# What's the deal with little girls and horses? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 22, 2000, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383 "2000-11-22T23:05:02Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Turpentine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ecd19e/32.png) [@Turpentine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turpentine)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2000, 11:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/1 "2000-11-22T23:05:02Z")
Yeah, this is a really inane thread, but I’m bored. I was musing over how little girls like horses. It’s really odd if you think about it. What makes horses a feminine interest? Are little boys viewed as Percys if they express an interest in Equestrianism (Is that a word?)? I suppose the rules are different for children who grew up in rural areas where they are in contact with horses on a frequent basis. And unicorns- why are they girly? A unicorn looks like it should be capable of inflicting serious damage if it wanted to, impaling little elves and the like- stomped bloody green elf-guts are kinda boyish. And then I wonder why it was that I never liked horses as a kid, or unicorns, but now I like the movie Legend. That’s odd- i somehow got more girly as i grew up. Sorry I’m so bland. I feel bland. Horses appear to be kinda dumb to me, though. I think I read once somewhere that cows are actually smarter. ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2000, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/2 "2000-11-22T23:08:46Z")
Desmond Morris had some interesting thoughts on it. I can’t do them justice in trying to repeat them. Just wait til his series shows up again on TLC, once they finish will all these UFO documentaries. And for a lot of the older girls, it’s the only opportunity a lot of them will ever have of having a massive beast rubbing between their legs. (I’m just telling you what I’ve been told. . . .) ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2000, 11:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/3 "2000-11-22T23:09:25Z")
You know, I’ve never understood this either. I don’t have an answer, I’m just bored. And are cows really smarter than horses? We should train them to race, then - I’d go to the track any day to see a cow race. ---
**Author:** ![magdalene](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df788c/32.png) [@magdalene](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magdalene)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2000, 11:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/4 "2000-11-22T23:10:13Z")
I don’t know - I wish Daddy had been able to buy a giant sweaty animal vibrator for me, but we were poor. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Persephone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2000, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/5 "2000-11-22T23:17:37Z")
I gre up in a city that calls itself “the horse capital of the world.” I don’t know why it was called that. Sure, there’s a whole bunch of horses there, but I’m sure other cities out west have more. Me, I was never in to horses. Too much work, if you ask me. I’ve ridden a little (maybe three or four times), and it was kinda fun, but I never did get all geared up like most of my friends did. As for unicorns, well, they’re pretty and magical and all, but I was never way in to them, either. ---
**Author:** ![Ann\_Onimous](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ea5d25/32.png) [@Ann\_Onimous](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ann_Onimous)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2000, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/6 "2000-11-22T23:22:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Persephone \* > \*\*I gre up in a city that calls itself “the horse capital of the world.” I don’t know why it was called that. Sure, there’s a whole bunch of horses there, but I’m sure other cities out west have more. > \*\* Uh… could that be Lexington, KY? I was wondering, cause I grew up near there… ---
**Author:** ![Hanna](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b3f665/32.png) [@Hanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hanna)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/7 "2000-11-23T00:03:32Z")
I’m a big girl who still loves horses. Some girls outgrow their obsession when they discover boys, I just took a short recess. I read an interesting article about the subject.[Girls and horses](http://www.vetcentric.com/magazine/magazineArticle.cfm?ARTICLE=For%20the%20Love%20of%20Horses) ---
**Author:** ![dwyr](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dwyr/32/363_2.png) [@dwyr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dwyr)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/8 "2000-11-23T00:04:59Z")
I live in Lexington now. I don’t know if there are any more horses here than other places but wow, Keeneland set a record in horse sales this year. Millions and millions of dollars. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/9 "2000-11-23T00:33:30Z")
I asked a friend & he said for clitorial massage. I almost fell over. ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/10 "2000-11-23T00:35:18Z")
I was never into horses in particular. As a child, I was a friend to all animals, great and small. Well, not bugs or snails. (Yes, I was a female as a child.) I was more a dog fanatic, though. Muhaha. Never so much into horses. ---
**Author:** ![Gunslinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/4491bb/32.png) [@Gunslinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gunslinger)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 1:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/11 "2000-11-23T01:11:02Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Zoggie \* > \*\*I was more a dog fanatic, though. Muhaha. \*\* :eek: ---
**Author:** ![robinh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b77776/32.png) [@robinh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robinh)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/12 "2000-11-23T01:48:48Z")
_…it’s the only opportunity a lot of them will ever have of having a massive beast rubbing between their legs._ The above (and probably, to a certain extent, accurate) point notwithstanding, I think the article **Boscibo** referenced explains it best. Your average preteen/teenage girl, faced with the reality that she is, on average, smaller and physically weaker than a good percentage of the population and is, in many cultures, cut off from many opportunities, may well appreciate the chance to control something much larger and more powerful than herself. I won’t even touch the unicorn, though. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Freudian\_Slit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/5daacb/32.png) [@Freudian\_Slit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Freudian_Slit)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/13 "2000-11-23T02:13:41Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Gunslinger \* > \*\*:eek: \*\* No!! That came off the wrong way…I really didn’t mean it to sound that strangely. I really didn’t this time. Don’t you make that face at me, I’m onto you whenever you do it. ---
**Author:** ![Edlyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8797f3/32.png) [@Edlyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Edlyn)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 3:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/14 "2000-11-23T03:06:46Z")
What’s the deal? I don’t think it’s anything that’s been expressed so far. I am a horse lover and always have been. So are my daughters who rode their first pony at age 2 1/2 and 5 years old. It was a great mother-daughter activity that we would do for a special treat. My youngest daughter bought a horse when she was in high school and boarded him at a nearby horse ranch where she also worked part-time. My attraction to horses is really quite simple. I love their strength, beauty, grace, and independent spirit. Each one has it’s own unique personality and when you earn their trust, you have a loyal companion. Horses are a bit cautious by nature and can be “spooked” by things they have not encountered before such as crossing through water or coming upon a downed tree limb on a path. I don’t consider such behaviour as being dumb. Hopefully I’ll be able to own a horse or two when we build our new home. I love the sense of freedom I feel when riding, as well as the feel of wind in my hair. If there were anything sexual about it, I guess that might be it. ---
**Author:** ![Persephone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecc23a/32.png) [@Persephone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Persephone)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/15 "2000-11-23T03:09:59Z")
> [@](#): > > Uh… could that be Lexington, KY? I was wondering, cause I grew up near there… No. Not even close. The town I grew up in is South Lyon, Michigan. Used to be a pretty hinky little place. Now it’s quite the bustling bedroom community. Sorry 'bout the hijack. Back to your horsey stuff! ---
**Author:** ![Mofo\_Rising](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Mofo\_Rising](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mofo_Rising)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/16 "2000-11-23T07:28:36Z")
I don’t know. I just recall the time I was at some party and they decided to throw in **The Princess Bride**. We get to the part where they say “The only pleasure Princess Buttercup got was in riding her horse around the kingdom.” I of course immediately retorted, “Oh, you know why.” Only one girl admitted to catching what I was talking about. I still think it’s pretty funny, but not really an answer to the question. ---
**Author:** ![Broken\_Doll](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bbce88/32.png) [@Broken\_Doll](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Broken_Doll)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 8:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/17 "2000-11-23T08:43:32Z")
I guess it’s just forced upon girls to like horses and ponies. I never, ever liked them, and always found the girls who did to be annoying and boring. ---
**Author:** ![lurkernomore](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@lurkernomore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lurkernomore)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/18 "2000-11-23T13:24:18Z")
hey, where’s our board unicorn?? ---
**Author:** ![Azazel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/838e76/32.png) [@Azazel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Azazel)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/19 "2000-11-23T14:45:07Z")
IIRC, part of the legend was that a Unicorn could only be approached/tamed by a virgin. I’ll wager this has something to do with the girls-horses rapport/love relationship. ---
**Author:** ![handy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b5a626/32.png) [@handy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/handy)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2000, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383/20 "2000-11-23T16:52:10Z")
Turpentine, I forgot to ask, are you talking about real live horses or just horse dolls, pictures, that sort of thing? Boys like horses too! When they get older they want them so thats why there were cars called ‘mustang’ & ‘pony’ etc. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-deal-with-little-girls-and-horses/42383.md?page=2)