A colt is a
male horse
The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million yea ...
, usually below the age of four years.
Description
The term "colt" only describes young male horses and is not to be confused with
foal, which is a horse of either sex less than one year of age. Similarly, a
yearling
Yearling may refer to:
*Yearling (horse), a horse between one and two years old
*''The Yearling
''The Yearling'' is a novel by American writer Marjorie Kinnan Rawlings, published in March 1938. It was the main selection of the Book of the Mo ...
is a horse of either sex between the ages of one and two. A young female horse is called a
filly, and a
mare once she is an adult animal. In
horse racing, particularly for
Thoroughbred
The Thoroughbred is a horse breed best known for its use in horse racing. Although the word ''thoroughbred'' is sometimes used to refer to any breed of purebred horse, it technically refers only to the Thoroughbred breed. Thoroughbreds are ...
s in the United Kingdom, a colt is defined as an uncastrated male from the age of two up to and including the age of four.
The term is derived from
Proto-Germanic *''kultaz'' ("lump, bundle, offspring") and is
etymologically related to "child."
An adult male horse, if left intact, is called either a "
stallion" if used for breeding, or a horse (sometimes full horse); if
castrated
Castration is any action, surgical, chemical, or otherwise, by which an individual loses use of the testicles: the male gonad. Surgical castration is bilateral orchiectomy (excision of both testicles), while chemical castration uses pharmac ...
, it is called a
gelding. In some cases, particularly informal nomenclature, a gelding under four years is still called a colt. A rig or
ridgling is a male equine with a retained testicle or one which has been incompletely castrated.
In the wild, colts are driven from their herds by the herd stallion somewhere between the age of one and two. This may be, in part, an instinct to prevent
inbreeding. When driven out, they usually join with other young stallions in a
bachelor herd. They stay with this band until they are mature enough to form their own herd of mares. The terms "rag" or "rake" have been historically used to refer to a group of colts, but they have fallen out of modern usage.
['']Oxford English Dictionary
The ''Oxford English Dictionary'' (''OED'') is the first and foundational historical dictionary of the English language, published by Oxford University Press (OUP). It traces the historical development of the English language, providing a co ...
'' 1933: Rag
References
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Types of horse
Male horses