Fjord Horse

The Fjord horse is a breed that originally comes from Norway, where it also called vestlandshest. It is now all over Scandinavia, elsewhere in Europe, and in the United States where it is very popular. The Fjord horse is counted as one of the world’s most popular breeds and also one of the most common in Sweden. This may depend on the particular color with the white-black mane that often stumps, but also on the fjord horse’s excellent mood.

Fjord horse is considered to be descendants of the ancient Scandinavian pony breed, called Tatar ponies, which formed large herds and evolved into a breed. Migrations with both Norwegian and Swede ponies had to be influenced by other breeds. Fjord horse also show great similarity with the Mongolian wild Przewalski horse, which may prove to have made a crusade between Asia and Europe during the Ice Age.

Horses with features of the fjord horses have been found on rune stones, which are dated way back to Viking times. Fjord horses must have been the Vikings’ favorite horses, and they were often used in combat and in a brutal sport of horse fighting where the stallions were fighting each other, sometimes until one of them died. It is also stated that Odin’s horse, Sleipner, was a fjord horse. At Oslo’s city hall is a picture of Sleipner, where he undoubtedly is depicted as a fjord ding. During this time, many fjord horses went between Norway and Britain, where they among other things were used in the development of a horse very similar to the Highland pony.

In 1890, two fjord stallions were imported to the Hebrides to improve the local horse tribes; many horses were also imported from Germany and Denmark. In Denmark, they are immensely popular and the most common horse breed, although Denmark has many fine domestic horse breeds. The first club was founded in Sweden in 1961, Swedish fjord horse association.

Attributes

The Fjord horse is one of tradition stumps. Of all the modern horse breeds, the fjord horse most resembles the Asiatic wild horse. When the horses participate in funeral processions, the white hair is cut a little shorter than the black hair, hence the name Clip sad edge.

Fjord horse’s color is called black, varying from dark brown to white. The light brown color is the most common, but red-black is also relatively common. Fjord horses should not have any white markings; stallions with white markings can not be approved for breeding. Shoulder height can vary between 120 and 160 cm, but usually they are 135-150 cm.

In Norway, the fjord horse is used as a pack horse, a riding horse, and a carriage horse. The horse’s strength and endurance is an asset when riding. It usually has a very good temperament and is good with children. The Fjord horse is competing successfully in show jumping, dressage and driving, and is all-around very emphasized. They are ideal for endurance in races up to 16 miles.