https://www.pitara.com/tags/horse-evolution/Recent content in Horse Evolution on Pitara Kids NetworkHugoen-usSat, 13 Jun 2026 21:46:31 +0530https://www.pitara.com/science-for-kids/5ws-and-h/how-did-the-modern-horse-originate/Mon, 27 Aug 2001 04:53:15 +0000https://www.pitara.com/science-for-kids/5ws-and-h/how-did-the-modern-horse-originate/<p>Many millions of years ago a fox-like animal roamed across the plains of what is now the American continent. At that time the continents were not even divided as they are today.</p> <p>This animal had four soft toes on its feet like a cat or dog. This animal came to be called the &rsquo;eohippus&rsquo; by modern day scientists who discovered skeletal fossils of this specie.</p> <figure class="image-medium has-caption"> <a href="https://www.pitara.com/media/horses-snow.jpg" aria-label="Link to larger image"> <img src="https://www.pitara.com/media/horses-snow_hu_2c240c3bcb4cd2b0.jpg" srcset="https://www.pitara.com/media/horses-snow_hu_8312441c752dab64.jpg 320w, https://www.pitara.com/media/horses-snow_hu_2c240c3bcb4cd2b0.jpg 900w" sizes="(min-width: 900px) 900px, 320px" alt="Horses running in snow" height="600" width="900" loading="lazy"> </a> <figcaption>Horses running in snow</figcaption> </figure> <p>The skeletal remains of this animal had many things in common with the skeletal structure of the modern horse, especially in the structure and distribution of its teeth. That is why scientists concluded that the eohippus is the ancestor of the modern horse even though the two don&rsquo;t even look alike.</p>