The human and horse parts' growth speed is different in centaurs. Why is that flaw still present?

So, centaurs are half-human, half-horse creatures that are usually portrayed in myth as wild, violent and animalistic. Now, I, Lucretius, found a good explanation why.

The answer is in the growth speeds. Centaurs act like horny 16-year-olds, because they ARE horny 16-year-olds with an adult horse for a lower body.

Horses reach maturity at age 6, however you see, centaurs' human bodies are somewhat different and more muscular than humans' since they have to keep the torso straight while running, not to mention all the leaning they have to do. So, developing the human half slows down the much faster growth speed of the horse (and expands the lifespan well into 50-60 years, for some reason).

It's not as bad as it sounds. Unlike exaggerated myth, they aren't trying to cause harm and as long as your remember to water down any alcoholic drink you give them, especially since equines have trouble with breaking down poison and are comically easy to kill, there shouldn't be any major trouble. Accidents still happen, usually a broken leg...

That being said I don't really get why centaurs would have this discrepancy in their growth speeds. They aren't prey animals, which here almost immediately makes them apex predators, plus they form communities up in forested hills. There's more reason for them to grow slow.

So what benefit could this faster growth speed have that's significant enough to outweigh the negative?

posted over 4 years ago

Mephistopheles‭

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