North Swedish Horse

Intro

The Nordsvensk Brukshäst or North Swedish Horse is a relatively new breed officially, it’s bloodlines only being just over 100 years old. They come from similar genetics as Dole horses both of them descendants of the ancient Scandinavian horse.

Origins

The old bloodlines of the North Swedish have been found in the region for a long time, their grandchildren the modern mountain type heavy horse found in northern countries. There have been times when their genetics have almost left us, but luckily there were breeders dedicated to keeping them alive.

At the end of the 19th century, crossbreeding had almost bred them into extinction. So a dedicated veterinarian called Wilhelm Hallander Hedemora collected as many genetically pure animals as he could find to establish a nucleus herd. He wasn’t the only one concerned and soon the entire veterinary industry became involved. This provided them a network to keep an eye out countrywide for the purest bloodlines.

Unfortunately they could find very few suitable stallions for breeding and looked to the Døle breed as the most similar type. This worked and they were able to establish a small herd. They were given official breed status in 1900 and a stud book was established in 1909.

By 1924 the North Swedish Association had been developed as well with the intention of establishing standards and progressing the breed. In 1949 a Country Horse Day fair was arranged as an annual event to sets stallions and mares for registration.

There are two types found within the breed, draft and trotter.

Features

Average height 15.2 – 15.5 hands

Physique

Head is average in size but can be heavy with a straight profile
Neck is short and muscular
Back is long and wide
Chest is deep and wide
Legs are short and strong with broad joints and feathering at the fetlocks
Hooves are broad, round and strong