About Norwegian Fjord Horses
Description of the Norwegian Fjord from Fjord Horse International (FHI)
BACKGROUND AND DESCRIPTION
The Fjordhorse, one of Norway’s three native breeds, is also one of the world’s oldest and purest breeds. Breeding took place mainly in the west of Norway so that the breed was also known as "Vestlandshesten" (the horse of the western country). Little is known about the origin of the breed. There are many similarities such as color and primitive markings between the feral Przewalski horse and the Fjord. The Fjord is rather like the European wild horse, the Tarpan, now extinct in its natural state. However, the Fjord Horse does not descend from the Przewalski Horse, as the Przewalski has 66 chromosomes, and the Fjord and Tarpan 64. It is most likely that the horse came to Norway from the east. There seem to have been wild horses in the south of Sweden and in Denmark since the last ice age. Archaeological excavations reveal that the horse was domesticated in the Bronze Age, circa 1200 BC. Viking burial grounds show that man had bred the horse for about 2000 years and it appears that the Fjord Horse is a descendant of the earliest horses in Norway. Through the ages there has been a great deal of contact between Norway, Iceland and the British Isles, and horses from these lands across the sea have surely influenced the development of the breed. Today the Fjord is to be found throughout Norway, but the majority is bred in the West. There is a widespread interest in the breed and a considerable number of Fjords are bred both in Europe and in the USA and Canada. According to the conference of Rio and the EU regulations for animal breeding, Norway is the “Mother country of the Fjord Horse”. Regarding to this fact Norges Fjordhestlag and Norsk Hestesenter strengthened their responsibility for the breed and started specificinternational promotion of the Fjord Horse. Characteristics DESCRIPTION OF THE FJORD HORSE The general appearance of the Fjord Horse shall be strongly built, hardy, well proportioned and athletic, a horse with great presence and charm. The horse shall be co-operative, dependable, willing, and calm in most situations and have natural, well-balanced movements. The Fjord shall be a versatile riding, driving and draught horse. The conformation of the Fjord should assure that he moves equally well in difficult terrain as on the flat. With these qualities the Fjord Horse should be easy to handle and suitable for family use, and in different activities as in riding schools, competitions and for leisure. COLORS AND MARKINGS The five accepted colors are brown dun, uls (white) dun, grey, red dun and yellow dun. It is important that the so-called primitive markings are appreciated and preserved. A star is only accepted on a mare. Other visible markings are not accepted. USES OF THE FJORD HORSE The Fjord is easy to feed, strong, tough but docile, with a capacity for working long hours, day after day under difficult conditions. This together with its versatility made the Fjord Horse very suitable for work on the small farms in the West Country long before mechanization began. Versatility is a key word when describing the Fjordhorse. Traditionally the Fjord has been used on the farm, moving timber as well as being used as a packhorse, or pulling the flight or the farm wagon. His good temperament, sure footedness and adaptability are a great advantage in the rugged country of the West. Many farmers also hired out their horses to tourists and the local priest or the doctor drove with their two-wheel carriage pulled by a Fjord Horse to their duties around the parish. In later years the Fjord became a popular leisure and family horse. The Fjord of today is bred for both riding and driving and is capable of performing well in driving and endurance riding and can also perform adequately in elementary dressage and cross-country jumping classes. The Fjord is used extensively in riding schools and riding for the disabled. The tourist industry along the West Country fjords of Norway has always used the Fjordhorse as an important means of transport and as a good representative for Norwegian culture with a today status of a national symbol. So the Fjordhorse was also represented in the Winter Olympics at Lillehammer in 1994 and with the two other Norwegian native breeds, the Døle horse and the Northlands horse safely drove many winning competitors and celebrities to the different activities. During the summers the Fjordhorse was and is carrying and driving many tourists back and forth to waterfalls and glaciers. |
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