| What has stripes on its legs and an upright mane like a | | | | hair is cream or white. The forelock on mature horses |
| zebra? The answer is the Norwegian Fjord Horse, | | | | covers from one half to two thirds of the head. This |
| (pronounced "fee-yord" but compressed to a quickly | | | | two-toned mane is a unique characteristic rarely seen |
| spoken "fyord"), a short but very strong breed of | | | | on other horses with dun coloring. The mane kept |
| horse from the mountainous regions of western | | | | trimmed between 4 to 6 inches in a characteristic |
| Norway that is also known as "Vestlandshesten" (the | | | | crescent shape to emphasize the curve of the neck, |
| horse of the western country). It is one of the world's | | | | and to ensure that it will always stand erect even |
| oldest and purest domesticated equines with a long | | | | when wet. The lighter outer hair is then trimmed slightly |
| recorded history of no crossbreeding with other | | | | shorter than the dark inner dorsal hair to display the |
| horses. | | | | dramatic dark stripe down the center, which runs all |
| It is believed that the ancestors of the Fjord horse | | | | the way down the spine and into the core of the tail. |
| migrated into Norway from central Europe over 4000 | | | | Horizontal zebra stripes may occur on the legs and |
| years ago. It bears a striking resemblance to the | | | | are most noticeable and numerous on the forelegs. |
| horses painted on cave walls 30,000 years ago. | | | | They are the same color as the midtstol, but are of a |
| Archeological excavations at Viking burial sites indicate | | | | paler shade and tend to be more visible during the |
| that herds of wild Fjord horses existed in Norway | | | | summer. They may be indistinct or missing from pale |
| after the last ice age. It also appears that they were | | | | horses. They may also be missing in grе |
| domesticated over 3000 years ago, and that they | | | | horses, whose legs may be of the same color as the |
| were selectively bred for at least 2,000 years. The | | | | body, or darker up to the knees and hocks. Foals are |
| Norwegian Fjord horses were an important part of | | | | born without zebra-stripes, but after the baby coat is |
| Viking society, and may have been part of the | | | | shed out, that is when the stripes will appear, if they |
| founding stock for breeds like the Icelandic horse, as | | | | are going to appear at all. |
| well as native Celtic ponies in Britain, or vice versa. | | | | Sometimes there are small brown spots on the body, |
| Fjord Horses of today retain many of the color | | | | for example on the thigh or cheek. Occasionally there |
| characteristics and primitive markings of the | | | | may also be dark zebra-like stripes across and at right |
| Przewalski or Mongolian Wild Horse, from which many | | | | angles to the withers. |
| believe they are descended, but the Fjord is rather like | | | | White markings are not common in Norwegian Fjord |
| the European wild horse, the Tarpan, which is now | | | | horses and aside from a small white star on the |
| extinct in its natural state. The Fjord Horse could not | | | | forehead, they are considered undesirable. IN fact, at |
| have descended from the Przewalski Horse since the | | | | the 1982 meeting of Norges Fjordhestlag it was |
| Przewalski has 66 chromosomes, and the Fjord and | | | | decided that stallions and colts with other white |
| Tarpan have 64. | | | | markings can't be licensed. |
| Every Fjord Horse exhibits the "wild" dun color of the | | | | At the end of 1800's the Norwegian Fjord Horse nearly |
| ancestral horse as well as primitive markings which | | | | died out, though the reason is unknown. Today's |
| include zebra stripes on the legs and light feathering on | | | | horses all descend from a single surviving stallion, Njal |
| the hocks along with dark or striped hooves. A distinct | | | | 166, who was born 1891. In genetic terms he is known |
| dark dorsal stripe runs from the forelock down the | | | | as a founding stallion. His genes have influenced the |
| neck and back and into the tail. The ears have dark | | | | development of the entire breed as we know it today |
| edges and transverse stripes may also be seen over | | | | and are in all living Norwegian Fjord Horses. |
| the withers. Norwegian Fjord Horses maintain the | | | | Because so few individuals survived whatever |
| hardiness and vigor of their wild ancestors with | | | | calamity befell the breed, the genetic diversity of the |
| efficiency of feed conversion, maintaining excellent | | | | breed was severely reduced, and some alleles were |
| body condition on good pasture alone as well as on | | | | lost altogether, possibly including the AA and At alleles |
| sparse grazing. | | | | of the agouti locus. The breed went through what is |
| Today, it is one of the national symbols of Norway and | | | | called a genetic bottleneck, when the wild-type allele at |
| the tourist industry uses the Fjord horse as a | | | | the dun locus seems to have been lost, so that now all |
| representative of Norwegian culture. Fjord horses | | | | Norwegian Fjord Horses are dun. In this breed the dun |
| carry tourists back and forth to the breathtaking | | | | allele therefore is the only allele at the locus and is said |
| waterfalls and glaciers of Norway's scenic countryside, | | | | to be fixed (i.e. its frequency is 100%). |
| and are part of any tourist package in Norway that | | | | Color variations between the 5 duns are subtle and |
| includes horses. The Fjord horse appears on the civic | | | | hard to distinguish unless horses of different shades |
| crests for many regions of Norway and was also | | | | are standing side by side. The color terms are |
| represented at the 1994 Winter Olympics at | | | | non-standard compared to English terminology, the |
| Lillehammer as a cultural ambassador--along with two | | | | difference being based in part on the Norwegian |
| other native Norwegian breeds, the Dшle | | | | terms, which were set in 1922 and their English |
| horse and the Northlands horse--drawing carriages | | | | translations which were made official in 1980. In the |
| that transported competitors and celebrities to the | | | | Norwegian (Norsk) language, the darker stripe of hair in |
| different activities. | | | | the middle of the mane is called the "midtstol", while the |
| All breeding in Norway is controlled by a Norwegian | | | | darker hair in the middle of the tail is the |
| government agency, Norges Fjordhestlag and Norsk | | | | "halefjжr". |
| Hestesenter (NHS or Norwegian Horse Centre) | | | | Brunblakk is the most common color. In 2005, 90% of |
| Exportation of Fjord horses is carefully controlled to | | | | all registered Norwegian Fjord Horses were brunblakk. |
| ensure that only champion stock leaves the country. | | | | Rшdblakk is the equivalent of red dun. It can |
| The Fjords now have registries in Canada, the United | | | | be difficult to tell the difference between a brown and |
| States, Great Britain, Germany, the Netherlands, | | | | a red dun. Rшdblakk foals may be born with |
| Belgium, Denmark and Sweden. Approximately | | | | white hooves that darken over time. Although |
| twenty-two Fjords have been imported to the United | | | | grе means gray in Norwegian, |
| States, most of them in the middle 1950's. Since 1981, | | | | grе dun horses are actually black dun |
| the Fjord breed has been tracked in the U.S. by the | | | | horses, or occasionally smoky black dun (i.e. black with |
| Norwegian Fjord Horse Registry (NFHR) and in | | | | both cream and dun dilution). Grе is not the |
| Canada by the Canadian Fjord Horse Association | | | | conventional gray that causes graying over time, but |
| (CFHA). | | | | they range from pale silver gray to dark slate gray. |
| Fjords generally range in size from 13.1 to 14.2 hands | | | | Ulsblakk is the equivalent of buckskin dun. Originally |
| and weigh between 900 and 1,200 pounds. Technically, | | | | ulsblakk was the most common color of registered |
| the Norwegian Fjord horse should be classified as a | | | | Fjord horses and was also called borket, but its |
| pony, but they are always referred to as horses in | | | | popularity waned due to the production of kvit foals |
| Norway and so the trend has continued world-wide. | | | | when ulsblakk horses were bred together. Gulblakk is |
| The extraordinary power for their small size enables | | | | the equivalent of palomino dun and the rarest colors of |
| Fjords to be used for all types of riding, driving and | | | | all. Kvit is the equivalent of cremello or perlino dun. It is |
| draft work. | | | | a rare color due to intentional selection against it, and |
| The gaits of the Norwegian Fjord horse should be | | | | they glass (blue or wall) eyes. The color could be |
| energetic, with good balance and cadence with | | | | produced by crossing gulblakk with either ulsblakk or |
| sufficient elasticity to perform an effortless walk, trot | | | | gulblakk; or by crossing two ulsblakk horses together. |
| and canter. The trot is energetic, but excessive action | | | | In spite of the small gene pool, the only genetic fault |
| is not considered typical for the breed. | | | | reported in the Fjord horse was a condition that was |
| The extremely gentle disposition of the Fjord Horse, | | | | observed in the 1980's known as hereditary lethal |
| their cool temperament, curious, active character, | | | | arthrogryposis (muscle contracture). It was observed in |
| loyalty and overall versatility, both under saddle and in | | | | female foals that were all sired by a stallion named |
| harness, make them the ideal family horse. When | | | | Bingo. This stallion was quite normal in appearance but |
| properly trained, they will do any task. | | | | the defective foals were born with contracted legs, |
| One of the most unique characteristics of the | | | | extra limbs and jaw defects including cleft palate and |
| Norwegian Fjord Horse is the naturally growing upright | | | | parrot mouth. It has not been a problem in recent |
| mane. A dark, usually black, dorsal stripe runs through | | | | years. |
| the center or core of the mane, while the outer fringe | | | | |