadly the kindest way to help a horse with a broken limb is to put it down.
Emergency room personnel have likened the destructive potential of an equine kick to that of the impact of a small automobile moving at 20 miles per hour. A kick can shatter bones and traumatize soft tissue. In fact, medical journals document people going into cardiac arrest after sustaining a kick to the chest.
A horse has more weight behind his kick than the kangaroo. However, that said, the kangaroo has velocity and inertia that the horse doesn't have. Neither one would be good. Being kicked by a kangaroo can open you up the same way a deer's hoof will because of its sharp edges.
Message: “I feel threatened.”
At its most primal level, the equine kick is a defensive weapon. Horses in the wild can and often do repel predators by lashing out with their hooves. This response is instinctive so, depending on the situation, you may see it with even the most placid and agreeable horses.
Too often, riders are determined to make their horses go with a swift kick or two (or three). At best, the horse lurches forward with arched back and raised neck, scrambling to get his legs underneath him despite being thrown to the forehand.
Zebras With a Deadly Kick
They defend themselves by using their powerful hind limbs to kick back at predators. It is thought that they can deliver up to 3,000 psi and that they have the most powerful kick in the animal kingdom.
Even a draft horse can't generate much more than a hard shove abou a foot behind it. If they can get full extension of its legs though, they can kick much, much harder. horses also kick much higher than a cow.
In 1 retrospective study of 47 radial fractures, the most frequently reported cause was a kick from another horse. Comminuted fractures were most common, accounting for 21 of the 47 fractures (6).
Generally speaking, horses are larger and thus more powerful than donkeys and the kick from a horse would be stronger. On the other hand, the kick from a small horse who is weak or doesn't have good muscle tone would be much weaker than a kick from a mammoth donkey.
Striking occurs when your horse uses its front feet and legs to kick. This kicking can be towards other horses, objects or even people. Many times, striking becomes a habit that can cause dangerous situations for your horse and for yourself.
Standing behind a horse is also unsafe, as they have a blind spot there as well. When standing close to the horse, standing next to the horse's body is the safest.
Hitting. Hitting a horse with your hand, or any object is rarely an effective method of correction. The horse is unlikely to understand that you are punishing it for unwanted behavior and it may become fearful, or rebellious, depending on its nature.
But whatever their age, it's vital to wait until the horse's joints are developed enough to support the weight of a rider before breaking them in. Breaking in can typically take around four to six weeks, but it can require up to 10 weeks if the horse needs more time or if you just want to take it slowly.
The strongest horse breed is considered to be the Belgian. Besides them, some other strong breeds are the Shire, Suffolk Punch, Ardennes, and Percheron.