十二生肖中包括与人类关系非常密切的六种动物:马、牛、羊、鸡、犬、猪,俗称六畜。马在六畜中居首,但其被人类驯化的时间却最晚,在我国,当开始于距今约四、五千年的龙山文化时期,也就是新石器时代晚期。考古挖掘证明而外,我国典籍也有记述,如《易·系辞下》:“服牛乘马,引重致远,以利天下。”说的就是牛与马的驯化。《新唐书·王求礼传》:“自轩辕以来,服牛乘马。”轩辕即中原各族的共同祖先黄帝。 The zodiac includes six animals that are closely related to humans: horses, cattle, sheep, chickens, dogs and pigs, commonly known as the six domestic animals. Horses predominate in the domestic animals, but their domesticated time is at the latest, in our country, starting from the Longshan period of about four to five thousand years ago, the late Neolithic period. Archaeological excavations prove that there are also records of Chinese classics, such as “Easy Quotations”: “serving cattle by horse, leading by far to the benefit of the world.” “It is the domestication of cattle and horses. ”New Book of Tang Wang Li Li Chuan“: ”Since Xuanyuan, serve cattle by horse.“ ”Xuanyuan is the common ancestor of all ethnic groups in the Central Plains Huangdi.